Casshern
A resurrected warrior confronts mutant humanity in a visually extravagant dystopian fable about war, power, and the cost of remaking life.
Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Measured
- Intensity
- Strong
- Complexity
- Layered
- Violence
- Graphic
- operatic
- bleak
- visceral
- cult film night
- visual spectacle marathon
What critics said
Critics broadly found Casshern visually inventive and compelling despite an overextended, messy, and insufficiently original story.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
The film layers cgi, green-screen environments, matte paintings, and claymation into an ornate, high-contrast dystopian visual field.
A polluted, diseased Earth is controlled by entrenched military and governmental powers that suppress Dr. Azuma's regenerative research.
Tetsuya Azuma returns as Casshern with an invincible body and becomes the sole warrior opposing the Shinzo Ningen.
The aftermath of a great war, militarized experimentation, mutant revolt, and competing claims to human survival make violence itself the film's central political subject.
Films like Casshern, and why
The Matrix
stylized dystopian science fiction, militarized spectacle, and grand antiwar themes
Mad Max: Fury Road
post-apocalyptic science fiction with heightened visual design, mutant antagonists, and messianic heroism
Battle Royale
operatic dystopian imagery, political oppression, and tragic antiwar allegory
Avalon
ambitious Japanese genre fusion combining surreal visuals, existential drama, and science fiction action
Movie Details
- Director
- Kazuaki Kiriya
- Release Date
- 2004-04-24
- Runtime
- 141 min
- Rating
- 5.9 / 10 (274)
Cast
- Yusuke Iseya
- Kumiko Aso
- Akira Terao
- Kanako Higuchi
- Fumiyo Kohinata
- Hiroyuki Miyasako
- Ryo
- Tetsuji Tamayama
- Hidetoshi Nishijima
- Gorō Naya
Common questions
- What is Casshern about?
- A resurrected warrior confronts mutant humanity in a visually extravagant dystopian fable about war, power, and the cost of remaking life.
- What is Casshern like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of Casshern as measured, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as layered.
- Is Casshern violent?
- Yes. Ember rates the violence in Casshern as graphic.
- What did critics think of Casshern?
- Critics broadly found Casshern visually inventive and compelling despite an overextended, messy, and insufficiently original story.
- Which films are like Casshern?
- Films with a similar feel include The Matrix, Mad Max: Fury Road, Battle Royale, and Avalon.
- How long is Casshern?
- Casshern runs 141 minutes.
