Question: What exactly is meant by never feed them "after midnight". Every moment of time that does not happen right at midnight may be construed as happening after midnight...even 11:59PM which occurs 23 hours 59 minutes and 59 seconds AFTER the preceding midnight. I would assume that the afternoon hours are considered before midnight, but does anyone know the exact extent of "after midnight"?
Question: I have the original VHS version and I've noticed that some cuss words have dubbed over on the DVD. Yet The original VHS is still rated PG any reason why, other than the fact to make it more of a family film.
Answer: The original film was released before the PG-13 rating existed (it was one of the films responsible for its creation). Producers decided to remove some of the language and violence for the DVD release to avoid complaints about the PG rating.
Question: Why does the video cover say "We're back"? It's the first film.
Answer: I have the VHS from the 80's. 100% it says we're back.
Answer: I just looked at the cover on cdcovers.cc and it actually says "We're Here", not "We're Back". On Gremlins 2 - The New Batch it says "Here they grow again".
Question: If Gizmo is not allowed to come in contact with water, then how is he so clean? Since they can't wash him, wouldn't he be smelly and covered in grime?
Chosen answer: In the original script it was mentioned that mogwais could not reproduce if the water was below 25° (which is why the snow doesn't cause them to multiply). So it's feasible they could be washed with ice water. In addition, there are other methods of cleaning that don't require water (e.g. dry cleaning).
Answer: There's a possibility that Mr. Wing, Gizmo's first caretaker, used dry shampoo to keep him clean.
Answer: Google "dust bath" it's something a number of small animals do to keep clean in the absence of water (pet animals too, like chinchillas).
Question: According to imdb.com Jerry Goldsmith composed the music for the film. But I ran across a copy of the soundtrack which names Danny Elfman as the composer. I have also seen him credited for the music in both "Gremlins" films on several occasions, both on TV and online. Why is Elfman getting credit if Goldsmith composed the music?
Answer: It's hard to get a definite answer to this, as I've found conflicting answers online. However, by 1984 Danny Elfman hadn't done much composing, with his musical work largely restricted to songs as part of his band. As such I'd think it was unlikely he composed the Gremlins score. No music from the Gremlins films are on either of his compilation CDs either. The closest thing to a reason I can find for the mis-crediting is that on the Gremlins 2 DVD one of the deleted scenes apparently has some music from "Beetljuice" (which Elfman scored) used over it, which may have led to the confusion.
Goldsmith also had a cameo in the film (as did Steven Spielberg) as the man at the phone, while Spielberg rolls around on some sort of bicycle-type vehicle.
Answer: I purchased the Gremlins theme on my iPhone, listed under Danny Elfman, and it's the original theme. I'm guessing Danny bought the rights.
Any Gremlin theme song you bought with Elfman's name attached was mislabeled. He didn't buy the rights to any of the songs Goldsmith created.
Question: Is the building used as the outside of the school in the film, the same one they used for the courthouse in Back to the Future 2? If so, how did they remove the lake? (the one Marty falls into during his escape from Griff's gang).
Answer: According to IMDB, the town sets for Gremlins and BTTF were both shot on the same set. But since Gremlins came out well before Future 2, they would have actually added the pond.
Question: Looking at the Gremlin-filled theater, there seems to be a definite line between the last row of white seats and first row if red seats in the middle, as if two scenes were super imposed. Is this a filming error?
Chosen answer: There is a walkway in between those seats, hence why they are separated like that.
Question: I have 2 questions. When Billy takes the mogwai to his science teacher to demonstrate how they multiply, is it Gizmo that he drips the water on? Or is it one of the first five? Also what happens to him when he changes into a gremlin? Is it safe to assume that he ended up joining with the others? I don't recall the movie ever explaining what happened to him when he escaped through the air vent.
Chosen answer: It is one of the first five. You can easily tell after he drops the water on it, the 2 gremlins are on either side of the box communicating with each other. They show them both and neither is Gizmo. As for what happened after it escaped in the air vent, it never shows so we assume it joined the others.
Question: This movie is quite violent and carries a PG rating, further is is located in the "Family Section" of my local video store. Can someone explain the conflicting aspects of this?
Answer: The movie is famous for the uproar it created over its violent content, and was one of the films responsible for the creation of the PG-13 rating. As the PG-13 rating didn't exist at the time of Gremlins' release, but its content wasn't serious enough for an R, it was rated PG.
Question: I own a copy of the DVD, and the cover says "We're back". Why does it say this? It's the first film.
Question: Why does Billy not tell anyone about his teacher's attack?
Answer: Gremlins have hatched and are about to start attacking the town and he's trying to stop them. Reporting a corpse is relatively low-priority in comparison to that.
The gremlins didn't start attacking the town until late at night but Mr. Hanson's murder occurred during the daytime. There would still be plenty of time to call the police and inform them of Hanson's death.
Again, it's low-priority, and there is definitely not "plenty of time." Billy realises that the cocoons have hatched and has to rush home to save his mom, and then Stripe immediately escapes, so he has to follow Stripe and try to stop him... and then Stripe multiplies and Billy realises the town is about to be overrun. Reporting a corpse can wait. Would you stop and take the large amount of time needed to report a dead body when your mother is in mortal danger or the town is about to be overrun?
Chosen answer: The precise cut-off point is never stated - I've generally assumed that the embargo on feeding finishes once the sun comes up.
Tailkinker ★