Gremlins (1984) — Does It Hold Up?

On this episode of The Regular Guy Movie Show, we’re decking the halls with chaos, mayhem, and tiny green murder goblins as we revisit Gremlins (1984) — the Christmas movie that broke the MPAA, traumatized a generation, and proved that maybe some pets should come with an instruction manual.

What starts as a cute, fuzzy holiday gift quickly turns into a full-blown small-town disaster, complete with barroom brawls, exploding microwaves, and a body count the movie never really bothers to address. Along the way, we ask the important questions:
Who’s actually the hero here? Why does the main character barely speak? And how did Lynn Peltzer become the most competent action hero of the 1980s without anyone noticing?

What We Talk About

• Why Gremlins feels less like a complete movie and more like a collection of incredible scenes stitched together
• The movie’s wild tonal whiplash: cute → gory → goofy → deeply dark → back again
• How Gremlins (along with Temple of Doom) directly led to the creation of the PG-13 rating
• The baffling lack of agency and dialogue given to Billy, the supposed main character
• How random side characters — including snowplow drivers — get more personality than Billy
• The complete absence of consequences after Kingston Falls is basically destroyed
• Whether chaos alone is enough to carry a movie… and how much beer helps

Other things we talk about:

• The Gremlins Worst-Case Survival Quiz — real scenarios pulled from The Worst-Case Scenario Survival Handbook, because if gremlins took over your town, you’d better know how to jump into a dumpster correctly
• Pick Your Poison — would you rather rewatch Gremlins or go head-to-head with some of its most obvious cinematic cousins?

Final Verdict:

Gremlins is messy, chaotic, inconsistent, and occasionally brilliant.
It doesn’t always know what it wants to be, doesn’t bother tying up loose ends, and shrugs off the fact that a lot of people probably died.

It's not a great movie...but it gets a whole lot better if you start with a six-pack.

Thanks for listening, drinking along with us, and surviving another cinematic disaster.

If you enjoyed the episode, make sure to follow, subscribe, and leave a review.

And remember: be kind, don’t spill water, and never feed anything after midnight.

Listen to The Regular Guy Movie Show wherever you get your podcasts, and visit regularguymovieshow.com to suggest the next questionable classic we take on. While there, check out our blog or listen to previous show episodes.

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On this episode of The Regular Guy Movie Show, we dive head-first into Empire Records — a movie with a killer soundtrack, a mountain of nostalgia… and more structural problems than the building code should legally allow.

We revisit this 90s cult favorite with 30 years of life experience, far better taste in movies, and absolutely no patience for Lucas’s philosophical nonsense. Along the way, we confront the film’s chaotic tone, its missing 40 minutes, its baffling character decisions, and the bold creative choice to have Joe commit aggravated battery behind closed doors and then go right back to work like nothing happened.

And yes… we talk about Rex Manning Day. And yes… it’s as awkward as you remember.

• The Empire Records Rewatch Experience

Why this movie still feels fun, even when absolutely nothing in it makes sense anymore.

• Lucas: Agent of Philosophical and Financial Disaster

We try (and fail) to understand this man’s motivations, life choices, worldview, and math skills.

• Corey& A.J.: A Love Story Nobody Asked For

Meltdowns, amphetamines, terrible timing, and unclear motivations make this the least romantic romance ever filmed.

• Joe & Lucas: The Most Confusing Father-Son Dynamic Ever Written

Was he a foster kid? Why does Joe hit him? Why does nobody react to this? Why is Joe’s entire retirement plan destroyed by one teenager’s night of craps? We ask all the questions the movie doesn’t.

• The Soundtrack: Certified Banger After Banger

One of the only things the movie nails perfectly — and we celebrate it.

• Our “Grammarly Butchered Lyrics” Game

Iconic soundtrack songs rewritten like they were edited by an emotionally dead corporate proofreader. Justin and Brian suffer. You benefit.

Damn the Man. Save the Empire. Hydrate between beers.

Listen to The Regular Guy Movie Show wherever you get your podcasts, and visit regularguymovieshow.com to suggest the next questionable classic we take on. While there, check out our blog or listen to previous show episodes.

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On this episode of The Regular Guy Movie Show, the guys dive headfirst into Orgazmo — Trey Parker’s pre-South Park tale of a Mormon missionary turned porn superhero with a weaponized orgasm gun and a crisis of faith.

They unpack the film’s bizarre balance of purity and perversion, Trey Parker and Matt Stone’s early creative DNA, and whether the Orgazmorator should count as a legitimate superpower.
Expect discussions about moral compromise, religious satire, Hamster Style martial arts, and the power of friendship (and batteries).

In This Episode:

• The line between faith, fame, and very questionable career moves
• The genius and depravity of Trey Parker’s comedy style
• Plot holes you could fly a Cock Rocket through
• “Stunt Cock” ethics and other philosophical quandaries
• Magic Wand fixes that might’ve made this movie a cult legend
• The Porno Name Game gets way out of hand
• Beer ratings, Boddicker nominations, and one very sticky debate over whether Orgazmo actually holds up

Does Orgazmo still deliver its climax, or is it just 90 minutes of premature ambition?

Tune in, grab a beer, and prepare your moral compass — because this episode goes places no missionary should ever go.

Listen to The Regular Guy Movie Show wherever you get your podcasts, and visit regularguymovieshow.com to suggest the next questionable classic we take on. While there, check out our blog or listen to previous show episodes.

You can also follow us on the socials!

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