One of the distinguishing characteristics of the 2022 Chainsaw Man series is that protagonist Denji is never portrayed as having a normal human experience. He never went to school and never had friends or any of the the other things most kids take for granted. At heart he’s a creature of instinct, much closer to the demons he fights than to regular humanity, which just amplifies the raging hormones resulting from him being a teenage boy. That Denji is like this is a central theme in this movie, which is a direct sequel to the TV series. Of course, he could also just have his brain currently residing in his pants.
One consequence of this during the series is that Makima was able to quite firmly win him over just by being nice to him and providing three meals a day. Here she even goes out on a date with him, which mostly involves the two of them going to a succession of movies over the course of a day. (Why exactly Makima would do this is a bit unclear, but the viewpoint is always Denji’s, and he probably wouldn’t care if she had an ulterior motive.) He is so completely taken with her that he believes that no other woman could tempt him. But that’s exactly what happens when he meets Reze, a girl his own age who shelters with him during a rainstorm. She seems to like him and even flirt with him, and hanging out with her is definitely fun, leaving Denji confused about who he actually wants to try to be with. But this is a setting where demons are real and Chainsaw’s heart is a highly-sought-after prize among them, and they will definitely intrude on Denji’s budding new relationship.
On the storytelling front, Denji’s date with Makima sets up a later excellent contrast between Denji’s two potential love interests. Makima is a calm, mature woman with very controlled emotions, whereas Reze is very expressive and has a youthful energy and enthusiasm. (And unlike Power, who’s also closer to Denji’s age, she’s not crazy or bloodthirsty.) Denji’s internal struggle over which approach he’s more attracted to provides a surprisingly compelling emotional core for the story; the experience being torn between two entirely different kinds of attraction is a very common one and arguably the most human Denji is at this point. The downside to this emphasis is that it comes at the expense of most of the rest of the supporting cast. Aki and Angel get some attention as a team-up, with Aki having a hard time dealing with Angel’s laziness and death wish, but any development there is practically an afterthought. Power, meanwhile, is entirely absent except at the beginning and near the end, and the movie does hurt a little for that.
But this is, first and foremost, an action-centered franchise, and once the Bomb Demon shows up and starts wreaking havoc, the action elements take over fully and start delivering hard. The prolonged action sequences which make up most of the movie’s second half are eye-popping spectacles which rank among studio MAPPA’s finest and most ambitious animation efforts to date. They are full of grand, continuously-flowing choreography peppered with vibrant explosions and the kind of dynamic, camera-shifting movement titles like DAN DA DAN are known for. The scale of these scenes shouldn’t be overlooked, either; these were clearly planned specifically with a big screen in mind, and that is the ideal way to watch this movie. It will, I think, not have quite the impact on even a fairly large TV screen or monitor.
At around 100 minutes, this would have take nearly five full episodes to play out in series form, but given the flow of events (and especially the grand Chainsaw/Bomb battle, which has to be experienced continuously to fully appreciate), releasing it in movie form was the right call. I saw the movie subtitled so I can’t comment on the English dub, and a 3D version is also avaiable.
If you’re a franchise fan, seeing this one in the theater is a must.
Rating: A-
USA Anime 