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A pair of teenagers share a private, tender moment at the local high school’s open-air pool late at night. As they float as one, hanging under the stars in the quietness of the night, the sequence captures the fleeting, heady thrill of teenage love, completely caught up in the moment, consequences overlooked.

Approximately half an hour into Chainsaw Man – The Movie: Reze Arc, I realized such moments are the core of the movie. Denji and Reze’s romantic tale became the focus, and every bit of contextual information and backstories previously known from the anime’s initial episodes proved to be mostly irrelevant. Despite being a official installment within the series, Reze Arc provides a easier starting place for newcomers — even if they missed its prior content. The approach brings advantages, but it simultaneously limits a portion of the urgency of the film’s story.

Created by Tatsuki Fujimoto, Chainsaw Man chronicles Denji, a indebted Devil Hunter in a world where demons represent specific dangers (including concepts like getting older and obscurity to specific horrors like insects or World War II). After being deceived and killed by the yakuza, Denji forms a contract with his loyal devil-dog, Pochita, and comes back from the dead as a chainsaw-human hybrid with the power to completely destroy Devils and the horrors they represent from reality.

Plunged into a violent conflict between devils and hunters, Denji meets a new character — a charming barista concealing a deadly secret — igniting a heartbreaking confrontation between the two where affection and survival intersect. The movie picks up immediately following the first season, exploring the main character’s connection with his love interest as he wrestles with his emotions for her and his devotion to his controlling superior, Makima, compelling him to choose between passion, faithfulness, and self-preservation.

A Self-Contained Romantic Tale Within a Broader Universe

Reze Arc is inherently a lovers-to-enemies story, with our imperfect main character the hero becoming enamored with Reze almost immediately upon meeting. He is a isolated boy seeking affection, which makes his heart vulnerable and up for grabs on a first-come, first-served. Consequently, in spite of all of Chainsaw Man’s intricate mythology and its extensive ensemble, Reze Arc is highly independent. Filmmaker Tatsuya Yoshihara understands this and ensures the romantic arc is at the center, rather than bogging it down with unnecessary summaries for the uninitiated, particularly since such details really matters to the complete storyline.

Despite the protagonist’s imperfections, it’s difficult not to sympathize with him. He is still a teenager, stumbling his way through a world that’s warped his understanding of morality. His desperate longing for love makes him come off like a infatuated puppy, even if he’s likely to barking, snapping, and making a mess along the way. Reze is a ideal pairing for Denji, an compelling seductive antagonist who finds her prey in our protagonist. Viewers hope to see Denji win the ire of his love interest, despite she is clearly concealing something from him. So when her real identity is revealed, audiences can’t help but wish they’ll somehow make it work, even though deep down, you know a happy ending is not truly in the plan. Therefore, the stakes don’t feel as high as they should be since their relationship is doomed. This is compounded by that the movie acts as a immediate follow-up to Season 1, leaving minimal space for a romance like this amid the darker events that fans are aware are coming soon.

Stunning Visuals and Technical Execution

The film’s visuals effortlessly combine 2D animation with computer-generated settings, delivering impressive eye candy prior to the excitement kicks in. Including vehicles to tiny desk fans, digital assets add depth and texture to each shot, allowing the 2D characters pop strikingly. Unlike Demon Slayer, which often showcases its 3D assets and changing backgrounds, Reze Arc uses them less frequently, particularly evident during its action-packed finale, where such elements, while not unattractive, are more apparent to identify. These smooth, ever-shifting environments make the film’s fights both visually bombastic and surprisingly easy to follow. Nonetheless, the technique shines brightest when it’s invisible, improving the dynamic range and motion of the 2D animation.

Final Impressions and Wider Implications

Chainsaw Man – The Movie: Reze Arc serves as a solid point of entry, likely leaving first-time audiences pleased, but it also has a drawback. Telling a self-contained story limits the stakes of what should feel like a expansive anime epic. It’s an illustration of why continuing a successful anime season with a movie isn’t the optimal approach if it undermines the series’ general narrative possibilities.

While Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle succeeded by concluding multiple seasons of animated series with an epic film, and JuJutsu Kaisen 0 avoided the problem completely by acting as a prequel to its well-known series, Chainsaw Man – The Movie: Reze Arc advances boldly, perhaps a bit recklessly. But that doesn’t stop the movie from proving to be a enjoyable time, a excellent point of entry, and a unforgettable romantic tale.