petragreen Compared to Shamballa which concluded the original FMA a better movie. However feels kinda forced. It clearly takes place somewhere half way through the brotherhood series but after what episode of the TV show? It does have good action sequences and better plot than Shamballa but the animation and story feels it is lacking in quality compared to the brotherhood TV series. The main problem with this movie is Julia is the main character focused on and Ed and Al are the side characters. Worth watching but feels an unnecessary addition to the TV series.

Angels_Review This is kind of loosely based off of Fullmetal Alchemist and yet… the addition to Julia seems as though it was a fan character brought into the show. The story brings the Elric brothers far from Central and the areas where they are normally are in both anime. Unfortunately, it is the same story line we almost always have. Apprised people trying to get their land back. The story feels kind of old when you keep making it all about a hunt for the philosopher's stone.There are a couple inconsistencies that happen within this show like the fact that there is a Chimera that has some human in him but yet it seems that he isn't having any problems with his body unlike every other Chimera that we have seen.I'm not sure, but Julia seems to be a Mary Sue character in a sense. Everything bad is happening to her and yet she seems to be able to get out of her predicaments. They basically showed her as a girl that has had really bad things happen to her since a young age. She has had no time to have anything good happen and bad things happen to her. Even the story about her brother seems rather sappy.The whole story line seems to be exactly like every other storyline where a group of people are fighting for some 'holy land' somewhere. I'm wondering if the people who wrote Fullmetal Alchemist and the ones who wrote this one have something to do with the whole 'Jews and Israel' thing. It also gets really gory, lots of blood and guts scenes.When they show the CG, it actually looks pretty well done. They made it look rather close to the animation but it seems to be used unnecessarily in times when the item is still. This shows up in the first few minutes where there is a close up of Edward's hand. The rest of the animation is actually pretty much the same as the anime, beautiful details and sometimes exceeding the anime. The fighting sometimes seems a bit awkward at times since we get a lot of flashing lights from alchemist. Now a bunch of characters seem to be rehashed versions of old characters.The voices are actually alright, though I'm not sure about Julia Crichton's voice though. It seems really sweet and innocent. Vic does a perfect job as Edward as always.

b_rad099 I had the chance to see this at my local theater, a treat since they usually don't get such obscure titles and I'm usually forced to resort to waiting on blu-ray releases. This time I was able to see the beautifully hand drawn animation up on the big screen in all its glory.I am a relatively new fan of the series but have been well exposed to the mythos by now. This film, unlike the film tied to the earlier series (Conqueror of Shamballa), is not an ending/finale as much as it is a filler episode that fits into the Brotherhood series. It should be viewed as another chance to spend time with the Elric brothers, though perhaps this time on an ever slightly more epic journey than usual. I feel viewing it this way, which is how I went into it, will merit the most enjoyment.I don't think anything needs to be said about the voice acting, this dub is terrific, truly one of the best. I know some fans only watch the subs but this is well known as one of those anime that almost every fan finds the English dub to be on par or in some cases above the original one.The visuals were fantastic and the action was excellently staged. The only downside is that Ed and Al seem to play side characters in this film, whereas in comparison to Conqueror of Shamballa they were definitely main characters there. While I would have liked more of them and more stakes for them in the story that didn't stop me from greatly enjoying the film. The story keeps one eager to see what will happen and where things will go, even though a few too many scenes without any presence felt by Ed or Al left me wondering when they would return to the screen.It isn't that I didn't enjoy the side characters, just that Ed and Al were always on my mind when gone too long as this is a Fullmetal Alchemist film. The side characters are interesting and well designed, there is a large back story about two warring countries and another caught between and a smaller back story about a brother and sister who, like Ed and Al, lost their parents The large amount of plot is well explained without getting too expository, several flashback sequences definitely help.The film starts out very linear, light and fun but soon gets very dark and heavy as it begins to pile on the plot twists towards the end, back-to-back-to-back at one point. I didn't mind personally but I mention it just to help others decide whether they want to find this in a local theater or wait for the spring blu-ray release.On another note, if this film didn't carry the title Fullmetal Alchemist or if Ed and Al hadn't been in the story I would have felt like I was watching an older Hayao Miyazaki film, which I say as a compliment. Even the character designs reminded me very much of Nausicaa or other similar films.So while I do wish Ed and Al were more involved both physically and emotionally, they mostly stand on the sidelines and give their opinions to these new characters who may make the same mistakes the boys once did, it is nevertheless a good if not great film. It is especially engaging for those who love hand drawn animation as I do.

Y Kim I was fortunate enough to see this movie at Otakon, the second showing in the United States ever. (The first was a day before at the Otakon convention and I missed it due to a crisis, I would never miss it otherwise.)The movie was Japanese audio with English subtitles, the way it should be. I really enjoyed the storyline and the action scenes were none less than amazing!! It had me tearing at one point..someone cutting onions in the room.As an avid FMA fan, I truly enjoyed this experience. Watching it with other FMA fans at Otakon (other otakus) was quite the movie watching experience as people all cheered, clapped, and laughed at the appropriate times. This movie definitely exceeded my expectations and they were rather high. I saw this movie right after The Last Unicorn, and it was a great way to end the Otakon convention!