I'll be reviewing all of Kizu in this one review, as I wouldn't write a review of a novel 1/3 of the way through. Kizumonogatari has always felt like one singular movie to me, and (most) others I've met.

The Monogatari series, written by NISIOISIN and animated by Shaft has garnered a pretty strong love-it-or-hate-it reputation amongst the anime community as of recent times. Some love its lengthy and detailed dialogue and very avant-garde style of direction, and others may think this gets a bit boring over the span of so many different seasons.

Kizumonogatari, while not the peak of the series, brings a little bit of everything great about Shaft to the table. It has fun dialogue, it has amazing fights, and on top of it all, the atmosphere is unlike anything both inside of Monogatari and inside of the anime medium as a whole.

Positives

Kizumonogatari is absolutely stunning to look at. Especially in its second film, the animation and art style of each individual battle is so brilliantly crafted, showing both Shaft's innovative style, and the brutal abilities of the Vampire as told by Nisio. In its third act, a long, one-of-a-kind fight plays out that I personally feel as though is the highlight of the animation. Shaft knows exactly how to distort a figure in ways that feel interesting and just unnatural enough to look both human and non-human. The shaft-isms many have come to love, ie; the head tilts, empty frame usage, and seemingly random changes to the art style to make references all exist here, and are arguably in their best form.

The plot, while generally on the less-dense side of the spectrum of Monogatari, is still fun to follow. It revolves around a past Araragi, who'd only recently become a vampire after saving Shinobu, known in this story as Kiss-Shot, seen in second season. The ever-so-popular golden week events are finally put to light, and a part of Monogatari's first season that felt rather incomplete comes together to put the first season on par with the second and third.

Some may find it jarring to view this story once again, if you're following the anime order, as in Owarimonogatari Season 1, Shinobu's backstory was fleshed out further, presenting her past in a way that is superior to Kizumonogatari, and while this is true, Kizumonogatari's inclusion of Araragi and Tsukasa's relationship is a lovely touch to an already great film on its own.

Speaking of the two, their scenes have an odd sexuality to them that feels raw and interesting. The "chicken scene" was a great highlight (lol), and the famous panty scene gets a 4K reboot. The symbolism used in the panties, while some claim to be nonexistent, has a bit of merit as it is used quite a bit in the film (definitely lock your door, or something, idk.)

Kizumonogatari's final strong point is easily the atmosphere of the films, whether it be the animation or the music, it is played so perfectly to give Kizumonogatari a feel of its own seperate from other installments. The scene in the first part, with Kiss-Shot and Araragi in the train station is one of the best scenes of horror I think I've ever viewed.

Negatives

This story, as I mentioned before is less profound and less dense than other Monogatari entries, and for that, the feel of it compared to the rest makes the actual plot a bit more forgettable. In 5 years time, I think I'd remember the clash between 2 vampires more than I'd remember the individual stories that were told in between all the chaos.

Movie 1 does drag on from time to time, and no, I don't mean the train station scene, but I do mean the scenes that come after. This film is only an hour so it's not so bad, but if you were looking for immediate action, you'll have to wait until film 2.

Kizumonogatari's unhinged brutality make it one of Shaft's most beautiful works.

9/10