Gekijôban Hagane no Renkinjutsushi: Shanbara wo Yuku Mono

• Japan • 2005 • 105m •

• Directed by: Seiji Mizushima. • Starring: Vic Mignogna, Aaron Dismuke, Jason Liebrecht, Kelly Manison, John Swasey, Ed Blaylock, Leah Clark, Caitlin Glass, Juli Erickson, Travis Willingham, Christopher Sabat, Jason Douglas, Scott McNeil. • Music by: Michiru Ohshima.

Edward Elric, the Fullmetal Alchemist, is on the other side of the gate. He has befriended someone who resembles his brother, Al, and has met a gypsy resembling Rose. He finds out that the Germans are planning on opening the gate, and attack the other side, which is Ed and Al's home. Although Al has learned a lot, he cannot stop all of them, and Ed cannot use Alchemy while in the other side. Ed tries to stop them, and Al just tries to be able to talk to his brother again, who everyone else thinks is gone.

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1:30

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Before the two anime adaptations, "Fullmetal Alchemist" was originally a manga (Japanese graphic novel) written by Hiromu Arakawa and published in Square Enix's monthly magazine "Shonen Gangan". It was the story of two brothers who used the ancient arts of alchemy to perform a risky taboo: to transmute their dead mother to bring her back to life. As a result, the younger brother lost his entire body, while the older lost his leg. At the last minute, the older brother bounded the younger brother's soul to a suit of armor, sacrificing his right arm. With the older brother outfitted with artificial limbs made of steel (called auto mail), they then set out on a journey to find the legendary Philosopher's Stone and use it to get their bodies back to normal.

While the manga was still being written, an anime series would be produced by Bones and Aniplex with Arakawa's approval. When it was released internationally (in my case, being a selection on Cartoon Network's Adult Swim block), the popularity of the franchise soared, and critics took notice, with one saying that it was a perfect blend of action, comedy, and hard-hitting drama. They weren't lying in that regard. When the series ended, it was not the end of the story, so a feature-length movie was produced. This is where "Fullmetal Alchemist - The Movie: Conqueror of Shamballa" comes in.

Directed by Seiji Mizushima, who also directed a majority of the episodes of the television show, the film takes place two years after the events of the last episode of the series. It's 1923 in Munich, Germany, and since his sacrifice leading to the separation from his younger brother Alphonse (Aaron Dismuke), Edward Elric (Vic Mignogna) has spent his time in our world studying rocketry with his friend Alphons Heiderich (E. Jason Liebrecht). One day, Ed saves a Gypsy girl who has the power to read minds, which throws Ed into a devious plot by the Thule Society and the Nazi party that could start a war between the world he's in and his home world, all while his brother Alphonse sets out on a journey to find his brother at the same time.

Going in blind, the average moviegoer would barely understand what the hell is going on in this movie, if at all. This is why I would say to people when discussing the series as a whole to watch all 51 episodes of the original series before watching this, despite being an original story derived from the show (according to anime critic Ryusuke Hikawa). As for the movie itself, story-aside, the film captures the action, comedy, and drama of the show just fine, and also includes the show's musical score blending with tracks made for the movie. As someone who is a fan of the franchise, I can say that it's a definite plus. The downside is that the film is geared toward a limited audience. Again, if you haven't watched the entire series (the original, not "Brotherhood"), pretty much all of the movie won't make a lick of sense.

While I do agree that "Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood" is a much better work with a superior ending, the original series and the movie itself is actually not too bad either. I kinda like it, and would give it a recommendation to fans of the series. Is it the best ending they could come up with? No.

Review by TheOneManBoxOffice from the Internet Movie Database.

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