I remember that as well. I read it way back then but it stuck with me. It was actually a well written book considering it was a movie novelization. To this day I also remember that there was chapter that was just two words long, “Pete Forgot” (IIRC, he forgot to tell their science teacher not to feed the Mogwai he was testing after midnight).
Being deliberately silly and signalling that the story is not supposed to make sense. The scariness of the gremlins was always mixed with humour.
You know, Gizmo’s cute and cuddly bit is just an act.
The sequel addresses some of the questions brought up in this thread. One scene has a guy questioning the dietary restrictions - how long after midnight, what happens if it’s on a plane and crosses the international dateline, what if a gremlin ate before midnight but had food lodged in its teeth.
Unfortunately we never hear the answers to these questions because a gremlin pops out of the wall and eats him.
(I love the outtakes!)
Heh. Good point.
Marlitharn, an act?! NO! Gizmo LOVES us all!
I’ll agree with that. Even thirty years later, Joe Dante managed to hit the perfect humor: horror ratio.