The Faith of Gamera 3: The Revenge of Iris

[@jkrunch2166]

One thing I find really interesting about Iris is how he is a twisted inversion of Gamera being a friend to all children - he is a predator. He preys on Ayana's pain to grow stronger purely for his own benefit, abusing the same power Gamera previously drew on and cut himself off from. It's an incredibly smart plot development to portray Gamera as more menacing at the start of this movie while seemingly replacing him with a cute monster that can bond with humans, only for that monster to be a dark reflection of what Gamera stands for. It's just yet another layer to this stellar movie, and another reason why it's my all-time favorite kaiju movie.

[@KaijusinMoments]

I love how this movie points out that humanity is Gamera's greatest weakness. Due to his direct connection to humanity, it continuously hinders him in battle and causes more harm than good. His first interaction with the Legion Queen is evidence for this as he is brutally beaten just to defend a few helicopters filled with people. Because of this, he's two late to stop the Legion flower and it blows up all of Sendai. Once he reawakens, he breaks his connection with Asagi and is able to defeat Legion once and for all with nothing holding him back. But through cause and effect, He becomes more destructive and focused when it comes to protecting humanity. Making humanity doubt and lose their trust with Gamera. But with him saving Ayana and still pulling through to fend off the Gyaos, allows humanity to finally realize that all the human deaths were necessary for Gamera to defeat the greater evil.

[@SpooperIsEverywhere]

I dont entirely think ALL of the deaths were necessary, sure gamera is on their side but I don't think it was necessary for gamera to incinerate several city blocks (after that scene it was said at minimum over 20,000 people were killed by the blast) to get rid of a single dying gyaos

[@Kaiju-bm4ts]

​​@@SpooperIsEverywhere those people were at the wrong place, at the wrong time. As OP said, gamera disconnecting himself from a telepathic bond with asagi caused him to become more reckless and care less about minimizing collateral damage. It doesn't make it better the hyper gyaos were faster than gamera and thus each time they dodged his attacks, said fireball meant for them, would damage the surrounding area and kill people. Their deaths were inevitable (as any casualties in a kaiju attack/fight), but what's worst? Some people dying? Or the entire world population falling to the gyaos. Also take into account there was more than 1 gyaos in the city, 2 or 3 in fact.

[@jackepong6300]

Iris is a wolf in sheep's clothing. If you watch it in subtitles Ayana says Iris speaks to her and told her Gamera killed its family too. Iris manipulates her just as much as her own emotions do but Iris sparking it to grow worse by him filling her head. The magatama she has works on a opposite effect where the kaiju is influencing her not the other way around. Iris only uses it as a beacon to follow ayana while the magatama allows iris to get inside her head and talk to her. Telling her lies to benefit his own goal.

[@ivandovranic5834]

4:00 no, not human. By itself your argument actually stands, but we never got to know whether the Atlanteans that created Gamera and Gyaos (they probably had a hand in conceiving of Iris, too) were actually any variety, real or fictional, of human. Still, in the bigger picture it's probably not too relevant since any plot which involves the role of technology as a major part of the conflict, invariably calls out humans and their _meddling in the natural order._ It's this video which piqued my interest in Gamera, glad to have found it again.

[@tracyndiyob162]

happy 25th anniversary gamera 3: revenge of iris!!!(still love to go back & watch the adv promotional for it.:3) love how gamera's efforts to protect humanity having consequences losing the direct link from the magatana breaking from the overuse of mana making humans faith in him realistically waver with some staying strong while the military go against him justifiably after thousands of people die in the gyaos attack from gamera going at it blind. the revenge themes from one corrupted by revenge having it grow to a danger to all(like they keep it ambiguous whether iris is a form of gyaos,another creation of the atlanteans, an alien creature/deity or if it's even originally evil at all just absorbing a dark heart like how sin can take many forms of evil and negative emotions physical and mental.) . at the end it being defeated showing everyone they can & have to trust gamera from the final threat to the planet being the gyaos who gamera was predicted from the beginning to stop their shadow from snuffing all life that i love kanako's own words about it are originally it was going to be extremely bleak with everyone gone with only gamera left but was changed to be if you have faith gamera will win which i sure as hell know he can(he offscreen took care of the gyaos all over the world he can take them on.) would love to see a crossover of godzilla/gamera with the style of their hesei films.(also daimajin as those films are really underrated.)

[@VincentIrkallaOfficial]

As both a theology major and someone well-versed in Eastern mythology, I can say that your opinions and conclusions are mostly spot-on, although quite a few miss the mark by wide margins. Because the films and their cultural milieu are uniquely Eastern, Westerners have a difficult time understanding the nuance of Japanese cinema particularly about the time of the “occult boom” of the 70s, 80s and 90s. Similar misunderstandings arise when Westerners attempt to break down, for example, the Fierce Deity of Zelda lore and the _Majora’s Mask_ entry as a whole. Such nuance can only be fully understood far removed from a Western and Judeo-Christian cultural milieu, and the problem often arises from the sense of cultural superiority Westerners have for their Judeo-Christian cultural milieu, which has become more like a hegemon since the end of WWII. To attempt to view Eastern cinema and mythology through such a foggy lens is folly in and of itself, and one must always be wary not to project one’s own cultural norms onto the works of others, as many an Orientalist of the 19th and 20th century have done.

[@unityofvitality-5875]

Can you elaborate more on the themes of the gamera films? Pretty please

[@VincentIrkallaOfficial]

​@@unityofvitality-5875 Sorry I’m only seeing this comment now. 😅 I wonder if I might write more on this subject in the future. I don’t really have the subscriber count to make a video essay or response worthwhile. What I will say is that to have a more robust understanding of these films, one must have, or seek to have, an intimate understanding of Eastern religion, culture and spirituality, namely Buddhism, Taoism and Shinto.

[@Shadowrulzalways]

Whoa whoa… hold up. Guardian Of The Universe and Advent Of Legion are far from light hearted. They were darker and more serious films. Fun but still more mature themed. As that was what Kaneko wanted them to be. The Heisei Gamera films were made for a more older and mature audience.

[@Kaiju-bm4ts]

True g1 and g2 were dark in quite alot of areas but g3 was the darkest entry out of the 3 which is probably why blunova said they were "lighthearted" in comparison to g3 but it's still poor wording when all 3 are dark but just no on equal spectrums. Plus as dark as these films were, that didn't stop kids from watching them but then again Japan is different when it comes to exposing extreme dark/gory kaiju related violence to kids.

[@evashogoki8703]

Hideaki Anno DID visit the set of Gamera 3, and even directed a documentary set in that same universe.

[@TitanGoji]

Your Gamera videos keep getting better and better! Keep it up! 👍🏻

[@TheGTeam2]

I gotta say, and forgive me if I’m repeating myself on this because I can’t quite remember if I’ve commented on your channel or videos before, but your video essays about Godzilla, Evangelion, Anime, etc are always a treat. Not only are they easy to watch with the way you keep things simple, but they make me look at these films from a way different perspective I’ve had before. Your Gamera videos are some of my favorites, and this one is no exception, especially for it being my favorite Heisei Gamera film out of the trilogy. You’ve brought many interesting ideas in this video and it really opened my mind to it. So thank you, for making spectacular videos. Keep doing what you’re doing! ✌️

[@CasualRonin]

Gamera will win, but only if you believe he'll win.

[@Comkill117]

Well, he is the ABSOLUTE Guardian of the Universe after all.

[@Godzilla00X]

Your best video yet. You continue to blow me away with your analysis and insight into these films

[@Blunovain]

Thanks for your support!

[@freshboy3968]

"Soft pornography"? That's one way to start a film essay video.

[@MaskedRiderGale]

IMO the best kaiju film ever. Personally I'd rate it higher then Shin Godzilla.

[@Agito4774]

It’s not the best kaiju film ever for me cuz that has to go to GMK but I’d also rate it personally higher than Shin Godzilla too 👍

[@carbootstudios2459]

Love the thumbnail. Love some good body horror

[@Blunovain]

Yep. Iris is somewhat Lovecraftian. One of the more interesting creatures in recent years.

[@carbootstudios2459]

Yeah. Where did you get the artwork from? PS, thanks for the heart.

[@kiryuchansboyfriend]

I was a massive kaiju/tokusatsu fan when I was little and fell out of love with it due to school and real life issues taking over my life all the way from 12 years old until as of 3 months ago (I’m now 22). Recently, I got diagnosed with PTSD and have been forced to take a gap year in the middle of college for mental health reasons. With nothing else to do, I randomly decided to rewatch the first Godzilla film and ever since, I’ve been on a massive kaiju binge ever since, rediscovering my lost childhood and falling back in love with it. A couple weeks ago, I watched both this and Minus One for the first time (I’d only seen the first two Heisei Gameras and Brave because my mom said Iris was “too scary” for me when I was a kid [she was right lol]) and holy hell have they been impactful. I’m absolutely amazed at how well this movie and the recent Minus One handle their themes of trauma. The idea of personifying it as a literal monster (or in Iris’s case making a monster weaponize trauma) resonates so deeply with me because at the end of the day that’s what it feels like: something that cocoons you at first only to consume you later. This revelation might’ve legitimately how I understand my disease/my life. Amazing explanation, amazing film. Also random fact: I have a picture of me with Shinji Higuchi when I was like 7 at G-Fest. I didn’t really know what the hype was about when I was a kid it’s like a treasure to me now lol

[@davewolf6256]

SPOILER ALERT Gamera = Jesus !!

[@tomferrara7884]

Dave Wolf Godzilla = god

[@zeroloid9762]

Man, I always knew there was something about this film that went much deeper, and you've finally dug it up! Great work!

[@Blunovain]

Thanks for your support. I really appreciate it.

[@zeroloid9762]

@@Blunovain No prob fam!

[@zeroloid9762]

​@@Blunovain Also I really think you oughta' do that Biollante vid you were talkin' about. You could do it some serious justice and maybe figure out something I can't.

[@ShinGoji1987Official]

Excellent breakdown!

[@thrashfan911]

I’ve learned some new things! This has always been my favorite one in the trilogy, it’s has so much deeper meaning and the overall aesthetic of the film is beautiful!

[@fishingwithkirby3989]

Wait you're telling me that the director of the gamera trilogy started his career with pornos?

[@noahmeyer9756]

Yep. Kaneko directed a film adaptation of the adult comedy manga Minna Agechau. Hazel has a video about how CPM ended up cancelling a planned release of its anime counterpart if you're interested. EDIT: That wouldn't be Kaneko's last manga adaptation either because he would later direct the first two live-action Death Note films.

[@terriabeal221]

Iris is a unique monster and cool

[@lokithegecko9434]

This movie is like Spiderman 3 with the whole revenge theme but, just done better.

[@Agito4774]

The whole Gamera trilogy in general feels like the original Spider-Man trilogy for some reason and I honestly don’t know why

[@lokithegecko9434]

@@Agito4774 I have been thinking the same thing.

[@Agito4774]

@@lokithegecko9434 Like you could say that the Gyaos is like Green Goblin and Iris from Gamera 3 is New Goblin. There’s just too many similarities that it’s actually insane

[@Kaiju-bm4ts]

​​@@Agito4774 The monsterverse godzilla films also take alot of unintentional notes from the gamera trilogy, so much so down to godzilla's own character acting like heisei gamera. This being something Japanese fans noticed more than American fans and because of that, MV godzilla is seen as the gamera-ish godzilla in Japan which is ironic given how gamera and godzilla are already similar in terms of overall everything about them. Even kaneko himself noticed the similarities and was fine with it. G1 ane g14 both have godzilla and gamera fighting the gyaos/mutos which are mostly dangerous because of how fast they reproduce G2 and kotm has godzilla and gamera fighting ghidorah/'legion, both alien threats that required gamera/godzilla to use a power up attack to kill them G2 also share similarities with gmk with mothra's design being similar to her 2001 design, her death scene mirroring how she died back then and the mythological aspects between both films G3 and gvk share the least amount of similarities but still have gamera and godzilla acting more aggressive while doing their everyday jobs, being the misunderstood heroes of both films. Iris and mechagodzilla were made to specifically kill gamera/godzilla (that is if you go off by the theory of iris being made to counter gamera)

[@algandromonty8713]

Where did you get the image for the thumbnail? I can't find it

[@turulszervac1714]

Where did you get that thumbnail?

[@tokugeeky2931]

Definitely one of my favorite Kaiju movie. Love how Iris is using like a perversion of a connection partnership that Gamera have with a human. Also this is a childish reason of mine but I laughed and loved how the guy with the small dinky knife act like it will be an important mcguffin to kill Iris, only for him to get knocked away like nothing. (Just kind of hate it when a Kaiju battle have to rely on the whole 'a specific kryptonite like item that this kids found 🤣)

[@ENGRtube]

Imagine what this man could have done with Godzilla if TOHO trusted him! Don't get me wrong, the Gamera trilogy are S-Tier Kaiju movies... It's not Godzilla! :p Hopefully one day we get the long much awaited and much deserved Godzilla x Gamera film.

[@gregormcscrungus9727]

We already got it in GMK

[@kennethsatria6607]

Awesome review This is so rich.

[@PainXIII12]

So that's why I felt funny when I first saw this film at 8 years old.

[@Alex-hp2rs]

link to the full pic in the thumbnail?

[@VictorIV0310]

What a way to start the video off

[@Blunovain]

Your comment and icon make a great combination lol

[@coopercobb8867]

Have you done a video about why you dislike the Heisei Godzilla movies? I know you did the Godzilla vs Destoroyah video but that’s just that movie.

[@Blunovain]

That will be addressed in the future. Please stay tuned!

[@ycastro2003]

Best to worst 1: Early Heisei-Early Showa tied 2: Millenuim 3: Late Heisei 4: Late Showa

[@Blunovain]

What do you think of Terror of MechaGodzilla?

[@ycastro2003]

@@Blunovain far better than the first MechaGodzilla film.

[@Blunovain]

That's some faint praise lol

[@Robpoolgaming]

Another perfect review. 🙏😭

[@Blunovain]

I don't know about perfect lol

[@Irrelevant402]

Love it!

[@mattbayne3049]

While I think these ideas are very interesting, and were definitely intentional by the producers of the film, I can't really praise revenge of iris to this extent because I think the execution of these ideas in the movie itself was somewhat lacking. Maybe it's just the translation, but alot of details about the mythology and lore of the universe are either unexplained or states too cryptically to understand. This makes the film hard to fully appreciate for it's message, because of how suppressed it is, although I definitely do appreciate the fact that this time he didn't just state the movies message outright like in the other two.

[@antonioperez4675]

Turtle Jesus!

[@santiagomaldonado1605]

Ayy yes more gamera videos, finally some good fucking food*meme referenced

[@Robpoolgaming]

Dude you should definitely look up the movie A Scanner Darkly that movie seems to up your Alley abit. Or you could also do an awesome video of the Appleseed machina trilogy.

[@ycastro2003]

I honestly want to see Godzilla actually tackle religion head on like Gamera(the aniMEH trilogy doesn't count). Godzilla's own encounters with Gods haven't been positive like him killing all the Greek Gods in Rage Across Time #2, Godzilla straight up killing BOTH God & the Devil, the rest of Godzilla In Hell, and such.

[@Blunovain]

Why does the anime trilogy not count? And yeah, those comics sound pretty blunt and immature.

[@ycastro2003]

@@Blunovain well actually Rage Across Time #2 actually follows Zeus and how the other Gods falling from power due to their arrogance and while Zeus does die he learns to accept humans & such. Godzilla In Hell is harder to describe since I don't want to spoil it but it's sorta the journey not the destination and the final issue sorta in involves Buddhism. Plus not involving the aniMEH Trilogy since it's all over the place.

[@Blunovain]

Godzilla and Greek Gods? I don't think I want that mix lol. Anime trilogy all over the place? It's pretty straight forward though.

[@ycastro2003]

@@Blunovain if you don't want the mix you don't have to read the issue(just one story). And with the aniMEH trilogy its more when you look more into it plus I don't want to mention the trilogy anymore and move on.

[@Blunovain]

Fair enough.

[@Novasigmia]

What’s the directors name again

[@Blunovain]

Shusuke Kaneko

[@ycastro2003]

Gameria: I AM JESUS (does anyone get the reference?)

[@carbootstudios2459]

yes

[@carbootstudios2459]

@Deusvultimus Maxgenitalius Doug and Joe’s review of Man of Steel

[@KingBearmane]

Did Iris want to eat the girl at the end or try to become one with her?

[@maple9913]

Now only if they had made a 4th film to finish up this wonderful trilogy

[@carbootstudios2459]

you mean tetralogy?

[@Naseem-fl3zt]

Also known as a quadrilogy.

[@magtegi2]

and then they fucked it up with gamera the brave

[@Kaiju-bm4ts]

​@@LouiszBr42 that is not acting true, the entire trilogy including g3 were all successful films, kaneko said he would of made a 4th film if g3 made 1 billion yen which would of been impossible since all 3 didn't even surpass 700 million with the most financially successful entry being g2 only making 600 million. A 4th film was considered but never announced so it wasn't canceled, it just never happened outside of the fan made g4 film. Also I highly doubt there was any word on plans for a gamera 5 or 6, kadokawa would of been milking gamera at that point when a 4th film would of been a good enough way to wrap things up. Even then g3 wraps things up perfectly by itself

[@freshboy3968]

So Gamera is Jesus, gotcha.

[@MotleyNerd]

Interesting that one of, if not the best film in the entire genre, is essentially a Christian allegory.