You’ll be able to watch the biggest anime movie of all time at home, and with English subtitles, very soon.
The movie industry got hammered worldwide during 2020, but perhaps the sole, intensely shining bright spot was Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba the Movie: Mugen Train. Released in October, it took less than three months for the direct follow-up to the phenomenally popular Demon Slayer anime TV series to become the highest-grossing film ever at the Japanese box office, taking the place of Studio Ghibli’s Spirited Away, which had held the title since 2001.
But while Mugen Train’s numerical success means a lot of people have gone to see the movie, there are still many who are avoiding movie theaters during the pandemic, and so are anxiously awaiting its home video release. That also goes for people in countries such as the U.S., where Mugen Train has yet to have a wide theatrical release, and also, of course, fans who have seen the movie in theaters, but want to own it for themselves to rewatch whenever they feel like it. So for all those people, here’s some good news: Mugen Train will be out on home video in exactly three months, and in a tip of the hat to the international anime fan community, it’ll include English subtitles.
Distributor Aniplex has announced that Mugen Train will be out on home video, in Japan, on June 16. The company is apparently aware that many overseas fans don’t want to wait for international licensing to get sorted out, though, and so both the Blu-ray and DVD releases will include English subtitles, as well as Japanese-language captioning, for the Japanese-language dialogue.
Of course, it’s hard to hear the word “Aniplex” and not immediately remember the company’s love of premium pricing. For those happy with a bare-bones release, though, the hit to the wallet isn’t that bad by Japanese domestic market prices for anime, as the 117-minute movie will cost 4,400 yen (US$42.50) for the Blu-ray and 3,850 for the DVD. Fans with deeper pockets can pony up 9,900 yen for a deluxe limited-edition Blu-ray bundle that includes a special case illustrated by Demon Slayer character designer Akira Matsushima, a background music soundtrack CD, special contents DVD with interviews and a recorded at-theater appearance from the voice actors for the core cast of Tanjiro, Nezuko, Zenitsu, Inosuke, and Kyojuro as well as an interview booklet.
Pre-orders are open now through Japanese anime video retailers.
Source: Aniplex via Otakomu
Images: YouTube/アニプレックス YouTube チャンネル
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