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A pair of teenagers experience a private, tender moment at the local secondary school’s open-air pool after hours. As they float as one, suspended beneath the night sky in the quietness of the night, the scene captures the ephemeral, heady excitement of teenage love, utterly caught up in the moment, ramifications overlooked.

Approximately half an hour into The Chainsaw Man Film: Reze Arc, it became clear these scenes are the core of the movie. Denji and Reze’s love story took center stage, and every bit of background details and character histories I had gleaned from the anime’s initial episodes proved to be largely irrelevant. Although it is a canonical installment within the franchise, Reze Arc provides a more accessible entry point for newcomers — regardless of they missed its single episode. This method brings advantages, but it also hinders a portion of the tension of the movie’s narrative.

Created by Tatsuki Fujimoto, Chainsaw Man follows the protagonist, a debt-ridden Devil Hunter in a universe where demons embody particular evils (ranging from concepts like getting older and obscurity to terrifying entities like insects or historical conflicts). After being deceived and killed by the criminal syndicate, he forms a contract with his faithful devil-dog, Pochita, and comes back from the dead as a part-human chainsaw wielder with the ability to completely destroy fiends and the terrors they signify from existence.

Thrust into a brutal conflict between devils and hunters, the hero encounters a new character — a charming barista hiding a deadly mystery — sparking a tragic confrontation between the two where love and existence collide. This film picks up right after the first season, delving into Denji’s connection with his love interest as he grapples with his emotions for her and his devotion to his controlling superior, his employer, 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 plot, with our imperfect protagonist the hero becoming enamored with Reze almost immediately upon meeting. He is a isolated boy seeking affection, which renders him vulnerable and easily swayed on a first-come, first-served. Consequently, in spite of all of Chainsaw Man’s complex lore and its extensive ensemble, Reze Arc is highly self-contained. Filmmaker Tatsuya Yoshihara recognizes this and guarantees the love story is at the forefront, rather than bogging it down with filler recaps for the uninitiated, especially when none of that really matters to the complete storyline.

Regardless of the protagonist’s imperfections, it’s difficult not to sympathize with him. He’s after all a teenager, stumbling his way through a reality that’s distorted his sense of morality. His desperate longing for affection makes him come off like a infatuated puppy, although he’s prone to growling, biting, and making a mess along the way. His love interest is a perfect match for him, an effective femme fatale who finds her prey in our protagonist. You want to see the main character earn the affection of his love interest, even if she is clearly hiding a secret from him. Thus when her real identity is unveiled, audiences can’t help but wish they’ll in some way make it work, although internally, you know a happy ending is never really in the plan. Therefore, the stakes don’t feel as high as they ought to be since their relationship is doomed. This is compounded by that the movie serves as a direct sequel to Season 1, leaving little room for a love story like this among the darker events that followers know are coming soon.

Breathtaking Animation and Technical Craftsmanship

This movie’s visuals effortlessly combine traditional animation with 3D environments, delivering impressive eye candy even before the excitement kicks in. Including vehicles to small office appliances, digital assets enhance realism and detail to every shot, allowing the 2D characters pop beautifully. Unlike Demon Slayer, which frequently showcases its digital elements and shifting backgrounds, Reze Arc employs them less frequently, particularly evident during its action-packed climax, where those models, though not unappealing, are more apparent to spot. Such fluid, dynamic environments make the movie’s battles both visually bombastic and surprisingly easy to understand. Nonetheless, the technique shines brightest when it’s unnoticeable, improving the dynamic range and motion of the hand-drawn art.

Final Thoughts and Broader Implications

Chainsaw Man – The Movie: Reze Arc serves as a solid point of entry, likely leaving new fans pleased, but it additionally carries a drawback. Telling a self-contained story limits the tension of what should feel like a expansive anime epic. It’s an example of why continuing a successful television series with a movie is not the optimal approach if it weakens the series’ general narrative possibilities.

While Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle found success by concluding several installments of anime television with an grand movie, and JuJutsu Kaisen 0 sidestepped the issue completely by serving as a prequel to its well-known series, Chainsaw Man – The Movie: Reze Arc advances boldly, maybe a slightly foolishly. However that doesn’t stop the film from being a enjoyable experience, a excellent point of entry, and a memorable romantic tale.