Shin Kamen Rider is a 2023 Japanese tokusatsu superhero fantasy film based on the titular character from the TV series and its spin-offs.
Written and directed by Hideaki Anno (Shin Godzilla; Sugar Sugar Rune; Petite Princess Yucie; co-writer of Shin Ultraman) based on the original character created by Shotaro Ishinomori.
The Toei Studios production stars Sôsuke Ikematsu, Minami Hamabe, Masami Nagasawa, Shin’ya Tsukamoto, Takumi Saitoh, Kanata Hongô and Nao Ômori.
Blurb:
“Those which change. Those which never change. And those that don’t want to change.” College student and motorcycle enthusiast Takeshi Hongo is abducted by the evil organization S.H.O.C.K.E.R. and converted into a cyborg as part of their plans for world domination. Before they can brainwash him to do their bidding, he escapes and uses his new enhanced abilities as Kamen Rider to wage a one-man war against S.H.O.C.K.E.R…
Reviews:
“The film’s only fault is playing each new Insect-aug as a monster of a week in one film without a great transition between them. Instead of feeling like cohesive fights leading one to another, it feels like episodic strung together within a larger narrative. Thankfully, however, the film’s opening and closing acts are its strongest moments, mostly due to the battles and acting from the men beneath augments as they shine through.” 9 out of 10, But Why Tho?
” …this seems pretty faithful to the spirit of the original, including the introduction of a second Rider (a development that really works like gangbusters for newcomers). In any event, the head-crushing (literally) fight scenes are definitely cool. It might be the lesser of the three Shin films so far, but it still schools Hollywood in the art and practice of rebooting. Recommended…” J.B. Spins
“Shin Kamen Rider remains thrilling and thoughtful, both as an expression of Anno’s instantly recognizable style and a weirdly moving expression of the title hero’s restless spirit. You might not believe that you could be so moved by a superhero movie about a grasshopper-man on a bike. You would be wrong.” RogerEbert.com
“The fight scenes are fun enough and have enough variation to keep from feeling stale. The fight that is done in sort of a half-animation half-live action rotoscope style is especially cool. The gore is surprisingly solid too as Masked Rider smashes a bunch of heads as if they were oversized cherry-flavored Gushers.” The Video Vacuum
” …every time Shin Kamen Rider starts to get too serious, Anno throws another action scene at the viewer and kicks things back into gear. That action is rendered with both practical techniques and some very stylized CGI that at times looks like conventional animation, perhaps in a nod to the franchises’ anime versions. The result is a film that, despite some pacing issues in the first half, is quite entertaining…” 4 out of 5, Voices from the Balcony
“Again, Hideaki Anno holds true to his style and put out a more brutal but still soulful piece of epic hero action. I once again thoroughly enjoyed my deep dive into another Shin Universe special, and if you weren’t as keen on the stylings of Shin Ultraman and are looking for a more violent, secretive, and battle-packed hero movie, I recommend you strap in with Shin Kamen Rider…” Warped Perspective
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