Kizumonogatari - Koyomi Vamp
(2024)

Kizumonogatari – Koyomi Vamp 🩸

The popular light novel Vampire series Monogatari has had a number of anime adaptations over the years, and this year is no exception.

Kizumonogatari – Koyomi Vamp reworks the prequel film trilogy into one single film, which just had its North American premiere at this year’s Fantasia International Film Festival, and will also have a one-day event screening on August 28th in select theatres across USA, Canada, and Mexico.

We follow lonely high schooler Koyomi Araragi as he gets caught up in the assassination of a five hundred-year-old Vampire who has staked claim to his life, and if he wants that life back, he must take down three deadly vampire hunters, where the only outcomes are life, death, or immortality.

I enjoy myself a good Vampire tale, and I’ve always heard rumblings about the Monogatari series but just never gave it the time of day until now.

As anime trope-y as this was, I found myself fascinated by this ambitious neo-Goth imagining of a story that may not be bold in concept, but it is undeniably daring in execution.

It feels like jazz, witty, slick, and audacious, yet does a balancing act of cutting blood deep, like a high note in opera. At times I felt like it was trying to be too many things at once, but that was also a part of its charm.

Any movie that starts off by saying, “This vampire story will end badly; it will end when everyone is unhappy.” immediately has my attention, so this had mine from beginning to end.

Kizumonogatari - Koyomi Vamp is a daring interpretation of a cult classic series that uses an avant-garde animation style to embolden a Vampire tale that, simply put, is a devilishly fun time.

Enjoy!

6.95/10 🍿 🎥

Runtime: 2hrs24mins

Where: Fantasia International Film Festival

Kizumonogatari – Koyomi Vamp Review (2024) The Richmond Reviewer -  August 12th, 2024.

#Kizumonogatari #Anime #Manga #Movie #MovieReview #Animation #Vampire