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Cardcaptor Sakura Movie 2: The Sealed Card (劇場版カードキャプターさくら 封印されたカード)

Cardcaptor Sakura Movie 2: The Sealed Card (劇場版カードキャプターさくら 封印されたカード, Gekijōban Kādokyaputā Sakura: Fūin Sareta Kādo) is a 2000 Japanese animated fantasy film, the second theatrical feature based on the manga Cardcaptor Sakura by the creative group CLAMP, and a direct finale to the television anime series that aired on NHK.1 Directed by Morio Asaka with a screenplay by CLAMP member Nanase Ōkawa and animation by Madhouse, it premiered in Japan on July 15, 2000.2

Key factDetail
Japanese releaseJuly 15, 2000, distributed by Shochiku (with Bandai Visual); rated G2 • 3
Running time82 minutes per Japanese sources; IMDb lists 79 minutes2 • 4
Director / scriptMorio Asaka (浅香守生); screenplay by Nanase Ōkawa (大川七瀬) of CLAMP2
StudioMadhouse (マッドハウス), with production cooperation from Amber Film Works5
Central antagonistThe 53rd Clow Card, the Nothing card (無のカード), voiced by Maaya Sakamoto2 • 5
Theme song"Ashita e no Melody" (明日へのメロディー), lyrics and vocals by CHAKA, composed and arranged by Toshio Sagisu6
Anniversary screeningsRevival release December 29, 2017; 25th-anniversary re-screening from July 11, 2025, again paired with the short Leave It to Kero-chan!1
Audience ratingsIMDb 7.7/10 from about 2,000 votes; Rotten Tomatoes audience score 91% from 10,000+ ratings4 • 7

Spoilers

Plot

Sakura Kinomoto and her classmates in class 6-2 of Tomoeda Elementary are rehearsing a play for the town's Nadeshiko Festival over summer vacation.1 Sakura unexpectedly meets Syaoran Li, who had returned to Hong Kong, and resolves to answer the confession of love he made to her at the end of the TV series, which she had not yet properly answered.6 Her attempts keep failing, and she plans to confess at an amusement park built on the site of Eriol's demolished mansion, which her friend Tomoyo invites her to visit.1 • 2

At the park Sakura senses a Clow Card she believed she had sealed. The 53rd card, the Nothing card, had lain sealed beneath the mansion site and was activated by construction work.2 Strange events follow in town, with post boxes and bridges disappearing, and Sakura's own magical power begins to drain away.2 • 9 The Nothing card absorbs the Sakura Cards and erases Sakura's friends and the townspeople.2

Sakura persuades the card, which explains that it was always alone and wanted friends, and the Nothing card is transformed into a Sakura Card, restoring everyone.2 Sealing it carries a price: the person with the greatest magical power at that moment must give up their most precious feeling, and the condition falls on Syaoran, whose most precious feeling is his love for Sakura.11 The film ends with Sakura answering his confession.2

Background

The film adapts CLAMP's manga, serialized in Kodansha's Nakayoshi magazine, and follows the television anime that ran on NHK from 1999 to 2000.1 It is the second of two theatrical features: the first, Cardcaptor Sakura: The Movie, set in Hong Kong, premiered in August 1999.8 The story sits between the anime's "Sakura Card" arc and the later Clear Card television series that began broadcasting in January 2018.9

Director Morio Asaka said in an interview that a second film was not planned from the start; the story was originally meant to end with episode 70 of the TV series, and he initially declined the project before accepting it.10 The production created a new 2000-version character design for Sakura, and the film includes the sealing of the "Bubble" card, which the TV series never depicted, shown as footage Tomoyo had recorded.10

Production and staff

The core staff carried over from the first film and the TV series: direction by Morio Asaka, screenplay by Nanase Ōkawa, original character and costume design concepts by CLAMP, chief animation direction by Hisashi Abe, art direction by Yuji Ikeda, cinematography by Hisao Shirai, sound direction by Masafumi Mima, and music by Takayuki Negishi.5 Madhouse produced the animation, with production by Kodansha, Shochiku, Bandai Visual, and Madhouse.6

The voice cast reprises the television roles: Sakura Tange as Sakura Kinomoto, Motoko Kumai as Syaoran Li, Junko Iwao as Tomoyo Daidouji, Aya Hisakawa as Keroberos's temporary form and Masaya Onosaka as its true form, Megumi Ogata as Yukito Tsukishiro and Yue, Tomokazu Seki as Touya Kinomoto, Yukana Nogami as Meiling Li, Megumi Shinohara as Kaho Mizuki, and Nozomu Sasaki as Eriol Hiiragizawa.5 Maaya Sakamoto voices the Nothing card, a new character.5

Release and revivals

The film opened in Japan on July 15, 2000, on a double bill with the short comedy Leave It to Kero-chan! (劇場版 ケロちゃんにおまかせ！), in which Kero and Suppi rampage around Tomoeda over takoyaki.2 • 6 It later received international releases, including Taiwan in December 2000, Mexico in November 2002, and Germany in September 2003.4 A limited North American theatrical release followed on January 31, 2018.7

Revival screenings have kept the film in circulation. As part of the project marking 20 years since the manga began, it was re-released in Japanese theaters on December 29, 2017, ahead of the Clear Card anime.1 • 3 For the film's own 25th anniversary, it returned to theaters from July 11, 2025, again paired with Leave It to Kero-chan! as at the original release.1 A commemorative stage event at Shinjuku Piccadilly on July 12, 2025 featured Sakura Tange and Motoko Kumai, with a message from director Asaka.12

Reception

On IMDb the film holds a 7.7/10 rating from about 2,000 users.4 Rotten Tomatoes records a 91% audience score from more than 10,000 ratings.7 It won the Theatrical Film Award at the 5th Animation Kobe Awards in 2000.4 An original soundtrack with 32 tracks was released in Japan on August 2, 2000 by Victor Entertainment.13

The film is widely treated by viewers as the conclusion of the television story rather than a standalone work; audience reviewers on Rotten Tomatoes describe it as a giant final episode that assumes familiarity with the 70-episode series and the first film.7 As of 2026, the film is not streaming on major Japanese services, though Blu-ray and DVD editions remain in circulation.14

References

  1. 劇場版カードキャプターさくら 封印されたカード : 作品情報 - 映画.com
  2. 劇場版 カードキャプターさくら 封印されたカード - 松竹 作品データベース
  3. カードキャプターさくら 封印されたカード - allcinema
  4. Cardcaptor Sakura: The Sealed Card (2000) - IMDb
  5. 劇場版 カードキャプターさくら 封印されたカード : 作品情報 - アニメハック
  6. 劇場版(2000年公開) - カードキャプターさくら公式サイト
  7. Sakura Card Captors: The Sealed Card (2000) - Rotten Tomatoes
  8. 劇場版カードキャプターさくら : 作品情報 - 映画.com
  9. 劇場版 カードキャプターさくら 封印されたカード (2000) - シネマトゥデイ
  10. ep.1 封印されたカード / 劇場版カードキャプターさくら 封印されたカード - bgm.tv
  11. 劇場版カードキャプターさくら 封印されたカード ブルーレイ - 楽天市場
  12. 『劇場版カードキャプターさくら 封印されたカード』公開25周年記念舞台挨拶レポート - アニメイトタイムズ
  13. Cardcaptor Sakura Movie 2: The Sealed Card - Cardcaptor Sakura Wiki
  14. 「カードキャプターさくら」のアニメ・劇場版はどこで見れる？ - VODチョイス

Initially written Oct 3, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 21, 2026; Oct 25, 2026; Nov 1, 2026

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