Written by Andreas Babiolakis

What is there to say about the Demon Slayer film, Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba – The Movie: Infinity Castle (which I will refer to from this point on as Infinity Castle, because I do not need to burn a thousand calories typing)? The beloved anime series has this second feature film (after Mugen Train) which acts as an add-on to the fourth season of, well, Demon Slayer. For those who want to watch one of the highest earning films of 2025, there is much homework to undergo (but, boy, what a journey you will be on). To many, this two-and-a-half celebration of a gorgeously animated series and its astonishing combat sequences is the event of the year. To others, this may come off as a titanic heap of too much. To even try to simply explain the plot of this film (without going into the entire lore of Demon Slayer) is a nearly impossible task. Reducing it to "our protagonists, the Demon Slayer Corps, head into the title Infinity Castle and face tiers of larger demons in pursuit of Muzan Kibutsuji (the first demon, who is hiding in Infinity Castle)" just feels silly and overly minimized, but this is also a film I just do not think is worth writing an entire thesis on. Chances are if you are watching Infinity Castle, you already know what you need to know. If you haven't, you likely won't be starting at Infinity Castle. If you are wanting to partake in the Awards Season race and watch a film that may be nominated for an Academy Award because it did get a nod at the Golden Globes, good luck on going in blind.

What makes this film a great part of the Demon Slayer lore but not necessarily a strong stand-alone effort is how much it relies on many other things. The film begins like just any old episode of Demon Slayer, simply piggy backing off of the end of season 4; this is not a problem, but it is important to know that Infinity Castle truly is a nearly-three-hour episode special to this series and not a spinoff or independent motion picture. Like most of Demon Slayer, much of Infinity Castle feels as much like an internal battle than the outward combat between our protagonists and the demons around them. For me, this film was especially telling when it comes to Nezuko's mindset and, obviously, brother Tanjiro's responsibility to aid her after their traumatic past (and Nezuko's demon state being a clear representation of repressed grief and depression); this entire saga is a quest to heal Nezuko, after all. With tribulation comes the surfacing of inherent trauma, and, thus, Infinity Castle feels like the expulsion of many demons (supernatural and personal).

*Infinity Castle* is a thrill to watch, but it also does feel like… a lot.

Interestingly, this means that Infinity Castle becomes a compilation of flashbacks, and this feels endearing at first until it feels like the majority of this nearly three-hour motion picture is made up of flashbacks. I suppose releasing this story in parts would have felt even more frustrating (if so many episodes were indebted to flashbacks); at least here, much is told and gotten out of the way via the vehicle of a special feature film. In ways, this feels epic in an introspective way, as if the provenance of one's state is as commanding as their current conquest (which is almost always true). Having said that, a film that looks and feels like a breathtaking video game that has so many flashbacks tends to feel like someone pushing the pause button for a few minutes frequently enough that you begin to lose sight of how to play the game again; that forward propulsion now feels like miniature sprints. I do think that Infinity Castle is as visually riveting as the series has ever been to the point that I do not mind this, but we have to strip my subjectivity out of this. Sure, Infinity Castle is a great undertaking. However, objectively looking at a film that demands everything before it to be seen whilst also surrendering to enough cutaways to add tomes of additional context just doesn't really feel like a confident film. Let's be real: Infinity Castle is the handling of all side quests before we reach that final boss (the series has almost caught up to the end of the manga, if I understand correctly). This is a great entry in one of the strongest contemporary anime series (and a highly welcome filler of that void I now have now that Attack on Titan is no more), but Infinity Castle just as its own film is a best-of marathon; this is not a bad thing to fans, but it may be a ball of chaos and confusion for virtually anyone else (naturally).

Andreas Babiolakis has a Masters degree in Film and Photography Preservation and Collections Management from Toronto Metropolitan University, as well as a Bachelors degree in Cinema Studies from York University. His favourite times of year are the Criterion Collection flash sales and the annual Toronto International Film Festival.