I actually really liked Kamen Rider: The First, but it's sequel The Next absolutely blows it out of the water in every way. From the special effects and fight choreography, to technical aspects, like direction, and especially editing (whoever did the edit on The First should be ashamed).
I liked both Hongo and Ichimonji, though just like in the first movie, you do need to understand this is a reimagining of these characters. If you can't get over that fact, you probably won't like either of these movies.
The story is cool, not anything ground breaking, but I don't think storytelling is necessarily the draw of Kamen Rider (not that it isn't sometimes great).
Like I said before the action is great, and the costumes and stunt work is definitely a step up from the first movie. There's also some awesome horror elements that really fit the tone of Kamen Rider. Reminded me a little of 1992's Shin Kamen Rider, which is another unique rider movie I love.
For me, this checked all my boxes, and is easily the best Rider movie I have seen yet. It got me really excited for 2023's Shin Kamen Rider, though I think these 2 films set the bar for a reboot pretty high.
I liked both Hongo and Ichimonji, though just like in the first movie, you do need to understand this is a reimagining of these characters. If you can't get over that fact, you probably won't like either of these movies.
The story is cool, not anything ground breaking, but I don't think storytelling is necessarily the draw of Kamen Rider (not that it isn't sometimes great).
Like I said before the action is great, and the costumes and stunt work is definitely a step up from the first movie. There's also some awesome horror elements that really fit the tone of Kamen Rider. Reminded me a little of 1992's Shin Kamen Rider, which is another unique rider movie I love.
For me, this checked all my boxes, and is easily the best Rider movie I have seen yet. It got me really excited for 2023's Shin Kamen Rider, though I think these 2 films set the bar for a reboot pretty high.