Gamera 3: Revenge of Iris (1999)

In a small Japanese village, a young woman discovers the means for her revenge, while Gyaos birds are sighted around the world and humankind debates Gamera's allegiance.

Director:

Shûsuke Kaneko

Writers:

Kazunori Itô, Shûsuke Kaneko

Stars:

Shinobu Nakayama, Ai Maeda, Yukijirô Hotaru

1 win.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Shinobu Nakayama	...	Mayumi Nagamine
Ai Maeda	...	Ayana Hirasaka
Yukijirô Hotaru	...	Inspector Tsutomu Osako
Ayako Fujitani	...	Asagi Kusanagi
Senri Yamazaki	...	Mito Asakura
Tôru Tezuka	...	Shin'ya Kurata
Yuu Koyama	...	Tatsunari Moribe
Nozomi Andô	...	Miyuki Moribe - Tatsunari's Younger Siser
Kei Horie	...	Shigeki Hinohara - Ayana's Cousin
Norito Yashima	...	Sakurai
Hirotarô Honda	...	Mr. Saito
Aki Maeda	...	Young Ayana
Hiroyuki Watanabe	...	Regimental Commander
Yukie Nakama	...	Female Camper
Kunihiko Mitamura	...	Ayana's Father

Storyline

This final installment of the recent Gamera trilogy begins with schoolgirl Ayana discovering a large egg in a cave that, according to legend, houses demons. The egg hatches into a small monster, which Ayana decides to raise and quickly develops as psychic bond with. As Ayana's monster, named Iris, grows to adulthood, the flying turtle Gamera begins to take an interest in this new potential threat. Who will be the victor in the final battle, and how much of Japan will be left standing at the end?

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Plot Keywords:

gamera | japan | revenge | japanese | kaiju | 

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Taglines:

I will not forgive Gamera.

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Genres:

Action | Horror | Sci-Fi

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Did You Know?

Trivia

Director Kaneko has mentioned that he wanted to give the relationship between the girl Ayana and the monster Iris a more spiritual connotation as he felt that there was a lack of spirituality among the Japanese youth.

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Goofs

When the women are giving Ayana CPR, they are pushing down on her abdomen rather than her chest.

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Quotes

Mayumi Nagamine: Every creature, however unappealing, fights to the last to survive. Humanity as well.

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Connections

Featured in WatchMojo: Top 20 Greatest Giant Movie Monster Fights of All Time (2020)

User Reviews

Gamera's final stand.

Everyone's favorite flying, fire-breathing turtle is back, this time facing a threat unlike anything this world has ever seen. Old faces return alongside strange new ones in this dark, epic climax to the Gamera trilogy.

Plot: The Gyaos have returned, newly evolved and multiplying like crazy around the world. As if that isn't bad enough, a new foe has emerged, one who has been bred by the hate of a teenage girl who harbors a grudge against Gamera for accidentally killing her parents in the first film. This new creature is called Iris (named after the girl's deceased pet cat), a mysterious armored, blood-sucking squid creature with immense destructive power and a genetic link to the Gyaos. With the military once again hunting Gamera, will all this be too much for the Guardian of the Universe?

The stakes are raised and so is the severity of the violence. Tons of people are laid waste as the monsters battle each other for supremacy, destroying everything in their path. It's great. Gamera looks really fearsome, looking as if he will stop at nothing until all his monstrous enemies are destroyed. He even has some new tricks up his giant sleeve. Iris is a fascinating creature, bringing a sense of both awe and dread to his presence, especially when he's flying. In fact, he reminds me of an Angel from "Evangelion". It's nice seeing some of the old cast in this one like Gamera's human companion Asagi, who has really grown as a character. Some the new characters are interesting while others are strange, which is why sometimes I feel that this film may appeal to goths. The star here is Ayana, whose backstory and hatred for the turtle and backstory allow her to stand out from the rest of the cast.

I do have problems with this one. I didn't like how some people, military included, now want Gamera dead again. Come on, the Gyaos, certified man-eaters, have returned and yet their too busy complaining about the damage Gamera causes while he's trying to kill them. Even a fortune teller believes Gamera is some evil spirit. What evil spirit saves people? Furthermore, this causes Ayana's hatred to blend in with theirs, which, given the main conflict, should not be the case; the film would've been better served if she was the only one with a serious grudge. Plus, once again Gamera takes quite a bit of punishment. I'm tired that. At this time, he should be dishing out lot more damage to his enemies, especially with his trademark fire breath.

For all its problems, Gamera 3 is still worth the watch. It's a shame it ended the way it did and that its low-budget sequel that ended the storyline never made it to theaters and an American release. Check this flick out if your a monster movie fan. Or a goth lover.

Details

Country:

Japan

Language:

Japanese

Release Date:

6 March 1999 (Japan)

Also Known As:

Gamera: Revenge of Iris

Filming Locations:

Shibuya, Tokyo, Japan

Company Credits

Production Co:

Daiei Studios, Hakuhodo, Nippon Shuppan Hanbai (Nippan) K.K.

Technical Specs

Runtime:

108 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Black and White Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1