Movie REVIEW: Kamen Rider Gavv the Movie: Invaders of the House of Snacks

Parallel worlds are a staple of Kamen Rider movies. From the “completely unrelated to the main series” movies of the early Heisei era to the newer “main character from the series travels to an alternate world” take, it’s an effective way to tell raise the stakes and tell a self-contained story without being confined by the parameters of the main story. With the format working well for last year’s Kamen Rider Gotchard: The Future Daybreak, it isn’t all that surprising to see Kamen Rider Gavv’s movie offering to do a similar thing – swapping the alternate timeline setting for a more straightforward parallel world. Kamen Rider Gavv the Movie: Invaders of the House of Snacks was written by Junko Komura, directed by Teruaki Sugihara and released in cinemas alongside No.1 Sentai Gozyuger: Tegasword’s Resurrection. It’s also notable for being the only Gavv movie release, with Fuuto PI: The Portrait of Kamen Rider Skull previously taking the spot of the usual Winter team-up film.

After encountering a mysterious new enemy attacking an unknown victim, a mysterious door appears before Shoma and Sachika. Suddenly Shoma is dragged through the door, arriving at a world where Dark Treats don’t exist! While this world has alternate versions of his friends and family not tainted by the powers of the treats, there is one difference – a man named Taorin works at Hapipare in place of Shoma, with no memories of where he came from a Gavv of his own.

While Shoma tries to help Taorin unlock the memories of his past, a man named Caries begins attacking the town – using his own Gochizo to leave nothing but decay. As Shoma battles this new threat, the truth is revealed of not only how Taorin links back to Caries – but also Shoma himself.

Although about an hour’s running time has been the standard for Kamen Rider Summer movies for the last few years, Invaders of the House of Snacks is the first one that genuinely feels too short. It wastes no time getting straight into its new setting, kicking off with a very quick fight to set the pace before whisking Shoma off to its new world. Similarly, as soon as the final battle is over it sees no point in sticking around – with an abrupt cut to the credits with brief conclusive scenes overlaid. But although the overarching story may feel rushed in hindsight, that’s not necessarily how the pacing feels actually watching the movie. Instead it often feels meandering, soaking in the setting and establishing Shoma’s relationship with Taorin rather than swiftly moving from one plot point to the next. It’s something of a double-edged sword as it develops Taorin as heart of the film beautifully, but leaves no time to develop other aspects of the film that arguably needed it more. The film arguably does what it sets out to do, but it really could have benefitted from an extra half an hour or so to properly flesh out those weaker aspects.

Alternate versions of the cast may be recently trodden ground with the Gotchard movie but it should be stressed that Gavv goes about it very differently. Whereas Gotchard’s alternate future was a dour affair where even Hotaro had lost his optimism, Gavv’s parallel world is quite the opposite. A world where Shoma was never born turns out to be one that’s pretty great for everyone else involved, as none of the tragedy surrounding the Dark Treats is brought about. A lot of it is purely played for laughs, with a far more expressive Laika playing butler to (a very much alive) Siita and Jiip, and Hanto a bumbling food delivery man. Even the Stomachs are more mellowed, raising their company by researching human snacks rather than murdering them. Shoma’s mother does make an appearance, but it’s a shame that the film doesn’t feature her more or play into the fact that it’s a world where an adult Shoma could have some sort of relationship with her. Though it does add an extra level of maturity to Shoma that he doesn’t get too involved with her, it’s a dynamic that would have added an extra emotional element to the film even if it’s a rather cliché route to take.

 

So instead the heart of the film is Taorin, or rather the friendship he develops with Shoma over the course of the film. Much like in the series Shoma is just a sweet boy who immediately wants to help anyone in need, so it’s no surprise that he instantly builds up a rapport with someone whose situation feels very similar to his own. Actor Sota Nakajima (one of the vocalists from music group FANTASTICS from EXILE TRIBE, who performed Gavv's opening theme) does a great job of playing someone eerily similar to Shoma without actually being Shoma, and although the truth behind Taorin doesn’t come as a huge surprise the film does a good job of teasing the answers piece by piece. Again there’s a lot more that could have been done with the character (especially in the finale), but scenes like watching the pair build a candy house along with Sachika carry a lot of emotional and make the revelations that follow all the more poignant.

Undoubtedly the most squandered potential in Invaders of the House of Snacks though are the villains. Theming the villains of a confectionary-themed Kamen Rider on tooth decay is a stroke of genius, but as clever as the concept may be the execution isn’t nearly as engaging as the drug addiction parallels of the series itself. The Muters, along with their leader Caries (played by Sekai, a performer from FANTASTICS from EXILE TRIBE) are rather one-dimensional, their urge to destroy lacking any real motive. Even their ties to Shoma feel like an afterthough, with Caries literally having a Gavv because he bumped into one of Gavv’s fights walking down the street and deciding “I want that” (which plays out just as ridiculously as it sounds). It’s frustrating because there are some interesting developments here, particularly with how Caries then goes about attaining Gavv’s powers for himself. Not only does it tie nicely into the human experimentation aspect of the series (which in turn formed the basis of the entire franchise), but also perverts it into something even more twisted and even quite graphic at times. Caries is played with all the pomp and grandeur of a typical Kamen Rider villain, but it’s his twisted assistant Qlarp that feels underserved – barely getting to be more than just another snivelling assistant.

Though the focus remains squarely on the parallel world side of things, the rest of Gavv’s cast aren’t left out of the equation entirely – rummaging through Suga’s old research for a clue on Shoma’s whereabouts. It’s a nice link back to the character and a good way of explaining certain things to the audience, but their limited appearance here is definitely felt. Thankfully Hanto and Lakia at the very least manage to show up just in time for the final battle, complete with fun little exchanges with their alternate selves.

There is however one thing that the story and character shortcomings never get in the way of though, and that’s spectacle. Much like the series itself Invaders of the House of Snacks is a visual delight, its great use of colour a perfect foil to some of the darker story content. But where the film really excels are the action sequences, all of which not only manage to stand apart from one another but also the fights seen within the series itself. Even little things like Gavv’s opening fight make a strong first impression, taking things back to basics by showing off PoppinGummy form in all its glory. And it keeps getting better from there both in and out of suit, with moments like Shoma using the Gavvgablade emerging from his stomach to launch into the air or taking having his bike helmet smashed into pieces whilst wearing it competing with the likes of the CaKing Whipped Soldiers battling a legion of Muters for the coolest moment. But the truth is none of those are quite as satisfying as seeing the Stomachs arrive together to provide a full family beatdown. With Siita having been gone for so long at this point it’s especially satisfying to see her get in on the action again, but seeing them all fighting in unison is particularly special since it was never done in the series itself. While their alternate universe selves might not do enough to shake off that disappointment, as a fleeting moment of fanservice it definitely does the job.

To further add to that spectacle is of course the obligatory new Riders, forms and transformation trinkets. Even for a movie-exclusive Rider Caries is particularly blessed as he’s given two unique suits – his first leaning more into the tooth motif whereas his second fully combines the decay with a more traditional Rider look. The form names, C1 and C3 respectively, cleverly reference different stages of tooth decay in Japanese dentistry. To combat this Gavv gets his own movie powerup in the guise of Hexenheim form. Though based on a traditional gingerbread Hexenhaus, the motif sadly isn’t conveyed quite as well as Gavv’s other forms – largely due to its garish Kamen Rider Revice-esque colour scheme. But even if the theme isn’t as obvious that doesn’t take away from the design itself, and in action quickly leaves its mark with a slick CGI building-side battle.

Of course a Kamen Rider Summer movie wouldn’t be complete without the newest Rider also making an appearance, with Kamen Rider Zeztz not only turning up quite early into the runtime but also making a rather restrained debut. The earlier production schedule of Kamen Rider shows these days is presumably contributing towards their characters feeling more concrete in these cameo appearances, with Baku feeling as much like his show counterpart as Shoma did one year prior. It’s a straightforward fight that comfortably shows off Zeztz’s powers and gimmicks without completely shifting the gears of the film at the same time, all while managing to tie in the dream motif of Zeztz at the same time. It’s a shame the two Riders don’t get to cross paths, but at least they briefly met in the final episode of Gavv – and will hopefully share the screen again in their own crossover movie.

Much like the confectionary construction it takes its name from, Kamen Rider Gavv the Movie: Invaders of the House of Snacks proves to be quite a multi-layered film – though some layers are much sweeter than others. The parallel world setting is interesting even if the story doesn’t quite do both it and the alternate versions of the characters justice, and the one-dimensional villains are elevated by the surprising level of brutality they show. But despite these flaws the film remains enjoyable, with some fantastic action scenes that really take advantage of the added spectacle a Kamen Rider movie can have. “Defeating tooth decay with the power of snacks” is a hell of a message to send to the kids.