This column contains spoilers for the new “Chainsaw Man” movie, so proceed with caution if you are interested in watching it anytime soon.
Imagine meeting someone and falling in love with them. They seem to reciprocate the same feelings towards you, however, just when everything seems to be going right, you find out that this person is actually out to kill you. How would you react? How would you look back on your past experiences with this person? Would you view them with bitterness, regret or some other emotion?
“Chainsaw Man: The Movie – Reze Arc” tells the story of Denji, a devil hunter who comes across a girl named Reze, falling in love with her, but eventually having to fight her once she reveals her true colors.
I first want to clarify one thing: I actually haven’t seen the “Chainsaw Man” anime nor have I read the manga in its entirety. I do know the basic premise and have seen a few clips and panels, but I haven’t found the time to truly sit down and fully go through it. While I didn’t go into this movie completely blind, I was not already invested in the series.
With that being said, I didn’t have that much trouble following the storyline as the movie seems to be very self-contained, despite being a direct sequel to the anime’s first season. However, I do think that you will need to come into this with some prior knowledge of the “Chainsaw Man” series, as the movie does not stop to explain its world or characters.
The main things you will need to know beforehand: “Devils” are beings created from humanity’s fears, the Public Safety Devil Hunters are tasked with fighting devils and Denji is the series’s main protagonist who merged with the Chainsaw Devil, becoming the titular Chainsaw Man.
Denj’s story arc centers around his challenging romantic life. We are following his mission to court a forbidden love: The movie begins with Denji going on a movie marathon date with his boss Makima –– which is off-putting, but it is explored much more heavily in the general series –– and then goes into his eventual feelings for Reze, despite already having his heart set on Makima.
In spite of his shallow motivations, Denji still comes off as a likeable protagonist. It is hard not to root for him at least a little, especially with the amount of times he gets beaten down throughout the movie. Even after Reze betrays him, brutally injures him multiple times, spends the entire climax trying to kill him and eventually admits to lying about her feelings towards him, Denji’s infatuation with Reze barely wavers. I’m still unsure whether this is a testament to his kind nature or his sheer desperation to be with a girl. I’m inclined to believe the latter. We’ve all been there, right?
As for Reze, I think that she makes a very strong impression, despite being a one-off antagonist just for this movie.
“ Her upbeat and cheerful nature at the start serves as a stark contrast during the film’s climax, where she becomes a legitimate threat capable of mass destruction and transforms into the Bomb Devil. ”
Even though I already knew about her devil form beforehand, I felt that the movie did a good job foreshadowing it. Some are obvious, such as when she suddenly reveals her fighting capabilities during a random encounter with an assassin. Others are more subtle, for example, her having a grenade pin on her neck, eerily similar to the chord on Denji’s chest which allows him to become the Chainsaw Man.
The twist regarding her true intentions with Denji also caught me off-guard, as it transpires so suddenly and brutally, with her biting his tongue off and cutting him with a knife. It even made me question how he was going to get out of this situation considering how close to death he seemed to be.
Though I did enjoy Reze as a character, one of my problems with the movie was that it felt as though we didn’t get to know her too well. I understand that she is meant to be a bit of a mysterious figure, yet I was left wishing we got to know at least a bit more regarding her backstory. We still don’t know how exactly she became the Bomb Devil, or why she was set on killing Denji and stealing his heart. The most we get is near the end when a man explains that she was one of many children that were experimented on by the Soviet Union.
Lastly, the movie is rated R and it definitely earned it. In line with the general series, the movie is extremely violent, with multiple minor characters being killed in bloody ways. If you’re on the more squeamish side, then this movie and series might be a hard pass for you.
Even though I can hardly call myself a huge “Chainsaw Man” fan, I found myself enjoying this movie a lot. It is an action-packed thrill ride that still manages to have a compelling story in its core while not relying on the audience having watched the show’s first season.
Whether you are already into “Chainsaw Man” or have cursory knowledge on the series, I think that this film is a worthwhile watch.
Joon Kim PO ’26 doesn’t have a preference between subs or dubs in anime and would rather stay away from the debate. Sometimes, he will watch the subbed version. Other times, he’s in the mood to watch with a dub.
Facebook Comments