🔗 Share this article

A pair of teenagers experience a private, tender moment at the neighborhood high school’s outdoor pool late at night. As they float together, suspended under the night sky in the stillness of the evening, the scene portrays the fleeting, heady thrill of adolescent romance, completely engrossed in the moment, consequences overlooked.

About half an hour into The Chainsaw Man Film: Reze Arc, I realized such moments are the heart of the film. The love story became the focus, and every bit of background details and backstories previously known from the anime’s first season turned out to be mostly unnecessary. Despite being a official entry within the series, Reze Arc provides a more accessible entry point for first-time viewers — even if they missed its prior content. This method brings advantages, but it simultaneously limits a portion of the tension of the movie’s narrative.

Developed by the original creator, Chainsaw Man follows the protagonist, a indebted fiend fighter in a universe where Devils embody particular dangers (ranging from ideas like getting older and obscurity to terrifying entities like cockroaches or historical conflicts). After being deceived and murdered by the criminal syndicate, Denji forms a contract with his faithful companion, Pochita, and comes back from the deceased as a part-human chainsaw wielder with the ability to permanently erase Devils and the horrors they represent from reality.

Thrust into a violent struggle between demons and hunters, Denji encounters a new character — a charming barista concealing a lethal mystery — igniting a heartbreaking confrontation between the two where love and existence collide. This film continues right after the first season, exploring the main character’s relationship with his love interest as he grapples with his feelings for her and his loyalty to his controlling boss, Makima, forcing him to choose between passion, loyalty, and survival.

An Independent Love Story Amidst a Broader World

Reze Arc is fundamentally a romance-to-rivalry story, with our imperfect main character the hero falling for Reze almost immediately upon introduction. He is a lonely boy looking for love, which makes his heart vulnerable and easily swayed on a first-come, first-served. Consequently, despite all of Chainsaw Man’s complex lore and its extensive ensemble, Reze Arc is very independent. Filmmaker the director understands this and guarantees the love story is at the forefront, rather than weighing it down with filler recaps for the new viewers, especially when such details is crucial to the overall plot.

Despite Denji’s flaws, it’s hard not to sympathize with him. He’s after all a teenager, fumbling his way through a world that’s distorted his understanding of right and wrong. His desperate longing for affection makes him come off like a infatuated dog, even if he’s prone to barking, snapping, and making a mess along the way. His love interest is a ideal pairing for him, an compelling seductive antagonist who targets her mark in our protagonist. You want to see Denji earn the affection of his love interest, despite Reze is obviously concealing something from him. Thus when her real identity is unveiled, audiences can’t help but wish they’ll in some way succeed, although deep down, you know a happy ending is not truly in the plan. As such, the stakes don’t feel as high as they ought to be since their relationship is doomed. It doesn’t help that the film acts as a direct sequel to Season 1, leaving minimal space for a love story like this amid the more grim developments that fans are aware are approaching.

Breathtaking Visuals and Artistic Execution

This movie’s graphics seamlessly blend traditional animation with computer-generated settings, delivering stunning visual appeal even before the action begins. From cars to small office appliances, 3D models add depth and detail to every scene, making the animated figures stand out beautifully. Unlike Demon Slayer, which frequently highlights its 3D assets and shifting settings, Reze Arc employs them less frequently, particularly evident during its action-packed climax, where such elements, while not unattractive, become easier to identify. These smooth, ever-shifting backgrounds render the film’s battles both spectacular to watch and remarkably easy to understand. Still, the technique shines brightest when it’s invisible, enhancing the vibrancy and motion of the hand-drawn art.

Concluding Impressions and Wider Implications

Chainsaw Man – The Movie: Reze Arc functions as a solid starting place, probably leaving new fans pleased, but it also has a downside. Telling a standalone story limits the tension of what should feel like a expansive anime epic. This is an illustration of why continuing a popular anime season with a movie isn’t the best strategy if it weakens the franchise’s general narrative possibilities.

Whereas Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle found success by concluding several installments of anime television with an epic film, and JuJutsu Kaisen 0 sidestepped the issue entirely by acting as a prequel to its well-known series, Chainsaw Man – The Movie: Reze Arc charges forward, maybe a bit recklessly. However this does not prevent the movie from proving to be a enjoyable time, a excellent introduction, and a unforgettable romantic tale.