Although it’s been almost two years since the first season of Chainsaw Man premiered on Crunchyroll, the excitement and anticipation for Chainsaw Man – The Movie: Reze Arc remains sky-high. The lack of new animated content hasn’t discouraged the fanbase of the hit Shōnen manga and anime, and now that the movie is finally here, it’s already living up to the hype. With a 96% fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes, the Chainsaw Man demonstrates that Japanese animation, and anime as a medium, has never been more popular.
Case in point: Chainsaw Man isn’t the only anime seeing success this year. Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba – The Movie: Infinity Castle, released in theaters a couple of months earlier, broke box-office records and received plenty of rave reviews of its own. However, Demon Slayer is a film that has all the trappings of Shōnen (which, interestingly, is both a demographic in Japan and a genre). Conversely, the Chainsaw Man movie subverts expectations, using its blockbuster underpinnings to tell a slower-paced, tighter, and melancholic story that sets a new standard for Shōnen anime. While Demon Slayer achieved its own level of success, Chainsaw Man surpassed it with brevity and a more intimate story.
The ‘Chainsaw Man’ Movie Is Carefully Paced, Balancing Emotion and Spectacle
Directed by Tatsuya Yoshihara, written by Hiroshi Seko, and animated by Studio MAPPA, the Chainsaw Man movie adapts the Reze arc of the manga (as suggested by the title). It tells the story of Public Safety Devil Hunter Denji (Ryan Colt Levy) as he falls head over heels for a girl named Reze (Alexis Tipton), who, as marketing revealed early on, isn’t what she seems. What follows is an hour and 40-minute emotional rollercoaster that cleverly uses emotional build-up in a way that Demon Slayer struggled with, despite having an additional 55 minutes of runtime (clocking in at two and a half hours). While both films feature breathtaking animation, MAPPA’s stunning work on Chainsaw Man, even in the most mundane moments and in the characters’ everyday lives, is all in service of the story.
That isn’t to say that the Chainsaw Man movie isn’t without spectacle — in fact, it’s the one attribute of a Shōnen anime that it adheres to. After setting up the emotional conflict at the center of the story, the movie isn’t afraid to go all out with its absurdist action, reaching levels of blood and gore and intensity on par with Demon Slayer. Everything from sword fights to Chainsaw Man riding a Shark devil through a typhoon (that is also a giant baby devil) is showcased in the movie, and the insanity works because it’s grounded in authentic emotions.
The key difference between the two films lies in their structures. With Demon Slayer’s hefty runtime, the intense battles that the main characters are fighting in the present are consistently overshadowed by flashbacks to characters who are already dead. While it can add to the cathartic nature of many of the fights in the story, it also takes away some of the built-up tension in the present for the characters who are still relevant to the plot. In the Chainsaw Man movie, much of the emotional setup comes in the first half of the film, justifying the absurd action in the middle section and paying off with a heartfelt, tragic conclusion.
‘Chainsaw Man’ Subverts the Shōnen Genre
While Demon Slayer plays into almost every Shōnen trope to a fault with its flashbacks, characters’ goals, and narrative arcs, Chainsaw Man serves as the antithesis. Tatsuki Fujimoto’s original manga deconstructs the genre through Denji’s personal ambitions, which are almost always selfish and never lofty, and are usually centered on something as simple as being with a woman. The violence and bloodshed in the anime’s first season and this movie are rarely for a more righteous cause or greater good, but rather in the service of unseen powers that be with a grip on the central characters of the story. Moreover, the deliberately slow pace of the Chainsaw Man movie is nothing like what’s expected of Shōnen.
Early scenes, such as Denji’s movie marathon date with Makima (Suzie Yeung), which examines his psychological state, and the pool scene that develops his relationship with Reze, showcase the Chainsaw Man movie’s strength in quiet, introspective moments. Its priorities lie not in making the action as fluid and breathtaking as possible (which it still manages to do), but in service of the character’s stories. Denji’s arc in the manga chapters is adapted into a coming-of-age story about a neglected and abused teenager finding a genuine connection with someone else.
That’s not to say Demon Slayer lacks emotional power. Rather, Chainsaw Man thrives as a largely standalone work, aside from a few ties (and teases) to the horrors Denji has yet to experience. Yoshihara’s film takes a more understated approach, using MAPPA’s stunning attention to detail to tell a story about Denji’s growing emotional intelligence. The blend of tight character work and bombastic action that brings Fujimoto’s kinetic art to life is the cherry on top. Both films showcase how far anime has come, particularly in Western popularity, but Chainsaw Man stands out for its sharper character focus and tighter pacing.
The Success of the ‘Chainsaw Man’ Movie Sets a New Standard Moving Forward
In a genre known for its spectacle, Chainsaw Man’s willingness to broaden its horizons with something much more intimate and tragic amidst the chaos is refreshing. Between all the devil-slaying, Denji’s journey confronting his loneliness and past trauma helps it not only stand out from more traditional narratives like Demon Slayer but also marks a shift in how anime blockbusters are made. Moreover, the movie’s conclusion isn’t open-ended like Demon Slayer‘s (which was marketed as a trilogy). Instead, it stops at a point in the manga that feels like a natural conclusion to the story, with a tragic final note that doesn’t feel satisfactory, as it isn’t supposed to — first loves can feel like that sometimes.
Chainsaw Man is already set to have an impressive opening weekend at the domestic box office, continuing the trend started with Demon Slayer this year, and signaling a new era for anime at the movies. However, with Chainsaw Man’s #1 spot at the box office, there’s a new message: personal, powerful storytelling and global appeal don’t have to be at odds.
The positive response to the movie isn’t just about the exceptional animation, but also about the authentic characters who are deeply flawed and human. Characters who, despite their extraordinary circumstances, want the same things viewers do in their everyday lives. The power of anime to capture life’s complexities has never been so palpable, and that’s what makes Chainsaw Man – The Movie: Reze Arc stand out.
- Release Date
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September 19, 2025
- Director
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Tatsuya Yoshihara
- Writers
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Hiroshi Seko
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Kikunosuke Toya
Denji (voice)
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