Shin Kamen Rider (2023)

This movie is such a great love letter to the franchise! It was really so beautifully written and quite action packed. While at times some of the sfx or superfast fight scenes can turn out to be quite anime-like, overall the stunts and battles and story telling still makes you feel so exhilarated and excited to know what happened next.

I know of Sousuke from the MOZU series almost a decade ago, and I had looked forward to seeing him play Hongo in his own image. And I have to say that I wasn't disappointed at seeing the result. Since the behind the scenes had been released way ahead of the screening, I was excited to see the final result on film and it was really great to see how all the shots play out.

With every single reimagination of Rider 1 and Rider 2 stories, it never ceased to amaze me at how unique each version of Rider 1 and 2 turned out to be. This movie's approach to introducing Hongo to the audience was quite different compared to how it was in The First, as well as in original. But I love how refreshing the story felt, even when at the very core of each different Rider 1 and 2, there's still that certain quality that remains the same.

I also love the reimaginations of the five kaijins or Augs, and how they have a different stories behind them... to which we learn how twisted they had become after joining SHOCKER.

The movie somewhat ended with a pretty open ending though, like it felt like there should be a continuation after this. Hopefully there is, because I really like to see more of Anno's reimagination of the Showa riders.

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The highest grossing kamen rider film in history. A great ride!

Firstly, i am not a follower of the kamen rider series although i do know them since i was a kid. Kamen rider is pretty iconic in Japan and Asia, just like Ultraman and Godzilla.

Helmed by the brilliant Hideaki Anno, the mastermind behind the Shin series (Shin Godzilla and Shin Ultraman), this film stars Sosuke Ikematsu as Kamen Rider 1. What really drew me to this film is actually Minami Hamabe.

The story basically starts from the creation of Kamen Rider. Minami plays Ruriko Midorikawa, the daughter of the brilliant scientist Dr. Hiroshi Midorikawa, who is basically the creator of Kamen Rider 1. It's basically a story of the war between Kamen Rider and an "evil" organisation called "Shocker". Que the inverted comas because there's a reason for it. Watch it to find out.

I have been a fan of Minami Hamabe since forever. To see her reuniting with Emoto Tasuku (they both starred in the drama series Dr. White) is indeed a treat. I really loved her acting here. She just embodies her character really well.

The CGI used is pretty interesting. Some may find the fighting scenes rather dizzying or bloody but i personally enjoyed them. I liked the chemistry between Ruriko and the 2 Kamen Riders. Overall, the acting by all the casts were great. Although this is essentially an action-movie, there are some really well-done touching/sad scenes.

PS: there are actually quite a number of cameos by popular actors and actresses such as Masami Nagasawa and Yutaka Takenouchi. Keep an eye out for it.

Overall, this is a great watch. The storyline is good and consistent. Although this movie's box office performance isn't as good as the previous two shin series, it is still the highest grossing kamen rider film in history. I believe the lower box office gross is due more to the fact that the Kamen rider series itself is not as popular as that of Ultraman and Godzilla.

Is it worth the watch ? DEFINITELY!

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