The series features Saber, a powerful female Servant, who is shown to be victorious in close-quarters sword combat against multiple male opponents, specifically several Assassins. Her abilities are supernatural, but her victories are achieved through physical combat.

King Arthur, a historically male figure, is portrayed as the female character Saber in Fate/Zero. This adaptation of a real-world historical/legendary figure with a different gender constitutes a gender swap.

The film portrays the Holy Church as a morally ambiguous institution involved in dark rituals, and its adherent, Kirei Kotomine, as a priest deeply struggling with his faith, finding joy only in evil. The narrative highlights the hypocrisy and moral compromises within its institutional representation without offering significant counterbalancing positive portrayals.