Gremlin (2017) - A Different Little Monster

"Gremlin" (2017) is no relation to the 1984 classic we all know and love with the exception of the size of the titular creature.  So, for little monster fans, it might have caught your interest already.  I  put off watching it for awhile, because generally I like my monsters big and destructive.

True to the cover art, the Gremlin in this movie is a relentless, unstoppable,  killing machine.  And the idea that the only way to get it off your back is to "give it to someone you love" is a cruel twist that makes the beastie that much more frightening.  

The monster's design is sort of a love it or hate it kind of thing.  It's like a backwards walking Alien Facehugger without a tail.  It's head is very small.  It's full of teeth, but the mouth is so tiny, it's hard to take it seriously as a threat until  you see the aftermath of an attack.

There are some things involved with how the box and the Gremlin work that are never really explained. Or maybe I just missed the explanation.  Like, there's a "timer", but it doesn't seem to have any regular time intervals for when it opens the box and it certainly doesn't wait until "the timer runs out" to unleash the creature.  Seems more like a victim count leading to a more threatening end.  We're not told if it resets when it's "given to someone you love".  Also, the idea that you're passing on the curse to someone you love becomes more of a conflict as the creature works its way through the people around you during "the countdown".  So, the ones you love may fall prey to it, whether you give it to them or not.  

There's a fair amount of action in the movie once it gets going.  One or two relentless chase scenes.  A few "a-ha" moments and a finale that was really unexpected.

Overall, most of the acting was pretty solid stuff, but there was a problem.  I didn't like many of the characters and unlike most horror movies, the most likeable people (for me anyway) seemed to be among the earliest victims, leaving you with people you'd as just as soon see get munched on by a backwards walking, tailless facehugger.  

The special F/X and other production values are fine for a movie of this type and budget.  In fact, better than I would have expected.  Think current British sci-fi TV quality.

For monster fans, this is definitely an acceptable way to pass the time.  It may not be a movie I'd rush to watch, but when  you want something you haven't seen before, you can certainly do worse than "Gremlin" for horrific monster action.