7.1 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 4.0 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
After a mysterious prisoner with only a few weeks left on his sentence breaks out of prison in Central City, the Elric brothers attempt to track him down. The search leads them to Table City in the southwestern country of Creta, where Alphonse rescues a young alchemist named Julia from the very man they are trying to capture. In the thick of the fight, they literally tumble into Julia's home turf, the slums of Milos Valley, and are embroiled in the grassroots rebellion of her people. Takes place after episode 20 of the Brotherhood series.
Starring: Romi Park, Rie Kugimiya, Maaya Sakamoto, Toshiyuki Morikawa, Hidenobu KiuchiAnime | 100% |
Foreign | 91% |
Action | 47% |
Fantasy | 38% |
Sci-Fi | 31% |
Adventure | 31% |
Comedy | 18% |
Period | Insignificant |
Drama | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.78:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.85:1
English: Dolby TrueHD 5.1
Japanese: Dolby TrueHD 5.1
English
25GB Blu-ray Disc
Three-disc set (1 BD, 2 DVDs)
DVD copy
Slipcover in original pressing
Region A (C untested)
Movie | 4.0 | |
Video | 4.5 | |
Audio | 4.5 | |
Extras | 2.5 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
It’s been a long and winding road for Fullmetal Alchemist, the saga of Alphonse and Edward, the legendary Elric Brothers whose noble if perhaps misguided attempts to bring their dead mother back via alchemy resulted in some disastrous results. We’re approaching the decade mark since the first Fullmetal Alchemist anime started being broadcast, and the intervening years have seen an enormous number of properties, including the second series, Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood, as well as a slew of OVAs, some films and of course continuing mangas. But if we’re to take some of the comments offered by the U.S. voice cast in one of the supplements included on this new Blu-ray of this feature film which acts as a sort of appendage to Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood, we may be at the end of the story. Fullmetal Alchemist: The Sacred Star of Milos is an enjoyable mystery-action hybrid that will probably appeal most to longtime fans of the Fullmetal Alchemist franchise, though it’s a testament to the creative staff’s skill that this film works rather well as a standalone entertainment, not entirely dependent on an audience’s acquaintance with the labyrinthine world of the series in order to glean a lot of what’s going on. While some may wonder why Edward is termed the “Fullmetal Alchemist” when in fact it’s his brother Alphonse who seems to be a distant cousin of Brad Bird’s Iron Giant, as well as some lingering questions with regard to the back stories of the Elrics and a couple of returning characters, Fullmetal Alchemist: The Sacred Star of Milos quickly envelops the viewer in a new storyline that is more focused on two new characters who have their own independent backgrounds (could there be a spinoff in the making?).
Fullmetal Alchemist: The Sacred Star of Milos is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of FUNimation Entertainment with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.78:1. This is a bright and vivid looking high definition presentation, one which features exquisite line detail and very sharp looking character designs which subtly reinvent the main characters longtime fans have grown to know and love over the years. There's quite a bit of great looking CGI in this enterprise, which is very well woven into the overall presentation. Colors are bold and very well saturated, and the quasi-3D elements look fantastic for the most part. The overall look of the film is very clean and sleek looking, and while this doesn't bear an obvious relationship visually to either Fullmetal Alchemist or Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood, fans will probably not be too concerned and newcomers will most likely be enchanted by the look of Fullmetal Alchemist: The Sacred Star of Milos.
Both the original Japanese language track as well as an English dub are offered via Dolby TrueHD 5.1 mixes on this Blu-ray of Fullmetal Alchemist: The Sacred Star of Milos. The Japanese track is just slightly less boisterous in the low end, as seems to be the case more and more lately, but it's fun to hear the original voice conceptions of the Elric Brothers and then compare them to the FUNimation dub. The FUNimation dub features a glut of returning regulars and it presents the soundworld of the film is a nicely splayed and often quite directional use of the surround channels. There are a number of fun effects, including the metallic reverb of Alfonse's voice emanating from within his robotic frame. The film is full of some nice attention to detail, with good panning effects and at least a couple great uses of LFE in some battle and action sequences. Fidelity is top notch and dynamic range is also extremely wide.
I personally really liked Fullmetal Alchemist: The Sacred Star of Milos, though I had the recurring sneaking suspicion that we're being set up for a spinoff featuring Julia and Ashley (time will tell). But the film has an intriguing mystery at its core and manages to introduce several new characters and factions fairly seamlessly. What may bother some longtime fans is how Alfonse and Edward are kind of shunted off into the sidelines for large parts of the film. But this Blu-ray offers stupendous video and audio quality, as well as some nice supplements. Highly recommended.
Gekijô-ban hagane no renkinjutsushi: Shanbara wo yuku mono
2005
鋼の錬金術師 FULLMETAL ALCHEMIST
2009-2010
2009-2010
2003-2004
Evangerion shin gekijôban: Ha
2009
サマーウォーズ / Samâ wôzu
2009
Evangerion shin gekijôban: Jo
2007
ソウルイーター
2008-2009
Anime Classics / フルメタル·パニック!
2002
Essentials / 交響詩篇エウレカセブン
2005-2006
2010
10th Anniversary Edition
2007-2009
Essentials
2008-2009
2015
1992-1993
2000-2001
2014
Extended Edition
2013
2009
Anime Classics
2008-2009