Customer Reviews

Fullmetal Alchemist The Movie - The Conqueror of Shamballa

5 star:		(98)
4 star:		(32)
3 star:		(19)
2 star:		(7)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

Having just seen the sneak preview screenings of the english language reversioning of Fullmetal Alchemist - Conqueror of Shamballa, I can say without reservation that it is a thrilling and must-see epilogue/ending capping off what is without question one of the greatest masterpieces of anime. However, DO NOT START your exploration of this story with this movie. Some of the things that make this story so great are its character development, story arc, pacing, and unexpected twists of plot. To be properly appreciated, Fullmetal Alchemist MUST be seen in sequence from episode 1 through episode 51, and THEN this movie. If you try to watch this movie before seeing the series, not only will you find it largely incomprehensible, but knowledge of what happens will SPOIL many of the surprises that await in those 51 episodes. Virtually no backstory is provided; viewers are assumed to have seen the series.

All the charm and wonder of the series is here in this film. All the voice actors from the english reversioning of the series were brought back to voice their characters for the movie. The care and attention to detail shown by both the original creators and the reversioners is remarkable to say the least. I only wished it was longer. The epic story of the Fullmetal Alchemist, in its entirety, will stand for decades as a monument to and inspiration for what can be achieved in this medium. This film is the final coda at the end of all its symphonic glory.

Note: this may contain minor spoilers. That said, the FMA movie brings a close to the storyline left open at the end of episode 51 of the TV series. It has stunning visuals and a superb soundtrack, nicely rendered in Dolby Digital 5.1 surround sound. It picks up three years after the end of the television series and wraps up loose ends surrounding the gate, Hoenheim, Envy, Gluttony, Wrath, Ed, and Al. Despite the fact that it was written by the same staff who created the series, the movie does have a different "feel" to it (especially since alchemy can't be used for a good portion of the film). If you liked the series, you'll definitely enjoy (at least most of) the movie. Fans who are looking for romantic relationships are going to be disappointed as the staff seemed to focus more on the bond between the two brothers.

For the big fans of the series, this special edition will definitely be a highlight to your collection, as it will contain a hard-bound book, several character "portrait cards", and a bonus DVD with multiple commentaries and interviews with the Japanese cast and crew, as well as the American staff. It also has a nice portrait of Ed on the cover of the box (the same that was used for the Japanese ltd. ed. release).

I would highly recommend this film to anyone who likes Fullmetal Alchemist; despite what I saw as the film's few shortcomings, it was still a good movie overall.

Similar to End of Evangelion, this film is essentially the conclusion to the 51-episode anime show that caught on big with audiences stateside. While it's not a fair comparison, that was my first thought that came to mind, especially since like EoE, Conqueror doesn't end with an "all questions answered" ending. While it's definately cool to see your favorite characters in a fuller context, there's some things that aren't dealt with, mainly with characters, that I wish they concluded. In case you haven't seen the series, I am going to spoil it so consider yourself warned.

At the end of the series, 4 Homunculi had been killed with one being sent through the Gate. Al had been restored to his body with his memory wiped out and Ed was in our world circa the 1920's in Munich, Germany. In this film, Ed rescues a gypsy named Noah who has mind-reading abilities. It also turns out she's being hunted by the Thule Society who wants to reach the world "Shamballa". Back in the series world, Al actually turned out to be a pretty powerful alchemist and has been trying to find Ed while dealing with a new villain.

One of the things that's always fun while watching these movies is seeing one of the old characters show up. I don't want to spoil it but some of them are like "hey! that's him/her!". But like certain movies that have the same back and forth structure, you start to get intrigued by the appearance of characters in one world then you jump back to someone else. It's only a minor nitpick so it isn't as important. But it is great to see the characters again.

Now where I guess the disappointment comes in is the handling of certain characters. There's obviously some romances that are suggested such as Mustang/Hawkeye, Ed and Winry(and even at one point Ed and Rose), Scar and Lust and you'd at least like to see some acknowledgement of one of them actually happen. And the conclusion of the film suggests there will be a sequel since there's obviously stuff that can be resolved. I haven't read a single manga of the show, not that we have it available here anyway, so I have no clue what happens at the end.

It's highly recommended that you watch the series as everything from transmutation circles to Homunculi will be completely lost. Sure you'll understand the basics but all the small details will be completely lost. The film's great so it's not that big of a problem but still, it's a big investment to watch the film so set some time to watch all 51 episodes then come here.

(EDIT--Jan 2008: I've rewatched the entire series and watched this film again 2 or 3 times--and liked it far more on subsequential watchings--I would now give it a 4 star simply because I love the characters so much--but my complaints about its weakenesses still stand. I will say that I've watched it in both English and Japanese and I applaud both Romi Pak and Vic Mignogna for their outstanding performances as Edward. It's still muddled and could do with serious re-editing--but I've come to love it after seeing it again._)

Fullmetal Alchemist,in my opinion, is one of the most gripping, emotionally charged and memorable anime series of all time. It's not just good anime--it's good storytelling with characters you grow deeply concerned for. Even in the weaker 'filler' episodes are still worth watching. I rented the first three discs of the series and then purchased the imported box set with the movie--and believe me, I wouldn't invest that kind of cash if I didn't think FMA was a classic. The day after I finally viewed Episode 51 I sat down to watch the move, still stunned, shaken and moved by what I'd seen in the final episode...

...And I came away from the movie thinking how there was simply too much story, too many scenes that didn't propel the action forward. The subplot with the Rose-lookalike, Noah, as the psychic who figures out Edward's secret past could have been edited out completely and nobody would have missed it, as would have much of the Fritz Lang material (as a film buff I did appreciate the sly references to his wife, Thea Von Harbou, who was a dedicated follower of Hitler--their movie 'Metropolis' is the science fiction film Lang keeps refering to). All in all, the historical parts could have been pared back--most of us know enough about 20th century history that we don't need all the pointed references.

As for the Amestris characters--seeing Roy Mustang falling completely into his depression and self loathing (a key subplot in the series) only to rise to the occasion, recover his belief in himself and to take command once more provides some of the strongest scenes in the film. His brief reunion with Ed and Al suddenly shifts the movie into high gear--it develops a terrific Indiana Jones-type energy with sharp dialog and comedy/action timing that SHOULD have set the tone for the film. When Edward snaps, "Love the eyepatch. Pity it isn't over your mouth." I wanted to cheer. Classic "Taisa and the Shrimp" sparring that kicks both characters back on course. And of course, Armstrong steals every scene he poses in, sparkles and all.

Is this the end of FMA? Good question. There have been a few short OVA's out there, but nothing on the scope of the original series. The manga is still running strong.

The truth is, there was so much potential in this film--we know and love these characters, share their history--we want to know what happens next to Al and Ed as their journey continues. The fact that there was no GUARANTEE that the Gate was sealed could potentially leave the door open for more films...who knows? Studio Bones indicates that FMA anime is officially completed. If you watch the documentary with the disc you'll see that this original script was originally over 100 pages long and could have been made into a second series. I just wish the final hurrah had been better edited--it should have been a tighter, more exciting film. Still, it's definitely worth seeing.

This is, generally speaking, an enjoyable movie. It does provide some closure to the series (that's as close to a "spoiler" as I'll get). But the series itself was such a cut above most anime that I found myself disappointed with this movie.

Basically this is about as good as most decent anime movies. If you're a fan of the show, you'll probably want to see it; but don't set your expectations too high. If you haven't seen the show, this movie won't make much sense. If you're not already an anime fan, this is NOT the movie to get you hooked.

The Fullmetal Alchemist Movie was an amazing end to the series, however I strongly do not recommend to do what I did and try to watch the movie without finishing the series. To new fans and those who haven't finished the series the movie is extremely confusing, but not impossible to figure out. The music was good and so was the plot line. I saw the premiere at Otakon and people were literally cheering at scenes, or when all the old favorites would make their debut on the screen. Overall it was an amazing movie, with a nice historical references, and a storyline that wraps up the loose ends left at the end of the series. Watch it, own it, if you're a fan you'll probably love it!

I was disappointed. The end totally disregards the feelings and hopes of all the characters in the main series besides the Elric brothers. The movie did not have the philosophical edge that the show did, though it tried to. While the show was thought provoking, the movie felt preached to the audience. In the end, I would adivise not watching this movie because it is a let down and you'll like the show more if you don't.

It is usually a bad sign when there is a guide included to explain the movie makers reasons for making the movie and to explain the lesson they want to teach. The movie does give you a conclusion for the anime. There is little to laugh at in this movie, the directors are to focused on making their point. They have decided to make the anime and movie more "real" than the manga and as such have lost the light hearted humor and in their attempts to be "realistic" have created inconsistancies that can not be explained.

The music and animation are excellent. But I would recommend buying the soundtrack and renting the movie.

After I have finished watching the TV series of "Fullmetal Alchemist", I have been expecting for this movie "Conqueror of Shamballa" and watched it in May Day this year. I have to admit that this is a glorious movie of Japanese animation, and even I can say it's the best one I have ever seen.
At the beginning of this movie, I was a little wondering that why Alphonse maintain his armour form. Then as the story went on, I knew that this movie was shown in flashback. I love this kind of method, it made us recalled something old in TV series and led us into an all-new adventure. It attracted me at once. The stories of this movie is wonderful, all the plots were attractive, and all the suspenses have been set perfectly. The stories have been set on the background that the World War 2, it made the fable story very authentic. To a very extent, the history of World War 2 that we are familiar to was in this movie, so this movie is easy to be accepted by many people. Besides, similarly to the TV series, this movie is full-filled with courage, bravery and love.
Secondly, the wonderful tableaux are what attracted me much. At first, I didn't think the quality of tableaux was better than that in the TV series. But after I watched the movie for several times, I found it's more technical than the TV series. Some 3D and other kinds of techniques were in the making of this movie. For example, the armours appeared from the ground, the movement of them seemed so smooth and natural. And, many of the scenes have appeared in the TV series, but the excellent technique of this movie made them more beautiful and colorful. In my opinion, tableaux in this movie is one of the focuses.
Thirdly, characters of this movie were what I paid most of my attention to, either old or new. All the old characters performed perfectly in this movie, especially the Elric brothers of course. Alphonse is my favorite character, and he became more handsome in this movie, he resembled this brother Edward. I love Edward in this movie, but he often seemed so mopish in the movie. However, when he reunited with his brother, he became more spirited. Wrath is my favorite Homunculus, he seemed very different from how he used to be in the TV series, I was surprised that he helped Alphonse in opening the door. My favorite new character in this movie is Alphonse Heiderich, it's not only because he looked like Alphonse Elric but also because of his kindness, wisdom and courage. But it's really a pity that this young man was killed. My friends and I all consider that he's the most tragic character in the movie. I think many of fans have been expecting for the evolvement between Roy and Riza. We could see that Riza's attachment to Roy hasn't faded at all, but there was only a little dialogue between them. However, I felt very happy for them that they met each other again.
Finally, I think the ending of this movie was expected much, because this movie is the sequel of the TV series. At first, I thought the ending of this movie would be a perfect and happy one that would surprise us much. I think I would feel happy that the Elric brother reunited finally, but I didn't know why I still felt very regretful. After I watched the movie, every time when I watched the TV series and see Winry was with the Elric brothers, I feel sorry for her. At the end, she would never see her friends again. When I saw her sorrowful face as soon as she saw Edward went to the other world, I felt so sad that my tears almost fell. Maybe that's why I feel regretful for the ending.
I think this is really a great movie and a wonderful sequel of the TV series, though I was not very satisfied with the ending. This movie has an lamented ending, but if it was a perfect and happy one, it would stray away from the theme of "Fullmetal Alchemist" and it wouldn't be so impressing. However, I still wish that the door could be opened again and everyone who loved each othe so much could all reunited, skipping a cruel war of course...

This review contains spoilers for the movie.
At the end of the series we're told : "Anyone who puts forth effort will be rewarded, even if it's not what you expected." Well, that goes for this movie. While it's generally entertaining, I felt that "Conqueror of Shamballah" lacked the overall epic quality it promised us. Sure there are huge battles between giant monsters and a crazy rocket powered Nazi warship, but only the latter actaully involves our heroes, Edward and Alphonse Elric. The main Villain is tragically wooden and in the end, not much of a threat. She also gives a ridicolous speech about how "this world must perish...because I fear it." I guess this was supposed to humanize her a bit, but it just makes her sound like a bad saturday morining cartoon villain.
The ending was perhaps the most dissapointing, as Ed and Al end up back in the 'real' world of 1923 Europe, destroying the Ed/Winry romance a lot of us were hoping to see. In fact, the whole thing sort of falls apart, and lacks the finality that the end of such an amazing series needs.
Now, I don't want you to think I have nothing good to say about this film. The bittersweet quality that made the series so endearing translates to the movie, particularly in the scenes between Ed and Al or the oh-so fleeting moment between Ed and Winry. The film also excells at portraying 1920's Germany, using a desaturated color palatte and a lot of muted browns and greys. The animation is gorgeous. I particularly like the slight redesigns on the characters. The 3d effects however, don't blend with the gorgeous animation, making a lot of the final action sequence a bit lifeless. It supposed to be some sort of epic battle, but it feels tacked on.
All in all, I would recommend this film to a serious fan of Fullmetal Alchemist but not to anyone who has not seen the series or is only a casual fan. Not what I expected, but a decent film.