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Jimmy’s Notes on Episode 52: Kaiju Kim vs. ‘Gamera 3: Revenge of Iris’

Published November 17, 2021

Finally…Jimmy has caught up…with his blogs! And it only took two weeks…I think. I would’ve posted this sooner, but I kept getting harassed by Dr. Dourif on Twitter. (The weirdo can’t even spell his name right). Anyway, here are my notes from Kaiju Kim’s visit in episode 52 (Gamera 3: Revenge of Iris).

  • This movie is old enough to drink in the U.S. Fun fact: the drinking age in Japan is 20.
  • “Stumped.” (insert It meme “haha!”)
  • Torii gates were discussed in Episode 24.
  • Link to Gamera 4 clips.
  • I’m not so sure I like Amazon using my drones. Mostly because disgruntled customers have shot them.
  • Given what I know is coming up for the show, Nate, saying, “No,” to Clifford would be questionable. But I don’t want to talk about it.

Now for the ridiculous pile of notes Marchand didn’t get to. Good grief, how many research rabbit holes did he fall into? Alice in Wonderland is looking at him and thinking, knock it off! Anyway, prepare over for a data overload! (You’ve been warned!)

  • The award-winning Nagamine is back!
  • Gyaos comes back, and it’s dead. Sets the tone and shows a greater threat is upon us.
  • Sub = “Kaiko.” Meaning? (I looked it up, and it’s interesting. –Jimmy)
  • The subtitles say, “Dead Gameras.” I liked the English line (dub?) that said, “Gamera graveyard.” It deepens the mythology and builds on the hubris theme from Guardian. These are dead saviors.
  • The credits roll over black-and-white stock footage from Guardian. Stylistic. Moody. Then we get a flashback.
  • Chinese divided the cosmos into 28 houses. 7 in each quadrant.
  • We get a proper Gyaos about 22 minutes in. Gamera in 24.
  • Hirasaka named the creature Iris after her cat. It’s endearing and ironic given how dangerous the monster is.
  • Man on street says US can’t fight Gamera for them. Japan should fight its own battles.
  • In a way, this is not unlike the atomic bomb. He causes damage but ends up saving the world in the end. Is it worth it? Tough question.
  • Asagi’s last name is significant. Kusanagi was the name of a sword used to slay Orochi in mythology (see episode 13 of MIFV on The Three Treasures).
  • This baby Iris puppet is incredibly expressive and lifelike.
  • The news reports tell us that the Gyaos are a worldwide problem. It also seems like kaiju are bit more of a normal thing. (Aren’t they usually? –Jimmy)
  • “Beer hasn’t tasted this good in a long time” –Osako. A nice callback to the past films (especially Gamera 2).
  • There’s some horror elements in this, but when the dead body drops from the ceiling. (Better than G84).
  • Interestingly, Nagamine, the woman of science, prays for the corpse.
  • Asagi looks quite grown up in this.
  • The shot of Iris rising above the clouds with the moon in the background does look cool despite the CGI.
  • Unlike Gamera’s previous opponents, Iris’s lasers can cut through Gamera’s shell.
  • The shot of the fire transition from Gamera to Iris to Ayana is brilliant.
  • The integration of the tokusatsu effects and the live action…it’s so good! There are movies with 10, 20, 30 times the budget that don’t look this good!
  • At this point in the film, Ayana only says Iris’s name.
  • Ayana wakes up in the rain. Water = life. Also, Gamera roars.
  • Ayana in the end whispers Gamera’s name like she did Iris’s.

SPECIAL FEATURES

Commentary by Ryfle and Godzizsewski

  • They started with the idea of making a trilogy.
  • It had a long production schedule. Kaneko said in an interview that while money is s blessing, having more time produces better films. This had a budget of $8.5 million.
  • They argue that Kaneko’s approach to filming is straightforward, but he does sometimes have some visual flare.
  • Kaneko said that using fantasy elements helps explain plot devices that would normally be difficult to explain absurd concepts.
  • Shibuya is one of the busiest places in Tokyo.
  • The news reports feature real journalists, a tradition going back to old Toho.
  • Kaneko’s wife makes a cameo during the “man-on-the street” interviews.
  • In Guardian, they felt like Godzilla was their competition. In Gamera 2, they felt Guardian was their competition. In this, they felt it was Ultraman Gaia because they had lots of composite photography.
  • Gamera saves Ayana when she cries out. She’s a damaged child.
  • Ayana could be seen as symbolic of children orphaned by wars and natural disasters.
  • Ryfle wonders if this film was inspired by Frankenstein Conquers the World and War of the Gargantuas.
  • The ending is ambiguous because people weren’t sure if the world would end at the time.
  • Otani said that writing the music for the ending was so stressful, it gave him stomach problems.
  • It grossed $15 million at the box office and was screened at the Toronto Film Festival.

ARROW BOOKLET

Macias

  • Kaneko: “In the past, Gamera was always the children’s hero, and the president (of the studio) always wanted to keep it that way, but I was kind of sick of that.”
  • Ito went on to work on the .hack series.

England

  • Claims the budget was 15 billion yen ($11 million), but producer Miyuki Nanri says it would cost $50 million to make in the U.S. He went on to say it has no ego-stroking or frivolity like a Hollywood film. The budget is the budget, so they can’t play games.

One of these days I should find out which of my blogs is the longest thanks to Marchand.

Anyway, next week you’ll hear Nate’s broadcast with my former nemesis, Michael Hamilton, from Kaiju Weekly. They discuss Godzilla Raids Again, which was Michael’s first Godzilla film. What a bunch of banana oil! Then the “Year of Gamera” concludes with guest Bex from Redeemed Otaku and Gamera the Brave. If you don’t like that film, you’re dead inside. Trust me.

See you next week! I have to tune up my mechs in my garage.

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