Coming This October to the U.S: 'Chainsaw Man – The Movie: Reze Arc' Has American Anime Fans Stoked!

By Angelise Hernandez

Watch the trailer for Chainsaw Man: Reze Arc here!

Chainsaw Man: Reze Arc, produced by Studio MAPPA, is releasing in theaters this year on October 24th. This movie is a sequel that picks off from the first season of the anime. MAPPA felt that this arc deserved its own movie for the cinematic experience. 

One of the posters for the Chainsaw Man movie featuring Reze (left) and Denji (right).

The success of this hit film is beyond great; it climbed up to #1 (no. 1) and has so far made $13.7 million since it has been released in Japan! The film is based off of a canon arc in the manga; the “Bomb Girl” arc. It follows one of the main characters, Denji, who is a devil hunter that comes across a mysterious girl named Reze. The story focuses on his new potential romance, and the personal growth of Denji as he deals with a complicated relationship along with facing a deadly new battle.

There has been controversy revolving around the film's directors. Ryu Nakayama, the original season 1 director, had been excluded from the credits of the movie. CSM fans have different opinions on this issue; U.S. fans are defensive, they view this as erasing Nakayama’s work as a director. However, Japanese fans were more critical towards his previous work, some believing his exclusion was due to the intense backlash he received for how he made the anime more realistic and have a “live-action” style. 

Pictured above, director Tatsuya Yoshihara (left) and assistant directior Masato Nakazoto (right) talk about how the movie came to be.

The movie is being led by a new director, Tatsuya Yoshihara. He had approached the criticisms by re-recorded lines to have more energy in them, added music, sped up action scenes and placed in slower moments to match the manga’s vibe. His work is more appreciated and preferred by Japanese CSM fans due to the improvements and how he perfectly conveyed the overall style of the CSM series. In an interview, a question asked was: “Since there is a different director for this movie, do you think that the movie would have a different vibe compared to the anime?” (Name of student), an FHS student, responded, “Yes, because they are different people with different creations, such as the art style may differ and also the energy they bring into the movie.” This goes to show that the two directors are different in contrast when it comes to their creations and ideas. 

There is also an adorable, exclusive Pochita popcorn bucket being sold at AMC Theaters and Cinemark theaters. The bucket was released for purchase on October 23th. It's recommended for fans to check in with their local theaters to see if they have any available since it is a limited-time item.