Gremlins questions!

So, anyone know where Gizmo from the movie Gremlins came from? Is he a forgotton species of Earth, or is he a visiting space alien?

 

He is an evil spirit. So he comes from wherever evil spirits come from.

 

Considering that the old Chinese man was the only one who knew anything about him, I'm assuming that Mogwai are a mystical/legendary race of beings that are rarely seen and possibly nearly extinct. It was never clear how many besides Gizmo there were, but it did seem like the natural tendency of Mogwai (the ones that he "birthed", at least) is toward evil.

So the real question is, I think, was Gizmo a "tamed" version of what was generally a malicious creature?

M. Scott

 

From what's evident in the films, it seems that the Mogwai is definately almost mystical and possibly mythical in nature. Gizmo is most definately the ideal incarnation of the Mogwai, compared to his 'brothers' when he's splashed with water and then later when they become the Gremlin. If you listen to Murry Futterman talk about the supersition (sp) of the Gremlins from WWII, you'd understand the basis for the films. What soliders thought was the result of invisible creatures was really the result of either poor/hasty craftmanship, bad luck or other more realistic issues.

 

I'd think its the other way around. Gizmo is the exception to the rule. Mogwai is Mandarin for evil spirit so either the old guy knew he was lucky to have Gizmo (maybe he beat him to get Gizmo so submissive ) or maybe the old guy had an ironic sense of humor and thought it would be funny to give something so nice an evil name.

There is no way to tell really we could debate it forever.

 

i love it in Gremlins 2 when they beat up Leonard Maltin and then the talking one starts singing New York, New York at the end

 

Workplace violence is a common reaction to a childhood filled with domestic violence.

 

Yeah, we never do that kind of thing around here.





M. Scott

 

The novelization of Gremlins -- take that as you will -- gives a backstory in which the Mogwai were created by aliens to be pets, but because of a rather glaring design flaw, they were eventually banned. Gizmo was one of only a handful that didn't exhibit the desire to become a gremlin. I don't remember how he got to Earth, but it has been twenty years since I read it.

 

I didn't know there was a novelization of Gremlins.

 

same here

 

It was a genre movie in the '80s. It'd be a surprise if it didn't have one. You can probably track it down in used bookstores -- I was in one Thursday and saw a copy, but I didn't do anything more than see who the author was (George Gipe, who also did the Back to the Future novelization).

 

I've got the novelization but never read it. Great movie, but the second one was pretty bad.

 

This might surprise some (and utterly fail to surprise others), but The New Batch was one of my favorite films of the 1990s. I think a lot of people were always put off by the fact that it was a very broad comedy. But mostly, the comedy worked for me. I still find some of it very quotable, not least that fire alarm. And then there's that cast: John Glover; Robert Picardo; even Christopher Lee!

 

I love both films. Even had a Gizmo doll when I was five. As to the novelizations, those kinds of things exist for most movies. But unlike Star Wars, they're not constantly kept in print. You'll really have to search to find them. Used book stores or online auctions.

I don't think aliens is a good explaination as to the origin of the Mogwai and Gremlin. I'm glad it was never used. It's better being mysterious. Almost nature's unusual gifts. A fully realized version of Pandora's Box, for lack of a better analogy.