Chainsaw Man anime opening: all movie references explained

The hugely-awaited Chainsaw Male anime is finally out and fans are now raving about its thrilling opening sequence.

Aside from demonstrating your favorite satan hunters in action, the opening pays homage to a handful of movies and other innovative operates. Director and storyboard lead Shingo Yamashita is quite the cinephile, recreating scenes straight out of cult classics like Pulp Fiction and The Massive Lebowski.

Here’s a brief guide on all the pop tradition references built in the Chainsaw Guy opening sequence.

Warning: Insignificant spoilers on names of people and the first episode of Chainsaw Person. Main spoilers to all the films and works referenced.

Each and every reference in the Chainsaw Male anime opening

The Divine Comedy (1320)

Chainsaw Man anime reference of Dante Alighieri's Divine Comedy
Screenshot by Joseph Asuncion/1 Esports

The opening shot can make a reference to the Divine Comedy, the literary masterpiece by Italian poet Dante Alighieri. Dante’s work tells the tale of a pilgrim who goes as a result of the levels of the afterlife: hell, purgatory, and heaven.

Denji pulls his twine in entrance of an illustration of Alichino, a devil who will get fooled by a crafty politician in the eighth circle of hell.

The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974)

Chainsaw man anime reference of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre
Screenshot by Joseph Asuncion/A person Esports

Chainsaw Male bows down to the primary chainsaw slasher flick, The Texa Chainsaw Massacre directed by Tobe Hooper.

Alternatively of a rotting corpse on a monument, the opening reveals Denji keeping satan-canine Pochita as he sits on a stone in a sepia-toned landscape.

Pulp Fiction (1994)

Chainsaw Man next to a scene from Pulp Fiction
Credit score: MAPPA, Chainsaw Person

Negotiations are popular when you are dealing with devils, and what superior way to display these types of stress than the wallet scene in Quentin Tarantino’s criminal offense movie, Pulp Fiction?

Captain Kishibe recreates the stone-chilly aura of hitman Jules Winnfield (Samuel L. Jackson) by holding a pistol position-blank to an unseen person across the table.

Reservoir Puppies (1992)

Chainsaw Man reference of Reservoir Dogs
Screenshot by Joseph Asuncion/1 Esports

Yamashita adds nonetheless yet another Tarantino scene into the mix when Makima and the satan hunters wander as a result of an empty Tokyo road.

Every single member of the General public Protection squad appears in a trucking shot carrying black satisfies with ties, identical to the introduction of the heist crew in Reservoir Canines.

Sadako vs Kayako (2016)

Chainsaw Man reference o Sadako vs Kayako
Screenshot by Joseph Asuncion/A person Esports

The opening sequence will make a nod to Japanese cinema’s finest horror figures, Sadako from The Ring and Kayako from The Grudge.

In their showdown film, Sadako vs Kayako directed by Koji Shiraishi, the two extended-haired ghosts clash more than a perfectly. The Chainsaw Man opening mimics the exact clash with Denji and a further satan hybrid.

No Place for Aged Gentlemen (2007)

Chainsaw Man anime reference of No Country For Old Men
Screenshot by Joseph Asuncion/One particular Esports

It is usually good to just take your shoes off immediately after a tough day’s work of devil looking. Even Anton Chigurh is aware that.

The Coen brothers’ No State For Previous Guys follows the fictional killings of hitman Anton Chigurh (Javier Bardem) in 1980s West Texas. Even with the easy act of taking away his sneakers, Chigurh has a chilly and distant glimpse on his face, which Chainsaw Person reimagines with its masked character, Galgali.

When Upon a Time in Hollywood (2019)

Chainsaw Man anime reference of Once Upon a Time in Hollywood
Screenshot by Joseph Asuncion/A single Esports

The Chainsaw Guy opening highlights the budding friendship amongst Aki and Denji by recreating the automobile scene from The moment On a Time in Hollywood.

The third Tarantino movie on this record, The moment Upon a Time in Hollywood tells the story of washed-out actor Rick Dalton (Leonardo DiCaprio). As soon as a big title in the 1950s, Dalton finds himself lost in Tinseltown a 10 years later on, but carries on to struggle for relevance with the assist of his best friend and longtime stunt double, Cliff Booth (Brad Pitt).



Assault of the Killer Tomatoes (1978)

Chainsaw Man anime reference of Attack of the Killer Tomatoes
Screenshot by Joseph Asuncion/A person Esports

Don’t permit the chainsaws and devils fool you, Chainsaw Person is amusing, and Yamashita effortlessly captures the sentiment in this scene from Assault of the Killer Tomatoes.

Directed by John DeBello, Assault of the Killer Tomatoes is a parody film that pokes exciting at sci-fi and thriller films. Government officials are determined to communicate about tactics to overcome sentient tomatoes, but have a challenging time entering the very small conference home.

Enjoyable point: The initial devil that Denji slays in the manga is the Tomato Devil.

Really don’t Look Up (1996)

Chainsaw Man anime reference of Don't Look Up
Screenshot by Joseph Asuncion/Just one Esports

Chainsaw Man tends to make yet another bone-chilling reference to a lesser-recognised Japanese horror movie, Do not Search Up directed by Hideo Nakata.

The movie’s plot revolves close to a movie crew which is getting haunted by a pale female dressed in white. The legendary scene demonstrates actress Hitomi Kurokawa (Yasuyo Shirashima) in shock following seeing a ghost on set. In the meantime, the supporting actress, possessed by the ghost, laughs maniacally in the track record.

Jacob’s Ladder (1990)

Chainsaw Man anime reference of Jacob's Ladder
Screenshot by Joseph Asuncion/Just one Esports

Chainsaw Man touches on the component of constructed realities by way of the psychological horror movie directed by Adrian Lyne, Jacob’s Ladder.

In the movie, US infantryman Jacob Singer (Tim Robbins) fights in the Vietnam War, but wakes up back again in New York right after currently being stabbed for the duration of a skirmish. As he carries on to working experience hallucinations, a guy ways him and describes that his military unit was experimented on with a drug that triggered them to convert on every single other.

The scene referenced shows Jacob’s remaining times, returning property and reuniting with his son who’s ready patiently on the stairs. In actuality, the soldier was inside a triage tent where health professionals soon declared his passing.

Constantine (2005)

Chainsaw Man anime reference to Constantine
Screenshot by Joseph Asuncion/A person Esports

Devil hunters and demon hunters? They’re all the same according to this Constantine reference.

The superhero horror film directed by Franchise Lawrance has identical themes to the aforementioned Divine Comedy. Most important character Constantine (Keanu Reeves) has the electric power to vacation by means of hell and again and is seeking to generate his spot in heaven by goodwill.

As an alternative of Constantine and policewoman Angela Dodson (Rachel Weisz), Aki can take centre stage with Himeno as a bustling cityscape shines dazzling in the background.

The Major Lebowski (1998)

Chainsaw Man anime reference to The Big Lebowski
Screenshot by Joseph Asuncion/1 Esports

Yamashita sneaks in a further Coen brothers reference to the record with The Huge Lebowski.

Denji and his crew are witnessed in a bowling alley, knocking down a couple of pins. Just like the film’s antagonist Jesus Quintana (John Turturro), Denji likes to keep his bowling balls polished with a see-noticed fabric.

The Big Lebowski is much a lot more than just a bowling movie nevertheless. The movie stars Jeff Bridges as Jeffrey “The Dude” Lebowski, a slacker who receives caught up in the affairs of somebody with the exact exact identify as him. Most significant variance? The other Lebowski is a millionaire.

Neon Genesis Evangelion (1995)

Chainsaw Man anime reference to Neon Genesis Evangelion
Screenshot by Joseph Asuncion/Just one Esports

Chainsaw Gentleman also salutes the anime entire world with the typical mecha sequence by Hideaki Anno, Neon Genesis Evangelion.

Evangelion’s EVA 1 mecha is identified to acquire matters into its possess arms when items get way too severe for melancholy pilot Shinji Ikari. When it was trapped inside of the sphere-formed angel Leliel, EVA 1 escaped by piercing the enemy’s shell with its hand.

Chainsaw Gentleman shows the exact animalistic behaviors, but this really stems from Denji’s brash teen frame of mind.

Battle Club (1999)

Chainsaw Man reference to Fight Club
Screenshot by Joseph Asuncion/Just one Esports

Really don’t tell any one, but Fight Club tends to make it into the list as the third ball-formed reference in Chainsaw Man’s opening.

In part of the battle scene of the Chainsaw Person intro, Energy smacks a golden ball that rolls down the streets, which appears particularly like the detonated statue scene in Combat Club.

The act of vandalism is just a single of the lots of things that the unnamed protagonist (Edward Norton) and Tyler Durden (Brad Pitt) coordinate with their everyman crew. The movie explores the principles of anarchy and nihilism in the course of the convert of the millennium.

Goodbye, Eri (2022)

Chainsaw Man anime reference to Goodbye, Eri
Screenshot by Joseph Asuncion/One particular Esports

Yamashita will make things go entire circle with a nod to the newest a single-shot manga by Chainsaw Male author-illustrator Tatsuki Fujimoto. The opening sequence displays Energy strolling absent from a fiery explosion, comparable to Yuta’s iconic scene in Goodbye, Eri.

Goodbye, Eri is a manga that explores sensitive subject areas, this sort of as death and mourning, through teenager Yuta. The aspiring filmmaker tries to cope with his mother’s disease and death by documenting the events, but not anyone is delighted with his inventive attempts.

The scenes could be going off the cliche trope that “cool men do not glimpse at explosions”, but for the situation of Yuta, the explosion functions as a cathartic moment in his daily life.

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Go through Extra: Who is Denji in Chainsaw Person? Story, individuality, and 1st look

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