I’ll be honest: I am not a big fan of Demon Slayer. Throughout the run of the TV adaptation, I’ve always thought that Demon Slayer’s overly simple plot, combined with weak character writing and an over-reliance on tragic backstories to compensate for that, weak world-building and generally flawed structure have really let down the show’s incredible visuals and overall production, from its star-studded voice cast to consistently stunning soundtracks. However, I am very excited to be able to say that this movie is ABSOLUTE PEAK. I love this movie. It’s not perfect, and many of the flaws I criticized in the show’s run don’t magically go away, but it’s overall a beautiful cinematic experience. If you can, go see it in theatres – the hype is unparalleled when seen on a big screen.

Animation I don’t think there’s anything I need to say other than it is absolutely stunning. From the very first seconds of the movie, the depth and amount of care put into the setting of the Infinity Castle is breathtaking, with multiple points in the movie making me genuinely feel as if I were inside the castle as well, and there were times I swore my seat was moving from how well animated the moving parts of the castle were. It wasn’t just animation for animation’s sake, either – the animation greatly enhanced the emotional impact of the story unfolding on screen. Zenitsu’s cold, yet brightly lit golden eyes with the rest of his face in deep shadows when he faces Upper Moon 6, juxtaposed with the whiny, immature personality he usually displays was chilling. The change in Tanjiro’s expression throughout his fight with Akaza was exceptionally well done. Every animation choice felt as if it were deeply thought out, from Obanai desperately reaching out to Mitsuri as they fell through the castle, to the sheer breadth of emotions displayed in Akaza’s backstory to Shinobu’s desperate last stand – all of it greatly enhanced the story in a way that a non-visual medium could not. And that’s not even getting started on the fights themselves: bright, flashy, with insanely fluid animation at rapid speeds throughout the film (with a few minor hiccups involving still shots). It was overwhelming and took my breath away every single time. Even if you dislike Demon Slayer, I highly recommend seeing this film, as it is absolutely the epitome of animation and a testament to just how far animation has come. Seriously, the cinematography and art in this movie are works of art, so many frames feel wallpaper worthy; it is more than words can describe. Just see the movie. You won’t regret it.
Characters SPOILER WARNING - from here onwards, there may be major spoilers for the events of the film.

Demon Slayer’s character writing has always been a rather mixed bag for me, but Infinity Castle absolutely shows some of the best the series has yet to offer. It’s not perfect – Zenitsu’s complete 180 snap from scared-whiny-loser to what is essentially a gigachad is a bit too sudden for my taste (no fault to ufotable here, I’m aware this is an improvement from the source material). The outcome of what Zenitsu experienced makes complete sense, don’t get me wrong, I absolutely understand how that loss can change a person, but since most of the actual development happens off-screen, Zenitsu essentially feels like an entirely different character; gone is his need to sleep in order to fight, gone is his screaming, fear and whining, and in his place is a character so deeply broken from a betrayal of someone he held such respect for. Don’t get me wrong – I love the direction Zenitsu’s character has taken, even if fridging his grandfather may not be fantastic writing technique; I think this was what Zenitsu’s character always needed. I just wish we got to see him on his journey as he changed and grew and swore himself to vengeance. The scene with his grandfather is fantastic; I’m glad that Infinity Castle allowed its characters to breathe and live through what they’ve just experienced. My friend sitting next to me cried, so, you know. It was that touching.

In terms of writing, the other standout in this movie is obviously Akaza. I have long been a critic of Demon Slayer’s over-reliance on cliche ‘humans are the true cruelty’ backstories that are clumsily used to evoke sympathy for villains, despite most of the backstories not truly having any effect on the story whatsoever. However, the same cannot be said for Akaza’s backstory, which has fundamental impacts on the events of the movie. Akaza’s story is tragic, as most backstories tend to be (except Mitsuri and Douma, I suppose), but the real tragedy is Akaza’s powerlessness in a story that is about constantly seeking strength. Akaza is a tragic character because he made the choice to change and to be better than the violent, hateful person he had become, only to have that all ripped away from him. Akaza is tragic, because he did not want to fall. He wanted to be better. He wanted a happy, peaceful future for himself, only to have it ripped away at the hands of a jealous coward. Akaza’s story is tragic, because even as you see him grow into a better person, shedding the violence and hate he had spiralled into, you know how the story ends. You see him love, and you know he will lose that love. In my opinion, this sets Akaza apart from all of the other demon backstories: Akaza was capable of being better, of acknowledging his failures and growing into someone he could be proud of, but the world took that away from him and he slipped back into the person he once was. Anyway, the point is that Akaza’s story, in my opinion, is how these kinds of backstories should be done: they change the fundamental way you perceive the character and their actions and they have a definitive impact on the story itself. Avoiding major spoilers, once Akaza’s memory returned to him, I knew what he would do. It was the only way his story could have ended, and therein lies the tragedy of it all. It’s good stuff. Really.

I’ve always been a fan of Tomioka Giyuu, so…yeah, I really enjoyed that. Fantastic stuff all around. Giyuu is funny as always, and gives us the suppressed-introvert-rage representation that we’ve always needed. My only criticism of the way he was handled in this movie ties back to the Hashira Training arc – I wish we could have seen a deeper exploration of his survivor’s guilt and depression, his connection to Sabito or how the events of the previous arc impacted his relationship with Tanjiro, but there was a lot to get through in the movie as is, so I understand why that might not have been feasible. I’ll talk a bit about Tanjiro in the next section.

On a more critical note, Kibutsuji Muzan still fails to be a compelling or interesting antagonist, and for some reason, whenever he tries to be intimidating, I just find him funny. Maybe it’s that I’ve seen one too many Michael Jackson memes, but, I don’t know. He thus far lacks the intimidation factor to make up for the minimal amount of time we’ve actually spent with him as a character. Still, I’m told that the third and final movie should rectify this concern, so I’ll hold off on diving into his character for now.

Kamado Tanjiro I don’t hate Tanjiro. I mean, he’s an empathetic, kind guy, who knows when it’s time to put away that kindness because showing kindness to everyone means inherently being cruel to others. He is 100% the sort of character I should really love. However, my issue with Tanjiro is that he is, essentially, a Mary Sue. The world revolves around him and the story bends itself to fit him in, he is perfect and has no genuine character flaws that have major consequences in the story (no, being weaker than a Hashira when you’ve been a Demon Slayer for a year is not a character flaw), which limits the development he can have. And while I’m not really expecting insane amounts of character development in a movie that contains so much, I do have to say that there’s one thing that really bothered me about this movie, and it really ties into everything I just spent the last paragraph yapping about.

Seriously, spoiler warning. I’m actually getting into a specific spoiler this time.

Midway through his fight with Akaza, Tanjiro notices Akaza’s use of the ‘fighting spirit’ to guide his combat, and then remembers a conversation he had with Inosuke about quelling killing intent to remain unseen, and then a conversation with his father that involved a decapitated bear that essentially amounted to, as one of my friends put it, “son, one day, you will have to Lock In. remember this.”, prompting him to seek out the ‘Transparent world’ that allows him to…actually, I’m not sure. Quell his fighting spirit, enhance his senses, and see Akaza’s heartbeat, lungs and his own muscles. I don’t know how this works, and that’s the problem – it’s not explained, because you’re supposed to accept it. Period. There is no lead-up, really, and it doesn’t build on anything Tanjiro learned during the Hashira Training arc. (Vastly different genre, I know, but think about how Hinata Shoyo’s biggest moments in the fourth season of Haikyuu build directly upon what he learned in the training arcs of that season. That’s why it feels earned.) Why hasn’t Tanjiro remembered this in any previous fights he’s been in? Why does nobody except Tanjiro have this special skill? It’s not explained at all, because it’s not supposed to be – and, in my opinion, that is a problem.

That said, I don’t think this poses any larger issues than, say, Tanjiro being able to smell emotions or Akaza being able to ‘see’ fighting spirit or anything else – it just has a significantly larger cut of the screentime and as a result, feels more frustrating. Tanjiro simply feels like a main character without whom the story cannot progress in any situation he’s in, which in my opinion devalues some of Giyuu’s fight versus Akaza, because you know that Giyuu will not be the one to land the killing blow, and it will not be Giyuu who makes a lasting impact on Akaza.

However, after saying all that…Tanjiro punching Akaza in the face after dropping his sword makes up for all of that. Genuinely peak cinema. We need more of that energy.

Overall Structure The movie was well-structured and paced overall. I liked the peaks and valleys approach the movie used – pairing high-energy action sequences with calmer, more emotional interactions and flashbacks. This allowed for the movie to have a genuine emotional core, with a central theme focusing on the severing of relationships and what you do in the face of loss, whether that be Shinobu swearing vengeance on Douma, Zenitsu on his brother, or Akaza on those who killed the ones he loved – this also juxtaposes with Tanjiro doing everything he can to protect Giyuu, and Ubuyashiki sacrificing himself to protect those he views as his children, thereby escaping the cycle of violence that seems to have created so many of the demons we encounter in the series, but I digress. The time spent on calmer, slower story beats makes the fights feel much more intense and exciting in comparison, and the almost overwhelming speed of the fights really brings out the slow, dawning horror of events like Shinobu’s past with Douma or Akaza’s backstory. It was well-balanced, with plenty of time for hype and tension, and plenty of time to emotionally process what we’ve just witnessed, without it sliding too far into boring territory. That said, I did find some of the subplots a bit less impactful, such as Ubuyashiki’s son Kiriya’s, and I felt that some of the humour was a bit too jarring following emotional scenes, such as Murata and Yushiro's banter following Zenitsu’s ‘conversation’ with his grandfather. That said, it’s still absolutely a net positive, and I would take this structure over that of the Hashira Training arc any day. No matter what criticisms I may have, everything in this movie felt like it had consequences, that everything in this movie mattered, and that is a definite improvement to the previous arc.

This movie is not perfect, but its sheer entertainment value far outweighs its flaws – this is also one of the best theatrical adaptations of any source material I have ever seen. This movie elevates the source material of the manga on a level I can barely even comprehend. For those of you who may be on the fence about seeing this movie in theatres like I was, due to the flaws of previous seasons, I cannot recommend this film enough. Go see it. It is fun, flashy, intense, and surprisingly emotional when it needs to be. This is truly the best that Demon Slayer has to offer. Seriously, I can’t really think of the last time I walked out of the movie theatre thinking “wow, I really had fun. I loved watching that.” as much as I did after seeing Infinity Castle.

Cheers, Demon Slayer, you win this time. The hype was real.