2025 will go down as a historic year for anime movies with the back-to-back premieres of Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle and Chainsaw Man: The Movie — Reze Arc. Both films have been hyped as major releases from the moment they were announced, and with them releasing around the same time in some markets, that just makes the hype even bigger.
Videos by ComicBook.com
With Infinity Castle and Chainsaw Man: The Movie both out, it’s safe to say that they’ve both more than lived up to the hype with their respective gorgeous animation and heartfelt storytelling. Both films will go down as two of the best films of 2025, animated or otherwise, and that, of course, invites the question of which one is better.
Why Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle Is One Of The Best Movies Of The Year
Everything surrounding Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle has built it up as a major event of 2025; not only was it the latest installment in the biggest anime of the decade, but it was the first part in a massive film trilogy set to bring the anime to an end, making it an even bigger draw for fans old and new.
Sure enough, Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle more than lived up to that hype in every regard. From a visual standpoint, Infinity Castle excels from start to finish with amazing fight choreography and direction, including some surprisingly stunning use of 3D, and it’s not only the best-looking Demon Slayer project, but the best-looking project from Ufotable, overall.
Naturally, Infinity Castle also found great success narratively, as whether it was through continuing old character arcs or establishing new ones, every story beat gave the cast incredible depth with plenty of bittersweet catharsis, especially when it came to Akaza’s tragic backstory. It’s Demon Slayer’s most emotional story yet, and its sequels will only get better from here.
Why Chainsaw Man: The Movie — Reze Arc Is One Of The Best Movies Of The Year
Unlike Infinity Castle, the road to Chainsaw Man: The Movie — Reze Arc has been notably messy. The film wasn’t announced until a year after the anime ended, it then took another year for trailers to come out, and with the original director, Ryu Nakayama, being replaced by Tatsuya Yoshihara, it was hard to know what to make of the film.
Fortunately, any and all fears about 2025’s Chainsaw Man: The Movie were ultimately unfounded. Story-wise, the film perfectly picked up where the anime left off by pushing Denji’s growth even further with his star-crossed romance with Reze, as it did a lot to develop his quest for happiness with some of the best character and romance writing in modern anime.
The biggest standout, of course, is the art and animation. While Tatsuya Yoshihara’s take on Chainsaw Man is different from Ryu Nakayama’s, that translates to much more colorful designs and far more energetic animation, thus putting things much more in line with the bombastic tone of the original manga as opposed to the cinematic and methodical take of the anime.
The benefits of that can especially be seen in the fight scenes, as every fight scene in the film showcases gorgeous and creative animation and choreography at every turn, especially when it comes to Denji’s fight with Reze and the Typhoon Devil. Overall, the film is nothing short of a marvel, and it was well worth the lengthy wait.
Which Anime Movie Is The Best Anime Movie Of 2025?
Both Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle and Chainsaw Man: The Movie — Reze Arc are major visual and narrative triumphs that more than lived up to the hype surrounding them. Both films are different visually, tonally, and narratively, but in the end, they’re both incredibly strong films that any anime fan can get a lot out of.
If there’s one area that one of them does suffer in, though, it would have to be Infinity Castle with its pacing. Infinity Castle is incredibly lengthy, clocking in at two and a half hours, and with the episodic nature of the Infinity Castle arc, the film tends to feel very slow, which, unfortunately, detracts from its quality.
By comparison, the shorter length of Chainsaw Man: The Movie and its adaptation of a more linear story arc result in a far tighter narrative, making it easier to get invested in the overarching story. Because of that, Chainsaw Man: The Movie — Reze Arc is ultimately better than Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle, if only ever so slightly.
Chainsaw Man: The Movie — Reze Arc’s pacing puts it above Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle, but it’s not nearly enough to matter in the grand scheme of things; both films are nothing short of masterpieces for how much they do with their stories and visuals, and there’s no reason not to enjoy both of them for the incredible films they are.
Most Viewed
-
Image Courtesy of Ufotable -
Image Courtesy of Marvel Comics
