jephtha "Gamera 3: Incomplete Struggle", is the best entry in the trilogy and often praised, by those who bother with giant monster movies, as one of the best, or even the best, of its genre. While I would not take it that far, I do agree that this is the strongest Gamera film to date, granting this trilogy the rare distinction of improving with each installment.The biggest storytelling triumph is the sense of consequences. Unlike the vast majority of the genre, Kaneko's movies acknowledge the long term effects that the activities of giant monsters have on humanity, and "Gamera 3" may represent the best effort in this respect. From the story of Ayana to the various news reports, we are given insight into the growing (and not unreasonable) disapproval of the eponymous monster. In a similar vein to "Gamera: Guardian of the Universe", which cleverly addressed the unusual features of the monsters, time is taken shed new light on previous events, such as how Gamera pulled off that crazy plasma attack in the second movie. The whole thing has such a sense of follow-up concerning the first that it makes me wonder concerning its place.George Lucas once said that the advantage to a trilogy is that each part has its purpose. The first introduces everything, the second puts in the heroes in a black hole and the third brings them out of it. "Gamera 3" definitely has a sense of placing its heroes in a tough spot, as it is pervaded by an escalating crisis. Unfortunately, this doesn't seem appropriate for a conclusion, especially because everything ends on, essentially, a cliffhanger. It would have worked much better as a middle chapter. Sure, there's a silver lining in the military diverting its efforts to combating the hordes of Gyaos, but overall it would have been more satisfying to see this conflict play out, perhaps in a grim future where humanity ultimately finds its direction again.Several plot points lack either significant follow through or sufficient explanation. The introduction of the monster Irys, as well as the discovery of the graveyard under the ocean, brought the opportunity to expand upon the origins of Gamera and the Gyaos, but all we get are outlandish speculation from one very unsettling character. You'd think that the discovery of a Gamera graveyard would spur more discussion amongst these people. Frankly, there were many moments in the film when I felt pressed to wonder what certain details meant or questioned their prominence. After the characters comment on the returning Gyaos for the 20th time with minimal shown incidents or counterattacks, the sense of crisis can grow trite. Again, this would have served better as build-up…if there was anything to build-up to.The characters themselves are not terribly successful. Despite some reappearing from earlier films, much of the cast really has no bearing on the story, while others fail to leave much of an impression. Even Ayana's interactions with Irys lack conviction because they are rushed and lack true foundation; the time she spends "raising" him is too short. Nagamine is the most engaging lead. True, she is more of a guide for the audience than an intriguing individual, but she also retains an endearing quality, which can go a long way. Her warm conversation with Osako is an especially good example of this. Asagi, despite her magnetic presence on screen, is criminally underused, contributing little more than clarification for some confusing plot points. It's remarkable that after 3 films, little real effort was made to delve further into her personality and connection with Gamera, which would have been far more interesting than Ayana's mostly flaccid tale of vengeance. The monsters themselves, unusually, are better handled. Though the reasoning behind his newfound destructive tendencies is lackadaisical, Gamera ultimately strikes the right balance between menace and nobility and gives us a guardian we can root for. Irys definitely carries a malicious presence, bolstered by a wholly original design and one of the most interesting methods of flight I have seen. The fantastically surreal, creepy scene of Ayana within his gut finely conveys the torturous nature of the bond between the two.Where Gamera 3 really shines is its special effects, which are rightfully considered a gold standard within this genre. The use of CGI, while no more convincing than half of what is seen today, is properly used when necessary. In fact, it is noteworthy that giant monster movies, cheesy as they may be, consistently make appropriate use of CGI to enhance action scenes instead of create them, which big budget blockbusters rarely get right. The two action sequences are easily the highlights, providing some of the most impressive images of destruction the genre has to offer, particularly from the explosions of Gamera's plasma blasts. The final fight can seem sluggish compared to most monster brawls, with minimal movement from the combatants and excessive movement for the camera, but the indoor setting and some rather innovative shots that emphasize the monsters' size by showing things from the point of view of the humans help make up for that. Two moments in particular that I have never forgotten are when Gamera and Irys crash through the train station and the fiery transition between Gamera, Irys and Ayana before the fight. The climax may be construed as the only true accomplishment of "Gamera 3", as it contains virtually everything that makes the film stand out within the kaiju genre.I recommend this movie, given that some of the more traditional movie-making techniques it contains allow it to appeal even to those who are not fans of this genre. While it suffers from some unevenness in its storyline and needs more clarity and less bizarre moments, it still deserves to be applauded and even emulated because it serves as a testament that great results can come from a balance in traditional and modern special effects.

Dalbert Pringle Gamera 3 is yet another Sci-Fi/Rampaging Monster flick that, sorry to say, goes over the same, old, tired ground, offering the viewer no real surprises or novel twists to its "been there/seen that" story.Yeah. OK. At times Gamera 3's scenes of heavy-duty mass destruction and its monster effects were so crazy, wild and over-the-top that they were actually kinda fun to watch.But, in the long run, I found the creatures were just too goofy looking (and, yes, even sluggish at times) to be viewed as anything else but the most laughable nonsense imaginable.Anyways - If some time you find yourself with about 90 minutes to kill, then Gamera 3 might not be such a bad choice of movies to watch in order to throw that time away. (You can either do this alone or with some of your like-minded mates)

DustinRahksi I was surprised about how much people praise this film, I just finished viewing it, and I'm not that impressed. "Well you just didn't get the superb plot". Oh I got it, I just think it's stupid. Ayana somehow lifts a immovable stone, which causes some tentacle monster to hatch. So she raises it with the intent of sending it after Gamera. Was I supposed feel some sort of emotion when the characters and story progress. One, Iris looks cool, but frankly isn't a huge threat. Maybe for a little kid Iris will stir up some tension, but I didn't see any danger. And I was right, because he just gets his stomach ripped open in one punch, and is down for the count.The plot was very sub par for a trilogy final. This film pretty much goes like this: 40 minutes of set up, 1 hour and 20 minutes until some thing happens, and 1 hour and 47 minutes of MEH-NESS. Seriously, you wait almost an hour and a half for like 2 minutes worth of monster fighting. What's the point of them putting three different monsters in this film, and have no fight scenes. It feels almost like they wanted to make a good movie, instead of a monster movie, I watched this to see monsters blow sh-t up, not some BS revenge story that is completely ridiculous.I feel as if I should address the scene where Ayana offers herself. It's like some Japanese hentai. Let me repeat her words " Iris, I'm so hot(as she opens her blouse), what...HAHAHAHAHA? Then Iris grabs her with his tentacles. What was the deal with that, HAHAHAHAHA, I can't stop laughing. Oh yeah, the subtitles for this film are atrocious, you miss half of the dialogue because it doesn't even show up on the screen. But it is nowhere near as bad as the Godzilla vs. Megalon DVD, they pretty much just changed the dialogue for that.I may not think to highly of this film, but that doesn't mean it's bad, it's actually very well made for a monster movie. But other than the quality, the 90's Godzilla films are much more enjoyable and fun to watch. This film is very violent, I would compare it to Godzilla vs. Destoroyah with the amount of carnage, but this film goes more into graphic detail, which is surprising.I didn't care about any of the characters, the plot was just fine, there was no action, and it was genuinely unpleasant. But I still recommend watching it you like monster movies.

fortey I've noticed there are some people who obviously take Godzilla-esquire movies far too seriously. Basically if you refer to them as kaiju and you're not Japanese, you're in too deep. But I digress. I am not one of those people. I just watched Gamera and Godzilla as a kid and they cracked me up.That said, this movie is clearly the best of either Gamera or Godzilla for one good reason: collateral damage. Some mad genius hatched a story that actually tried to present a giant rubber monster movie in a real world context. There are scenes when fireballs engulf whole city blocks and the tiny, fleeing Japanese citizens are blown away in a storm of chaos. The insane contrast between what is obviously a man in an ungainly, ridiculous turtle costume and thousands of innocent civilians being slaughtered as a result of that giant rubber turtle accidentally crushing a gas main as he levels a few city blocks is, to put it poetically, friggin' great.There's ambition here. The screenwriter and the director of this movie should be proud of themselves for not flinching despite how obviously ludicrous this movie should have been. It's a flying turtle. A giant one. But dammit, the story is compelling.