Kimetsu no Yaiba: The Movie - Mugen Train

Kimetsu no Yaiba: The Movie - Mugen Train (劇場版「鬼滅の刃」無限列車編 *Geki Jōban: Kimetsu no Yaiba - Mugen Ressha Hen*?, lit. "Demon Slayer: The Movie - Infinity Train") is a Japanese animated action-adventure dark fantasy historical tragedy film based upon Koyoharu Gotoge's *Kimetsu no Yaiba* manga series that serves as a direct, canon sequel to the first season of the TV anime adaptation.

The film premiered in Japanese theaters on October 16th, 2020, and in North American theaters in both English and Japanese dub on April 23rd, 2021. It was released for home media release and Funimation streaming on July 22, 2021, while an uncut version of the film premiered on most Fuji TV affiliated television stations in Japan on September 25, 2021.

An exclusive, 84-page volume titled Rengoku Volume 0 is to be distributed among individuals who attend the screenings of the movie, beginning from its debut on October 16th. The volume is limited to 4.5 million copies and consists of the Special One-Shot plus various other bonuses. The movie was officially set for a North American release on Aniplex and Funimation as a part of Sony theatrical animated films.

The film was the first major R-rated animated film to release in the United States since 2016's *Sausage Party*. The film received highly positive reviews, and its music, characters, and action sequences were praised; though the opening sequence and production quality from the studio's film standards drew polarized response. It broke numerous box-office records and was submitted in the Best Animated Feature Film category for the 93rd Academy Awards, however it was not nominated.

From October 10, 2021, the film was rebroadcast in episodic format as the first 7 episodes of the anime's second season, including a recut and extra bonus content.

## Synopsis

Set after the events of the first season, Tanjiro Kamado, Zenitsu Agatsuma, Inosuke Hashibira, and Nezuko Kamado board the Infinity Train to assist the Flame Hashira Kyojuro Rengoku in eliminating Enmu, the Lower Rank One who has infiltrated the train, while defending the 200 onboard passengers.

## Plot

Tanjiro, Nezuko, Zenitsu, and Inosuke board a train to assist the Flame Hashira Kyojuro Rengoku in his mission to hunt for a demon that has killed many demon slayers and civilians. Soon after boarding, all of them are enchanted and fall into a deep sleep. Enmu, Lower Rank One of the Twelve Kizuki, instructs four passengers, all suffering from severe insomnia, to enter the demon slayers' dreams and destroy their spiritual cores so that they can't wake up again. In exchange, Enmu will allow them a peaceful sleep with all of their own dreams.

During their sleep, Tanjiro and his companions have happy dreams. Tanjiro realizes that he is dreaming and tries to wake up, succeeding after a vision of his father instructs him to kill himself in the dream. At the same time, Nezuko uses her power to sever the intruders' connection, and awaken the passengers. In fear of Enmu, they attack Tanjiro, who knocks them out.

While Nezuko awakens the others, Tanjiro confronts Enmu, and in the ensuing battle, beheads him. However, Enmu does not die, and reveals that he fused his head with the train. Kyojuro instructs Inosuke and Tanjiro to look for Enmu's neck while he, Nezuko, and Zenitsu stay behind to protect the other passengers. Tanjiro and Inosuke find Enmu's neckbone in the engine room and Tanjiro severs it, killing Enmu and stopping the train.

However, Akaza, Upper Rank Three, appears soon after and attacks the demon slayers. Kyojuro fights him alone, and is fatally wounded, although Akaza is forced to flee when the sun begins rising. Tanjiro angrily calls him a coward for running away and declares Kyojuro the real winner of the fight. Kyojuro encourages Tanjiro and his friends, and dies. The Hashira and the entire Demon Slayer Corps are informed of his death, while Tanjiro and the others mourn his sacrifice.

## Staff

*Information provided by the official English website*

* **Original Story:** Koyoharu Gotoge
* **Animation Studio:** ufotable
* **Direction:** Haruo Sotozaki
* **Character Design:** Akira Matsushima
* **Chief Animation Direction:** Akira Matsushima
* **Screenplay:** ufotable
* **Sub Character Design:** Miyuki Sato, Yoko Kajiyama, Mika Kikuchi
* **Prop Design:** Masaharu Koyama
* **Conceptual Art:** Koji Eto, Masaru Yanaka, Yuri Kabasawa
* **Photography Direction:** Yuichi Terao
* **3D Direction:** Kazuki Nishiwaki
* **Color Setting:** Yuko Omae
* **Editing:** Manabu Kamino
* **Music:** Yuki Kajiura, Go Shiina

## Cast

*Information provided by the official English website*

## Music

* Theme Song: "**homura**" (炎 *Homura*?) by LiSA

## Reception

On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 98% based on 40 reviews, with an average rating of 7.90/10.

### Box office records

As of August 23, 2022, the film has grossed over US$506.5 million worldwide, making it the first Japanese film and anime film to reach the milestone of US$500 million worldwide box office and was the only R-rated animated film to broke multiple box office records. These records being:

* The highest-grossing film of 2020.
* The highest-grossing anime film and Japanese film of all time.
* The fourth highest-grossing traditional animated film of all time.
* The 12th highest-grossing foreign language overall, and 2nd highest-grossing foreign language of all time without Chinese-related.
* The highest-grossing R-rated film of 2020 and animated film of all time, and the 17th highest-grossing R-rated film worldwide.
* The 2nd highest-grossing animated film distribute by Sony.
* Most of other Asia regions, where it became several highest-grossing film.

## Rebroadcast

It was announced on September 25, 2021 that *Mugen Train* would be readapted into an episodic format in order to serve as the first course of the anime's second season. The rebroadcast premiered on October 10, 2021, and included a new anime-original first episode as well as some extra episodic anime content.

## Promotional Material

### Key Visuals

Key Visual 1Key Visual 2Key Visual 3Key Visual 4
### Magazine Covers

Newtype November 2020Newtype December 2020Animedia December 2020Animage December 2020Animedia April 2021Animedia July 2021Animage July 2021Animage August 2021
## External links

* Official Japanese movie site
* Official English movie site