Sword Art Online the Movie – Progressive – Scherzo of Deep Night

"You will definitely become stronger."

2022 1h 40m JA

🙌

7.7

BANGER

★7.7TMDB · 235

AnimationActionFantasyScience Fiction

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

Over a month has passed since 10,000 users were trapped inside the "Sword Art Online" world. Asuna, who cleared the first floor of the floating iron castle of Aincrad, joined up with Kirito and continued her journey to reach the top floor. With the support of female Information Broker Argo, clearing the floors seemed to be progressing smoothly, but conflict erupts between two major guilds who should be working together – the top player groups ALS (the Aincrad Liberation Squad) and DKB (the Dragon Knights Brigade). And meanwhile, behind the scenes exists a mysterious figure pulling the strings…

“You will definitely become stronger.”

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Where to watch · US

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Cast

Haruka Tomatsu
Asuna (voice)
Yoshitsugu Matsuoka
Kirito (voice)
Inori Minase
Mito (voice)
Shiori Izawa
Argo (voice)
Hiroki Yasumoto
Agil (voice)
Tomokazu Seki
Kibaou (voice)
Kaede Hondo
Liten (voice)
Yuusuke Nagano
Shivata (voice)

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Ayako Kono
Writers: Reki Kawahara, Yukito Kizawa, Manabu Ono
Languages: Japanese
Countries: Japan

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

ERA

Did you know

Released 4 years ago.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

CINEMA

Did you know

Part of the "Sword Art Online Progressive Collection" — so the characters or world continue elsewhere.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Ayako Kono, shot by Yuki Oshima. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Yuki Kajiura. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Kiyoshi Hirose shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Haruka Tomatsu and Yoshitsugu Matsuoka and Inori Minase carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "You will definitely become stronger.".

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt15830702 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Ayako Kono directs. Yuki Oshima behind the camera. Yuki Kajiura scores. Kiyoshi Hirose cuts. Produced in Japan. Dialogue in Japanese.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Released 4 years ago.
2Part of the "Sword Art Online Progressive Collection" — so the characters or world continue elsewhere.
3Directed by Ayako Kono, shot by Yuki Oshima. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
4Original score by Yuki Kajiura. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
5Editor Kiyoshi Hirose shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
6Haruka Tomatsu and Yoshitsugu Matsuoka and Inori Minase carry the top of the cast.
7Marketing tagline: "You will definitely become stronger.".
8IMDB entry: tt15830702 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
9Classified under 10 themes, including "monster", "virtual reality", "fantasy world", "woman director".
10Released under 16 different titles around the world.

The technical file

Cinematography: Yuki Oshima
Original score: Yuki Kajiura
Editing: Kiyoshi Hirose
Runtime: 100 min · 1h 40m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Box office: $9,071,701
Original language: JA
Certification (US): NR
IMDB: Sword Art Online the Movie – Progressive – Scherzo of Deep Night (2022)

Part of

Sword Art Online Progressive Collection

A two-film duology that offers an expanded reimagining of Sword Art Online’s original Aincrad arc, following Kirito and Asuna step by step as they fight their way through each floor of the deadly game. The films fill in missing gaps and provide deeper character development that the original series glossed over, with a particular focus on Asuna’s early perspective.

Also by

Ayako Kono

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Trailers & featurettes

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Community reviews

What people are saying

CinemaSerf2023-02-09
★ 6/10
Now firstly, come on guys - a snappier title, surely? "Asuna" and her pal "Kirito" are accomplished players in the game and have progressed to level five. It's here that they learn of a plan to drop a game-changing banner into the mix that could could seriously damage the uneasy status quo truce that exists between the two rival clans playing. "Kirito" is a former beta-asset so using his slightly advantageous knowledge, the two must recruit some allies and try to thwart the level 5 boss before he ensures mayhem ensues. The story is simple, straightforward and that helps this along well enough - if maybe a little too one-dimensionally. Some attempts have been made to develop the lead characterisations, and the theme and the animated combat scenes - especially at the end - reminded me a little "Tron" (1982). It's got plenty of action, a few beasties, swordplay and benefits from being tightly directed remaining focussed and decently paced for an hour and an half. Not great, no, but I did quiet enjoy it.

Production companies