Tanjiro Kamado became a demon hunter after his sister Nezuko was turned into a demon. In Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba Infinity Castle, he and his fellow swordsmen finally get close to Muzan, the demon responsible for their suffering. Then the ground opens beneath them. They fall into a huge fortress full of demons, where rooms can move before they find a way out.
This Japanese animated film continues the TV series after the Hashira Training season. It is the first film in a planned trilogy, not the whole ending. Director Haruo Sotozaki and animation studio ufotable give Tanjiro and his friends some thrilling fights. But the action often stops while characters remember their past, and not every interruption is worth the wait.
What you need to know before watching
The demon hunters belong to an organization called the Demon Slayer Corps. Its strongest swordsmen are known as the Hashira. Tanjiro is still younger and less experienced than these fighters, but he has survived several encounters with powerful demons. Here, they are separated inside the enemy’s home and have to fight their way toward Muzan.
Watch the TV story through Hashira Training first. The film explains some personal histories, but it does not introduce the whole cast again. Knowing who trained Zenitsu, or why Tanjiro hates the demon Akaza, makes a big difference. You can follow a sword fight without that background; you will miss much of the reason the fighters are so angry or afraid.
The castle makes even finding the enemy dangerous
The fortress contains floors, stairways and whole buildings facing different directions. A demon named Nakime controls it by playing a stringed instrument. A safe place to stand can become a drop into another room. The wide views show how small the hunters are compared with the buildings around them, then the camera follows them through the gaps. Those changes in distance make the falls exciting to watch.
The hunters also face a basic disadvantage: demons can recover from injuries that would kill a human. Hitting an enemy is not the same as stopping them. Against the smiling demon Doma, the swordswoman Shinobu uses speed and poison instead of trying to overpower him. His ice attacks force her to keep moving. The difference between their abilities gives you something to follow beyond who swings a weapon faster.
Zenitsu is no longer hiding behind the others
Zenitsu usually panics when danger gets close. Here, he faces Kaigaku, a former fellow student who became a demon. They learned sword fighting from the same teacher, so this is also a confrontation over Kaigaku’s betrayal. Zenitsu stays focused instead of screaming for help, and the change is satisfying after so much of his earlier role was comic relief.
His attacks are drawn with bright lightning effects that make their speed easy to see. The trouble is how much of his relationship with Kaigaku needs explaining during the fight. We spend time learning why this opponent matters when we should already be worried about what he might do to Zenitsu. The confrontation looks impressive, but their shared history would have meant more with stronger preparation beforehand.
Tanjiro and Giyu face Akaza together
Tanjiro joins Giyu, one of the Hashira, against Akaza, a demon who fights with his fists. Akaza has already killed someone important to Tanjiro. The two swordsmen have to support each other against an opponent who can keep attacking after being wounded. Their teamwork makes this the fight we most wanted to see through: Tanjiro cannot simply charge ahead and expect to win on his own.
The later scenes about Akaza’s life before he became a demon are also worth the time. They show people he cared about and give a reason to feel sad for someone we have been hoping Tanjiro will defeat. Understanding what happened to Akaza does not mean excusing him. That uncomfortable combination makes him more interesting than an enemy who only wants to prove he is stronger.
Elsewhere, the repeated breaks are harder to enjoy. A fight begins, someone thinks back to an earlier loss or lesson, and we stop seeing what is happening in the fight. Several of those pauses come too close together. At around two and a half hours, the film would be easier to keep watching if more of that history had been told before the battles began.
Pixel Twelve’s verdict
Infinity Castle is worth watching for fans who want to see Zenitsu stand up for himself and Tanjiro fight alongside Giyu. The moving fortress and the different ways the hunters attack give each confrontation its own dangers. Akaza’s past adds a reason to care about what happens after the next blow.
Pixel Twelve’s score: 7.5/10 — Good. The fights and Akaza’s story earn the recommendation, while the repeated interruptions keep the score from going higher. Expect major confrontations, not a complete conclusion to the fight against Muzan. If this would be your first Demon Slayer story, start with the series rather than this film.
The original audio is Japanese. English dubbing replaces the Japanese voices with English performances; subtitles let you keep the original voices. For US streaming options, the trailer and voice cast, see the film’s anime page and our Hulu release coverage.
More Infinity Castle images
2 screenshotsImages: © Koyoharu Gotoge / SHUEISHA, Aniplex, ufotable.
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