Chainsaw Man – The Movie: Reze Arc remains as surreal, violent and funny as the anime was. The choice to present this arc as a movie was well made as the shorter arc naturally translates to the structure of a film and the format keeps the momentum without breaks.
The highlight of the movie is its characters. Denji remains as naïve and silly as he always was, but it works for the narrative. I can’t imagine another character for whom riding a shark into battle would sound reasonable. At the same time, it is nice to see another side to him. While Reze is manipulative and uses this to her advantage, Denji can see that, through her actions, there is a connection between them. Reze herself questions why she hesitated, and the story implies that she, just like him, lacks affection.
The ending of the movie raises the question of how much Makima was aware of Reze and why she was surprisingly absent from most of the action. It is clear that she was waiting for Reze in order to trap her but she also mentions the mouse allegory, something she should be unaware of. Was she aware of everything from the very start? It would seem so, but why would she let the situation escalate so much? I hope this becomes clearer in the next arcs.
This movie is a great sequel to the anime by keeping its momentum. But the movie really shines by showing its characters getting developed and using it to pave the way for the next arcs.