Are you excited for the Saw Man movie?You should watch this 90s anime from the director of Ghost in the Shell

chainsaw man It might be the manga, but it’s clear that one of series creator Tatsuki Fujimoto’s favorite things in life is movies.Films and anything film-related can be found in his work, including Chainsaw Man and his previous comics fire punch Set up some important scenes in a movie theater.besides Goodbye Elliea comic about the making of a movie (which you really should read, by the way), and in fact, every volume of Chainsaw Man has Fujimoto sharing his favorite movies.

It’s no surprise that one of the best Saw arcs, The Razer Arc – which is being adapted into a movie rather than a second season – was heavily inspired by the movie.Many of the movies Fujimoto recommends in the Chainsaw Man volume tend to be live-action films, such as Texas Chainsaw Massacre (That’s not surprising, is it), but Reze Arc was actually inspired by an anime movie: Jinlu: Wolf Brigadea 1999 film written by Mamoru Oshii and directed by Ghost in the Shell.

I should quickly note that “Werewolf” is not an easy read, but I imagine “Chainsaw Man” is not an easy read either. It may not be easy, but even if it’s not perfect, it’s fun. The film takes place in postwar Japan in the 1950s, after Nazi Germany won World War II and even briefly occupied the former. During the occupation, Nazi Germany tried to mold Japan more to its liking through a new government, but the result was a massive increase in poverty and a left-wing “terrorist” group called the Sect that took up arms against its fascist rule.

In turn, a special armed force called “Kerberos” was formed, consisting of elite soldiers who wore scary-looking armor with glowing red eyes that protected them from almost all gunfire and were equipped with Gatling gun. Kazuki Bushi, the group’s protagonist, kills a young woman at the beginning of the film. He later meets her sister, and the two become close and even become romantically interested in each other as he deals with the trauma of the killing in an extremely brutal way.

Kazuki is somewhat portrayed as a sympathetic protagonist, although I don’t think the movie ultimately makes him sympathetic since he’s basically a super cop. I won’t spoil the ending of this movie because I think you should see it for yourself, but I want to give you this movie as homework.

“Homework!” I hear you cry. “Just to watch a movie?” Yes! “But why?” Well, because one of my favorite aspects of film is that it’s a conversation. The movie constantly references and often pays homage to its predecessors, and much of the new stuff you love wouldn’t exist without the old stuff. There would be no “The Matrix” without the “Lain” series of experiments, there would be no “It Follows” without “Halloween”, and so on. I find that seeing things that inspire something I love makes me love it more – this happened with “Human Lou” and “Chainsaw Man,” although I don’t think “Human Lou” is a Perfect movie.

I also think it’s a cool lesson in understanding why artists make certain decisions. As I mentioned, the Reze Arc is one of the best arcs in Saw Man even though it’s not particularly long, but after watching Jin-Roh I feel like I’ve managed to fit a small piece of the puzzle into into the bigger picture. The other works that broadly inspired Saw Man are worth a look, even if just to catch up on all the references buried in the vibrant opening of season one.

Of course, if you only watch the anime, it might be worth waiting for the upcoming movie, as I do think Jinra might technically spoil what happened in the Raize arc. But if you’re a fan of the Saw comics, you really should check it out for yourself.