Manga author Koyoharu Gotouge’s fantasy adventure shonen Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba (鬼滅の刃) first published in February 2016, introducing audiences to Tanjiro Kamado, a young boy living in Taishō era Japan with his mother and siblings, making their living as sellers of coal. That is, until tragedy strikes while he’s away, resulting in the murder of his family and the transformation of his sister Nezuko into a fearsome creature with a terrible bloodlust. This incident would catapult readers into an adventure that finds Tanjiro learning the truth of his world, that demons exist within it and there is a stalwart group of defenders battling them: the Demon Slayer Corps. In addition to stage plays, light novels, and video games, the series was adapted into an animated series which debuted in the spring of 2019. Now, more than six years later, though the print Tanjiro’s journey has since concluded, the animated version’s final battle is getting started in the final arc of the animated series: Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba Infinity Castle. Split into three cinematic parts, Infinity Castle makes up the first with Tanjiro and the remaining members of the Demon Slayer Corp arriving at the enemy’s lair with nothing but victory on their minds. A propulsive experience with dazzling animation, exquisite action, and high drama, Infinity Castle does struggle to maintain its momentum as the finale blasts off by clinging too tightly to the structure of its source material.
Gyomei Himejima voiced by Tomokazu Sugita in DEMON SLAYER: KIMETSU NO YAIBA INFINITY CASTLE. Photo courtesy of Crunchyroll/Sony Pictures. ©Koyoharu Gotoge / SHUEISHA, Aniplex, ufotable.
Since the end of the attack on Swordsmith Village and the reveal of Nezuko (voiced by Akari Kito) as able to survive in daylight, the Demon Slayer Corps, led by Kagaya Ubuyashiki (voiced by Toshiyuki Morikawa), set in motion a plan to prepare for battle and lure in demon leader Muzan Kibutsuji (voiced by Toshihiko Seki). The trap resulted in the obliteration of Kagaya’s home with he and his wife and two daughters inside it in an attempt to weaken Muzan enough for Kagaya’s Hashira to attack. Before the Hashira can overwhelm him, Muzan transports all of his attackers and the rest of the Demon Slayer Corps, including Tanjiro, Inosuke, and Zenitsu (voiced by Natsuki Hanae, Yoshitsugu Matsuoka, and Hiro Shimono, respectively), into his secret lair, the multi-level, logic-defying Infinity Castle. This is where Muzan’s Upper Level demons reside; demons, some with personal grudges they’d love to address, who’ve been waiting for a chance to cut the Demon Slayers down. So begins the end and neither side will go down without drawing as much blood as possible.
Do keep in mind that in Mugen Train (2020), the film was adjusted for cinemas with the episodic version being just slightly different and longer (more on this shortly). Mentioning Mugen Train is important because Infinity Castle doesn’t seem to make any such differentiation between cinema and elongated episodic form *and* part one sets to resolve unfinished business between Tanjiro and Akaza, the Upper Three demon (voiced by Akira Ishida) responsible for Fire Hashira Kyōjurō Rengoku’s death. As one expects, Infinity Castle can’t just cover everything that audiences want in one film, so temper your expectations (don’t want to end up riled like swordsmith Hotaru Haganezuka, do you?) about which characters will be focused on. While audiences are treated to glimpses or brief moments with various key members of the series — the central three and the various Harisha we’ve come to know across the arcs — the primary focus here is on Insect Hashira Shinobu Kocho (voiced by Saori Haymi) v. Doma, Upper Two demon (voiced by Mamoru Miyano); Tanjiro v. Akaza; and everyone’s favorite scaredy cat Zenitsu vs. Kaigaku (voiced by Yoshimasa Hosoya).
Those who’ve been following the anime have been waiting for this moment and series director Sotozaki delivers. Part of this is because, despite being a theatrical release, there’s no departure from the animation style, action direction, or structure of the series. This is aided by Ufotable’s (Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba: To the Hashira Training) adapted script of Gotoge’s manga which ensures that the audience is about as up to speed on context, so, if it’s been a minute since you’ve seen any Demon Slayer episodes, you’ll be abreast quickly. There are several moments of exposition dumps and the series-expected flashbacks working together to ensure that everyone is on-board with the stakes fairly quickly, either generally with the situation or specifically with the combat entanglements. Even during the opening and closing credits, Sotozaki is working to utilize every moment of runtime as economically as possible. Likewise, the art direction, cinematography, and use of 3D animation (overseen by Koji Eto, Yuichi Terao, and Kazuki Nishiwaki) fluidly translate from small-screen to large. Whether it’s Giyu Tomioka’s (voiced by Takahiro Sakurai) Water Breathing technique, Tanjiro’s Fire Breathing, or Zenitsu’s Thunder Breathing, the visual style of Chinese watercolor against the modern 3D animation continues to impress, making the otherwise standard sword fighting into something transcendent and artistic. Where it gets really fun is in the battle between Shinobu and Doma as we’ve yet to see what Shinobu can do, and the way her combat style is represented creates the opportunity for unique moments. She’s one of the few Hashira that the series didn’t highlight as much as the others, even during the training arc, which makes putting her upfront in Infinity Castle a particular treat for audiences familiar with the series who’ve wanted to see what she can do. Like with live-action cinema, the action throughout Infinity Castle isn’t just about wowing audiences, each combat sequence serves to convey something about the characters and is accomplished in a way that raises dramatic tension. What do the demons learn through these combat sequences? What do the slayers learn about themselves? How does it all connect to the larger narrative about Muzan’s desire to achieve immortality? Even if one doesn’t realize it with the repetition of format the battles of Demon Slayer utilize, within Infinity Castle, the battles make it clear what the series is really trying to get at: immorality isn’t about the battles you win and the stopper you put on death, but the lives you touch.
When the series starts, Tanjiro is a more-or-less happy kid who assumes the mantle of Head of Household with dignity and diligence, making the murder of his family a deep sore as he sees it as his failure to protect them. Throughout the series, Tanjiro is pit against a variety of individuals who each, we learn, suffered incredible tragedies and it was their reaction which determined if they joined the Demon Slayers Corps or Muzan. For the purposes of the over-arching narrative theme, there’s not much in the way of a middle ground, creating a resolute binary response, but, within Infinity Castle, the concept truly crystalizes as audiences come to understand Doma, Akaza, and Zenitsu’s adversary Kaigaku. For all their claims of seeking self-empowerment, the choice to become a demon is an entirely selfish one, a shortcut to power that creates a veneer of independence despite the subjugation to Muzan. As with each manga chapter-turned-anime-episode before it, audiences are given a chance to understand the demons, which can seem like episode filler at times, but is really about getting the audience to contemplate that everyone in the web of Muzan’s influence is a victim in need of sympathy. Unfortunately, by taking the time to explore this, Infinity Castle does struggle to maintain its momentum.
This is Infinity Castle’s largest and most obvious flaw: it’s paced like the television adaptation. This means that right as the action is reaching an apex, it cuts away either to a character backstory or flashback, elements which are common in the adapted series and make sense when building out a season of television like the 26-episode first season Unwavering Resolve Arc, the season two seven-episode Mugen Train Arc, the season two 11-episode Entertainment District Arc, and so on. There’s plenty of story to be had within Infinity Castle, and the flashbacks, just as in the standard series, are integral to understanding the rising stakes, to address narrative gaps unable to be addressed until now, as well as reminding audiences that the demons being fought so fiercely are the antithesis of each Demon Slayer, humans who resorted to their baser instincts after tragedy when given the opportunity to transform versus those who lean toward uplifting and protecting others to prevent such tragedy from occurring again. However, as important as these flashbacks are, the frequency is felt so much more in the 155-minute runtime versus the 117-minute Mugen Train cinematic release or in episodic form as each pause to look back somewhat stalls the momentum that the film as a whole seeks to maintain as danger lurks everywhere and the hunt for Muzan (and their fight for survival) takes up every second. It’s not that the present-day fighting isn’t intense, it truly is, and possibly the most intense we’ve seen yet, but, once noticed, the persistence of the flashbacks takes over the urgency until we find ourselves waiting to get back to business.
Tanjiro Kamado voiced by Natsuki Hanae in DEMON SLAYER: KIMETSU NO YAIBA INFINITY CASTLE. Photo courtesy of Crunchyroll/Sony Pictures. ©Koyoharu Gotoge / SHUEISHA, Aniplex, ufotable.
The stakes are high for Infinity Castle as it must kick-off the long-awaited confrontation, close some stories and establish new ones as we head into the second part, and do so while not losing sight of the bigger picture. It’s a delicate balance that the film, more for better than worse, manages to accomplish. Frankly, the most distracting thing is that LiSA’s “Gurenge” isn’t the opening number, swapped instead for “Shine in the Cruel Night.” Outside of this, Infinity Castle is a ride, a blood-soaked, revenge-filled, no-holds-barred ride, and it’s only getting started. So, buckle in! Things are only to get more deranged from here.
In theaters September 12th, 2025.
For more information on the series, head to the official Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba website.
For more information on the film, head to the official Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba Infinity Castle webpage.
Final Score: 4 out of 5.
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Categories: In Theaters, Reviews
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