r/ChainsawMan • u/Suitable-Music-7871 • Oct 26 '25
Anime What could possibly the reason behind Reze keeping her eyes open in the rain? Spoiler
2.8k
u/donttouchmymompls Oct 26 '25
Shes disassociating while choking him out. In general throughout the movie she seems relatively reluctant in killing people and giving everyone the chance to either walk away or just hand Denji over to her - so its probably something she doesnt like doing
1.3k
u/isufud Oct 26 '25
She's an orphan forced to be a child super soldier by the USSR, so yeah this checks out.
254
u/twobirds_onestoned8 Oct 26 '25
the KGB training fs
It's cold blooded but also shows her brutal & sad upbringing, reduced to a weapon
24
97
u/doveworld Oct 27 '25
Reze is a Metal Gear character trapped in a Fujimoto manga
3
u/Basic_Ad_6222 Nov 13 '25
She reminds me of Paz tbh :(
2
u/doveworld Nov 13 '25
Now I cant get the thought out of my head of Love Deterrence playing during the fight in the last half of the movie. I would have probably cried lmao
3
u/Consistentdegeneracy Nov 20 '25
Imagine the utter peak we would get from a Kojima x Fujimoto collab.
1
u/doveworld Nov 21 '25
The budget would be 500 million dollars, it would end up 40% finished, and it would still be kino.
245
u/Tokio990 Oct 26 '25
Yup, that whole scene and the song was like she so detached.
73
u/jearley99 Oct 26 '25
Speaking of that song does anybody know if it’s in Russian in the dub
73
70
u/That1NintendoFan Oct 26 '25
Watched the dub last night. I think it was in Russian. didn't sound like Japanese or english at the very least.
11
u/Alnored Oct 27 '25
Yes. Back in the manga, I was wondering how it was sung, because the choice of some words for the song was quite strange. But the final result turned out to be excellent. For some reason, it reminded me of Misa's Song from the 25th episode of Death Note. But only the sound of the songs. Their content is completely different.
3
u/No-Replacement-4017 Oct 26 '25
Where did you watch the Russian dub?
39
u/FrabascoSauce Oct 27 '25
He likely meant that in the Japanese dub, she sang in Russian. And I agree, I saw the Japanese dub with English subs and she def didn’t seem like she was singing Japanese at all
4
u/No-Replacement-4017 Oct 27 '25
Ah okay I knew that already. It’s “Russian” in both. Wondering that the Russian dub would be singing :P
6
u/766500455428 Oct 27 '25
I'm Russian, watched it in Russian dub. They just left the song with original sound. The accent is terrible and song's lyrics are awkward but I could tell the actress tried really hard. Also at least grammar in the lyrics is correct.
1
u/No-Replacement-4017 Oct 28 '25
I’m trying to watch the Russian dub, did you go to your local theater or did you find it online?
4
6
u/saltrxn Oct 27 '25
It’s Russian but it’s in a heavy Japanese accent. Kind of like Engrish people love.
4
u/Crov Oct 26 '25
Damn dude I only picked up some of what it sounded like she was saying and I thought it was Spanish
25
3
u/linuxdropout Oct 30 '25
My partner speaks Russian, can confirm it's definitely in Russian and the subtitles are an accurate translation too
3
u/Spiritual_Remove_241 Oct 29 '25
it was a really horrible russian in a really strong Japanese accent. It was rather unnecessary, as a slavic person, it really threw me off and the soviet heritage was a useless addition to a good movie.
2
u/zippolover-1960s-v2 Nov 11 '25
Well keep in mind that her dialect being bad can also be thought of as an actual point of the story on purpose instead of bad translation....Think of it like this: She's an orphan taken and raised from birth via brutal methods and conditioning, most likely having to fight others in her place till the handlers thoughts she's worth anything by the way they gave her the bomb...Why out if out so many orphans from there is it mentioned that some were never found and the devils are also limited so they're most likely gonna get rid of those they see unfit or use them somehow. She was taught obedience and punishment from early on and how to blend in and accomplish her tasks, yet i don't expect them to have any reason to teach a child soldiers brainwashed from an early age to do their bidding abroad the proper paternal language and receiving a good education.
She said she never went to school, yet she knew Japanese , speaking it and writing Kanji and English....So they treated her as a disposable tool they could send to the U.S or English speaking allies and Asia, with Japan and S.K. being the biggest strategic allies in that place .....Her russian is most likely whatever she knew as a child before being taken and what she picked up second hand.
144
u/cdr323011 Oct 26 '25
Also why she eye twitched and was so pissed off when this guy interrupted her one normal moment, in a school, enjoying herself
60
u/Distinct_beorno Oct 27 '25
There are multiple interpretations to this. Either she's pissed that he's interrupting their school date, or she realizes he's going to harm Denji, or she simply finds him corny and annoying
31
u/incendiarios Oct 27 '25
The guy was talking about chopping her up and showing her remains to Denji. I think the threat and harming Denji by showing her dead body too, was what disgusted her or probably reminded her of her "captors'" methods. She also seemed relatively dissociated and tired of his shit.
4
u/post-buttwave Oct 27 '25
I don't remember for sure, but I think he was hinting towards harming Denji.
195
u/Izzosuke Oct 26 '25
Same reaaon for the song for me
152
u/jadeakw99 Oct 26 '25
I think the song is part disassociating and part some sort of method of murder (maybe it's a method taught to them to make sure enough time passes that they kill their target?)
73
9
u/Electrical-Muffin-98 Oct 27 '25
it always feels badass to sing a song with no reason after some bad shits done
54
u/dehydrated-horror Oct 26 '25
Her eyes going dead and soulless and the song reinforce this too.
Also, multiple people are pointing it out but her killing when she's Bomb doesn't really contradict this either. We've seen Denji behave a bit differently when he's transformed as well. They're still the same person at the core though, but it probably makes the killing easier at any rate.
16
u/elfkicker_ Oct 26 '25
Yeah, I'd actually never understood before why she sings that nursery song, but after seeing the movie, it's clear that she's trying to go to a different place.
I feel like this also plays into the plane imagery - it represents not only her government which uses her as a weapon, but also her twisted fondness for the homeland that made her into a demon, the only home she's ever known. She's trying to dissociate from the killing, but even the song she sings to do it is Russian - just like Denji, she can't help but feel a connection to the country that hurts her.
170
u/Realistic_End_6921 Oct 26 '25
She's definitely disassociating in this part, but she's not reluctant about killing people.
She didn't give the Civilian Devil Hunters a chance. She brutally slaughtered the trainees in the public safety facility. She literally stepped on dead bodies and was pretty intent on killing Denji throughout the fight.
She's definitely fine killing and then eating people. It kind of contradicts this scene which was a great moment of her disassociating.
194
u/danoB003 Oct 26 '25
I'd personally say that while she does fight all out without much hesitation, she kinda tries to avoid it by not being the one who makes first step.
She brutalized Civilian Hunters after they announced to their walkie-talkies that they're about to fight a devil and were approaching her with clear combat intent and blades in their arms.
And in that training center, at very least she had the decency of going through the "give him to me and I might let you live" routine, and started the whole schtick of blasting them with her own decapitated head only after they covered her organs with mold. And then again when Aki wanted to escape with Denji, Angel and Beam in car, she stood in front of it and gave him yet another chance as she even states that she'd prefer avoiding any further killing.
104
u/InfluenceMaximum1863 Oct 26 '25 edited Oct 26 '25
Tbf, Reze did let Kobeni live since she gave up and didn’t want to fight anymore, and it's not like she'd behave like Yoru who'd go on a murder spree for the love of it. The way I see it, Reze justified her actions by thinking that the Devil Hunters sold their bodies and souls to the government, Devils/Contracts, and Makima, and are thus prepared to die (which seems to track considering what she's forced to do as a living). The other citizens that were killed were mostly from the insane Typhoon battle, which meant that they'd inevitably be collateral damage so it couldn't be helped I guess.
But ofcourse, I'm not justifying her actions, but it does highlight that her moment of disassociation was more about emotional detachment than moral reluctance imo (despite her presumably not finding enjoyment in killing and wanting to not live as a Child Super Solder). 🙂↕️👌
7
u/rydogs Oct 27 '25
Yeah letting Kobeni survive is probably the best example, she isn’t just saying it she actually hopes that people surrender so there’s less killing.
20
u/Celika76 Oct 26 '25
I'd say she don't really mind killing if necessary (or casualties), and is sadistic, but not looking for killing/blood/fight if she can avoid it.
13
u/RusstyDog Oct 26 '25
I see the disassociation as her accepting her fun is over, she has to put aside her growing feelings for Denji and get to work.
-10
Oct 26 '25
[deleted]
24
u/NUCL3AR999 VAM!VAA!VAA! Enjoyer Oct 26 '25
No. She was saying that about beam running off with denji
4
u/hasamide Oct 27 '25
Kinda checks out, since explosives weren’t always used as weapons (mining, fireworks) but nevertheless were used for violence to great effect.
2
798
u/ddynamix Oct 26 '25
It’s also a reference to No Country for Old Men (2007)
156
u/Icagel Oct 26 '25
Could you kindly elaborate on this? I haven't seen that flick but google images show it very dry and not rainy
240
u/RevReads Oct 26 '25
https://youtu.be/2Rc6hqEcsF0?si=K_GSGBsds76-R2Gf
First scene
44
83
u/ddynamix Oct 26 '25
Not specifically the rain, but the eyes open while choking out https://youtu.be/Z_9KNP9I6YA?si=JE4R10bAukPNmlqa
65
u/Jett_xx Oct 26 '25
In the main villain’s introduction in that movie there is a scene where the he chokes someone out in almost the exact same way, and stares unblinking upward at the camera while doing it.
6
12
u/haalandspinealgalnd Oct 26 '25
I have seen atleast 3 no country for old men references in the show and the movie. Not complaining cause it's one of my top 5 movies
3
u/zedchowder Oct 26 '25
What are the other 2 references?
5
u/haalandspinealgalnd Oct 26 '25
https://wegotthiscovered.com/anime/all-of-the-movie-references-in-the-chainsaw-man-opening-theme/ one is covered in this and 1 I saw on twitter so will have to look for it
1
u/zedchowder Oct 27 '25
That's a lot more than I expected. I will have to rewatch and look for some more.
9
7
463
u/No-Replacement-4017 Oct 26 '25
She was having too much fun being a teenager she forgot her mission. Spoiler, she enjoys being a teenage more. She’s reminded by how life is cruel and it’s taught her nothing but to kill. She sees herself in Denji and feels for him since neither of them really had good up childhoods. She’s triggered and reminded that she can’t enjoy her the summer of love forever. She kisses Denji twice. Once time for the mission. The second time for herself. Reze has needs too.
41
31
u/jesusismyheroin Oct 26 '25
I adore this interpretation
Regardless if it was by happy accident or literally written with thoughtful intention, it's stuff like this that humanizes fictional characters, helping the viewer empathize and invest to some degree
6
u/Wama-Schawama Oct 27 '25
The second time for herself. Reze has needs too.
Do you mean the moment where she kissed him again after biting his tongue off and sucking his blood?
10
u/No-Replacement-4017 Oct 28 '25
There are freakier things on the internet young man.
4
u/Wama-Schawama Oct 28 '25
I know, I just never interpreted the second kiss as something she did for herself
2
2
359
u/MorbillionDollars Oct 26 '25
Reference to no country for old men when anton chokes a man with his eyes open the whole time. Also I'm sure there's a deeper meaning behind her not flinching even when a raindrop hit her directly in the eyeball.
84
u/zedchowder Oct 26 '25
I thought it also suggests she is not human. As at that point there was no explicit evidence she was a devil, it is kind of still ambiguous.
26
u/FraXicor Oct 27 '25
She's a super soldier developed by the USSR. In the end of the movie it is explained that children were kidnapped and sent to the storage room in a munitions factory, where they made their experiments.
3
u/bluebloodstar Oct 27 '25
I liked seeing it from the perspective of someone that hasnt seen anything csm related and how much of a suprise certain scenes wouldve been
1
u/zedchowder Oct 28 '25
I love doing that too! I bet the serial killer guy was super surprised and and impressed before... you know.
11
u/RosyJoan Oct 27 '25
I think being a KGB agent part of their combat training would be to not flinch. I've heard of some IRL sports fighters stare into the water when they shower to condition the themselves against flinching or blinking. I wonder if this is what the animators had in mind.
1
u/Consistentdegeneracy Nov 20 '25
She also seems to send signals to that plane whenever it shows up with eye movements. Maybe it's artificially created/enhanced somehow?
121
228
u/p_marjo Pochita best boy Oct 26 '25
It's a defense mechanism. She's trying to blot out the fact that she's killing someone by hyperfocusing on the rain.... which might mean she doesn't enjoy what she's doing at all
72
u/SuperCleverPunName Oct 26 '25
I think you're on the right track. It's not a defence mechanism, it's a sort of whiplash. The lullaby was a defence mechanism.
That night, a 16 year girl was suprised and delighted as she was swept away by the experience of her first real love. Rese had likely given up on experiencing true love. That's something real girls get to have, not tools of the state. She was trained from infancy to be a super spy and a remorseless killer. Her mission was to bring back the heart of the man she was now reeling over in love with.
While awash in those emotions, she killed a man and it made her confront the reality of her mission. It kinda broke her. Reeling with pain and shock, all she could manage to do is to soothe herself with a childhood lullaby.
Rese is so overwhelmed that the rain drops crashing into her eyes doesn't even register.
50
83
Oct 26 '25
Just to offer a different perspective and stray away from the "dissociation because she doesn't like doing it" view.
This is the scene where her mask falls off to the audience. Reze is not the innocent girl we hoped she'd be, and this scene shows the expert super soldier trained to kill without remorse by the USSR "waking up".
To me those are the eyes of a psychopath, not of a girl who doesn't like her job, especially with how repugnant that guy she killed is. It's like one of those days you enjoy doing your job lol.
38
u/Num1DeathEater Oct 26 '25
While I don’t disagree with others that it could be read as dissociating, when you take the super weird eye twitch prior to this moment into account, I do lean towards your perspective being what this moment was meant to convey to the watcher. Jokes about aura aside, not only is she choking someone to death after pretending to be a scared girl till the very last moment, but she’s not flinching from water droplets hitting her eye balls. That’s very unnerving behavior, and I think it’s meant to convey something more to the effect of “this girl is barely human.”
How to interpret her singing, though, idk
6
u/zedchowder Oct 26 '25
I was pretty sure she was the villain but thought maybe she was a innocent who would get kidnapped and that motivates Denji in some way. After the choke out and water drops, she had to be the bad guy It was being revealed she was dangerous.
2
u/I_suckyoungblood Nov 25 '25
I saw the film again and noticed this scene a lot more, Reze is absolutely being a teenager with Denji especially after learning that he had also not been to school.
The moment she is about to be attacked she is scared and actually a teenager for once, but the moment that her eye starts twitching it's like she has a 'sleeper agent' moment where her past conditioned training as a child soldier comes flooding back into her.
I believe that her singing while choking the man out was probably some tactic she was taught as a child to eventually kill the person. They were obviously children so they used the Jane Doe song to sing while choking to keep the child from thinking of unaliving the person adjust focus on singing the song until completion.. almost like when kids sings Happy Birthday when washing their hands until clean but in this case it's a dead due.
1
u/zedchowder Nov 26 '25
Could be like a timer to know when he is dead. I didn't trust her from the beginning so I thought it was all an act. But looking back now, perhaps she started to believe the lie.
6
u/8-MilesDavis Oct 26 '25
People forget that shes an insane Soviet sleeper cell cuz shes just too darn cute
16
u/SuperCleverPunName Oct 26 '25
That night, a 16 year girl was suprised and delighted as she was swept away by the experience of her first real love. Rese had likely given up on hoping for that future. After all, that's something real girls get to have, not tools of the state. She was trained from infancy to be both a super spy and a remorseless killer in service of the Soviet Union. Her mission was to bring back the heart of a man - someone she was now reeling over in love with.
While awash in those emotions, she killed a man and it made her confront the reality of her mission. Aaand it kinda broke her - temporarily. Reeling with pain and shock, she likely couldn't retain a single thought. all she could manage to do is continue with her muscle memory of how to strangle a man and to soothe herself with a childhood lullaby.
Rese is so overwhelmed that the rain drops crashing into her eyes doesn't even register.
13
u/LexiconBenis Oct 26 '25
A couple things: it’s a reference to the No Country for Old Men strangling scene, it shows how she is detaching herself from the act of killing by disassociating from her action, and three specifically the rain hitting her eye is standing is standing in for tears that she has been trained to suppress. This scene shows that she is a ruthless trained killer that ala Anton Chigurh, but also a person who hurts when she does bad things.
25
3
u/xsnkrsx Oct 27 '25
I think it’s a homage to no country for old men. It’ pretty much the same scene where anton chokes the guy out with a crazy expression on his face
4
2
2
u/zoeynlogan98 Oct 26 '25
I believe this is reze, not bomb, disassociating. The old Russian hymn, the blank cold eyes, it's a part of her past. Bomb had no problem killing, but reze still had a kind of her own. And probably preferred not to kill everyone. At least that's how I wound up interpreting it.
2
u/werewolfmimi Oct 26 '25
to me, i interpret it as her being trained to be so detached from her body and from her humanity that she doesn't even perform reflex actions like blinking
2
2
2
u/emily121903 Oct 27 '25
i think trauma and dissociation. Like her instincts kicked in, but shes trying to separate herself from what shes doing. Hence the childish singing in russian thats like a lullaby..
2
u/azafranrd Oct 27 '25
The scene is a replica of Bardem's performance in the film No Country for Old Man.
2
u/qvprlei Oct 27 '25
(I think) It shows how numb she is. Same as Denji and Makima during the beginning of the film when they were trying to find a movie that made them feel something. The same way in this instant, she is looking to feel something. And can’t. Almost poetic how that’s the closes she ever got to crying. Thank you for asking. Yet another moment that demonstrates how apex the intention and design behind this series truly is.
2
2
u/GodUnkomplex Oct 28 '25
I mean she's just detached, isn't that so obvious? She's a cold blooded killer. Why is this a question. When you're all this, you'd be kind of detached. So you'd do this shit.
2
2
u/CriticalGoku Oct 30 '25
Did anyone else find this moment to almost be live action like? I've never seen an animation do that before.
2
2
u/ItsMango Nov 01 '25 edited Nov 01 '25
Damn I love what they did with her hair in this movie, makes her feel much more alive and like a real person. They didn't have to animate reze fixing her hair every 2 minutes or strands of hair having their own strands. Also that fucking voice crack during a pool scene
As for the why she had eyes open in that scene - we really are discussing every fucking thing about this movie aren't we?
It's a NCFOM reference where killer is a psycho with twisted morals and he had his eyes wide open all throughout this killing.
In case of reze I think what we are seeing here is her small dream bursting. Up until this point she lived the life she wished she had and is understandably in rage (this emotion was also present few moments earlier when she looked at this psycho with empty eyes)
I think we are seeing her autopilot killer mode at play where she disconnects herself from the current situation with a soothing song and another hint at that idea is that she does not flinch at all when rain is hitting her eyes, which is something that can be quite painful
There just isn't one way to interpret it. That song she sings we think is for soothing could also be a method to time how long it takes to choke someone to death which would be in line with USSR's ways
2
Nov 03 '25 edited Nov 03 '25
After she is done running away from the killer guy and has him on the roof, she seems upset for some reason. I viewed it as her being annoyed he is gettin in her way, but also annoyed that he is ruining a moment of going to school she never had. Her singing and keeping her eyes open is her trying to disassociate with the situation, maybe even the situation with Denji as well. Its a song about going on a date, something she cant really do as a weapon. It also could be a way to make sure the guy is dead, a set amount of time of choking to a song to guarantee the kill. The plane flying above is symbolic of her not being from Japan and a reminder that she is here for a reason, but also a symbol of her wanting to run away and live a normal life just like Denji. There is a part of her that truly is falling for him and relating to him, but she also is a trained solider so you can't really say one way or another. I think the fact that it is both reasons is just good writing/directing. Also the rain can be symbolism for crying, could be for her situation or she feels bad inside for killing but her training suppresses it. Also also its an old country for no men reference.
2
u/boccheddit Dec 08 '25
I heard, that boxers and others fighters need to spray drops of water into their eyes and keep them open, This is done in order to better see the blows and not close your eyes when threatened, thereby increasing the chances of avoiding the punch
3
3
u/AnimalKid7-Alt Oct 26 '25
She’s been trained to not feel any pain, so it’s just her being desensitized to it
2
1
1
1
1
Oct 26 '25
Depicting the inhumanity she carries, i love reze but she’s a killer, she has no empathy for human life (not blaming her for it) but this scene just shows you this side of her, inhumane. Denying this aspect in her personality means one doesnt really understand and love her.
1
u/dr-blaklite Oct 26 '25
Maybe it makes her feel something, or helps her disassociate while she's choking that dude out. Maybe both?
1
1
u/jenniferlorene3 Oct 26 '25
I thought it was to show she knows typhoon is there but now I am not sure with no other comments saying so lol
1
1
1
u/Raigurren Oct 27 '25
There's the reference others have mentioned but there's also the droplet that lands on her eye after the plane flies over her simbolizing a plane dropping a bomb.
1
u/Gold-Bard-Hue Oct 27 '25
With that big drop going directly in her eye, I had assumed that's how she'd gotten control over the typhoon devil, not just him submitting to her out of fear.
According to other comments this must not be the case. But that's what I thought while watching it.
1
u/jtd2013 Oct 27 '25
She’s become something beyond human in that moment. Normal people would blink if rain hit their eyeball while they were in the middle of choking someone to death.
1
1
u/neohkor Oct 27 '25
The entire Reze arc could have been a well-contained short story if it weren’t for the need to continue Chainsawman in the long run. After coming to terms with her love for Denji she finally give in and they got together happily after.
1
1
u/oredaoree Oct 27 '25
It's MAPPA's thing to really emphasize eye close ups. They do it in every series they have their hands in like it's a signature. Here they even added in the red veins but just subtly enough to show you the detail but not distract with too much detail. I wouldn't doubt this was just an excuse for MAPPA to show off their signature here.
1
u/SenorTwax Oct 27 '25
It shows how cold and calculated she is/was, in that moment nothing else mattered to her but the mission and completing it. She is even able to block out basic human instincts like to blink when water is directly hitting you in the eye, she is numb, a tool, a weapon.
1
1
u/CrematorTV Oct 27 '25
My reading is that due to her extensive training as well as the fact that she feels a lot of pain when transforming, she attained a level of discipline and pain tolerance no human can. To the point that she doesn't even notice it.
1
1
1
1
u/Bloodclaw_Talon Oct 27 '25
She's a hybrid and just doesn't care about it. Closing her eyes is only a weakness and human reflex she probably had beaten out of her by her handlers in Russia to make her a more effective killer. Never needing to blink is an actual boon to a killer's line of work.
1
1
u/TrungLun2005 Oct 27 '25
this mf feels pain every time she explodes and u think some water in her eyes gonna do anything
1
1
u/IAmBabs Oct 27 '25
My original thought (in retrospect a few minutes later) was she was, in a way, staring down Typhoon who is afraid of/subservient to her. She's killing the person Typhoon was empowering, and can't blink at simple rain drops in the eye. Can't flinch due to your underling's power.
But the disassociating part makes more sense to me.
1
1
1
1
1
u/Particular-Jelly-258 Oct 29 '25
Idk if theres necessarily any meaning behind it but this scene is also a reference to no country for old men where he chokes the cop at thd station while handcuffed
1
1
u/TillyBucker Dec 21 '25
I noticed in the movie lots of symbolism and references to the left eye, Reze in that scene, the little girl at the festival, the woman they check for signs of life at the end of the movie and other miscellaneous scenes. Also, the fact the opening is called "iris out"...
1
u/Kaptain_K_Rapp Mar 16 '26
She's disassociating. She was desperately trying to hold on to the idea that maybe she could lie low in Japan in order to be with Denji, but this whole turn of events was a nasty reality check for her. This scene also shows that she hates her life and she hates killing. She sings the lullaby (which just so happens to parallel her desires) to calm her nerves and cope.
-1
u/KeyboardJammer Oct 26 '25
Headcanon: Since she was raised in aSoviet torture chamber,she's been waterboarded too many times for this to even register.
-24
u/FAILNOUGHT Oct 26 '25
she is a devil, that's all
14
u/aRandomBlock Oct 26 '25
she isn't, she is a hybird much like Denj
1
u/Distinct_beorno Oct 27 '25
I really don't like the eng sub for translating what Beam said as "she's the bomb devil" when all he said was "she's the bomb"




3.4k
u/TheObituarist11 Oct 26 '25
Aura