lindgren.myron - 2016-03-21 13:53:34

Critic’s Log - October 3, 2015. Review #101: Fullmetal Alchemist: The Sacred Star of Milos

The original Fullmetal Alchemist anime was constructed, deconstructed, and reconstructed to stand on its own. It was given its own movie to continue where it left off but also conclude its story. Fullmetal Alchemist was also given a second adaptation which was Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood. It was more faithful to Hiromu Arakawa’s Masterpiece than the first series ever was. After Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood finished its run, it was announced that the franchise would get a second movie. Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood was a great reward after the success of the original FMA anime, but there is no equivalent exchange when it comes to Fullmetal Alchemist: The Sacred Star of Milos

After a mysterious prisoner with only a few weeks left on his sentence breaks out of prison in Central City, the Elric brothers happen to be around and they attempt to track him down. The search leads them to Table City in the southwestern country of Creta, where Alphonse rescues a young lady named Julia from the very man they are trying to capture. In the thick of the fight, they end up in Julia's home turf, the slums of Milos Valley, and are involved in the grassroots rebellion of her people.

As you might be aware, the character designs do look drastically different from the character designs of Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood. Just so you know, this production of the Fullmetal Alchemist franchise is not done by a different studio. The Sacred Star of Milos is a BONES production and right from the promotional artwork to the first few scenes of the film until the very end of the film, Allow me to ask this question. Even though movie counterparts of an anime series have higher production values, why change the character designs? I really do not understand the reasoning behind this but I know for certain that the animation factor does not sit well with everyone when it came to the final product. It certainly moves pretty well during its action sequences but the action scenes tend to be hit and miss. I will try not to compare this film to Conqueror of Shamballa too much but what worked with The Conqueror of Shamballa was sticking to the design that the 2003 series had and since it was a theatrical production, it was understandable that the animation quality would have been increased. The Sacred Star of Milos could have done just that. However, looking past the character design used in The Sacred Star of Milos, there lies another problem or two. The character modeling is inconsistent at times and this lies mostly during the action sequences, but the character designs during the entire film does look lackluster for something that is a theatrical anime production. To make matters worse, there is only one or a few action scenes that look nice. Most of the action looks really sloppy. Surprisingly enough, the animation is this movie’s strong suit

The music this time is not by Akira Senju. The music for The Sacred Star of Milos is done by Taro Iwashiro who has done musical scores for a number of Japanese films and this is the only animated film he did the soundtrack, making The Sacred Star of Milos the only anime he has done a soundtrack for. The soundtrack is rather fitting for the movie but I am afraid the soundtrack is not that memorable. Miwa is responsible for the opening credits theme “Chasing Hearts” and it’s an okay song I suppose. The closing theme “Good Luck My Way” is done by L’Arc-en-Ciel and it’s a decent song. I don’t have much to say on the soundtrack because even though it is fitting, there is just not much I can say about it.

The Japanese cast of The Sacred Star of Milos is mostly good. Romi Park and Rie Kugimiya are fine like they always been as Edward and Alphonse Elric. I have already mentioned some of the other seiyus when I reviewed Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood so I will go over the exclusive characters for this film. Julia is played by Maaya Sakamoto and it’s just her typical performance. It’s not a bad one but it’s not too memorable of a performance.  Toshiyuki Morikawa is fine as Melvin and that’s pretty much it. As for the English Dub. Vic Mignogna and Maxey Whitehead are still great to listen to but as for the exclusive characters. Alexis Tipton is not too bad as Julia but like Maaya Sakamoto, it’s a pretty average performance. Matthew Mercer is a little bit more enjoyable than Toshiyuki Morikawa when it comes to Melvin. Even though I strongly prefer the Dub between the two versions of this film, I must admit there is one voice in the dub that really felt a little misfitting when compared to the original Japanese voice. That would be Patrick Seitz as Colonel Herschel. There was a reason why Colonel Herschel sounds a certain way in the Subtitled Version. Patrick Seitz is not a bad voice actor but I feel like he was slightly mis-casted as Colonel Herschel. This is only a nitpick with the dub because a little of the original Japanese intent is missing but it really doesn’t take a whole lot away from the experience if you watch the Dubbed Version anyway. I kind of prefer Hidenobu Kiuchi as Colonel Herschel more in this case but the Dub is what it is. You can’t go wrong with either version in this case.

The characters in this film leave things to be desired. Ed and Al are fine, Mustang and Hawkeye feel sidelined for the most part which leads to the movie-exclusive characters. Julia is a little disappointing. Sure, we get some backstory about her. But other than her role in the film and what she goes through, she is not really all that interesting and she is just not written all too well. But she’s the least of my problems because Melvin’s role in this movie makes no damn sense. He can use Alchemy to make Ice and he can even shoot Lightning. What is he, The Avatar Alchemist? Even though his alchemy skills are great, he still has his goals that he wants to achieve. I do believe that his entire role was poorly executed. Well, that’s all I can really say about the characters. There are things that I really wanted more out of when it came to the characters, This film did focus on the exclusive ones for the majority of the movie but the writing to them is really not all that good, this leads to my major problem with The Sacred Star of Milos.

Kazuya Murata is the director of this film and Yasuhiro Irie has nothing to do with this production of Fullmetal Alchemist. That’s fine and all but there really is no reason why this film should be made. I have had my fill with the Fullmetal Alchemist franchise and I don’t need the franchise to get milked anymore. But for whatever reason, BONES decided to make a desperate attempt in milking the franchise some more, even though it was just one movie after Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood ended. The story and the entire film does not add anything to the franchise. In comparison to Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood, how the movie explains one thing about the Philosopher’s Stone does not connect at all in the entire series. even though I did not like how the Conqueror of Shamballa ended the 2003 series, it did serve its purpose. It continued the story that was left open in the 2003 series and it did finish its story. With The Sacred Star of Milos, any continuity with Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood is shot out the window, the movie makes no sense for the most part, the writing is awful, and the entire plot is the reason I consider The Sacred Star of Milos to be an insignificant addition to the Fullmetal Alchemist franchise.

Fullmetal Alchemist: The Sacred Star of Milos is available by Funimation.

Overall, Fullmetal Alchemist: The Sacred Star of Milos is a mixed bag with its animation but its soundtrack is nice. However, with characters that are not written all too well as well as a very meaningless plot to go with it,  It makes the viewing experience rather hard to enjoy. The only way I can see anyone viewing this movie is if they are curious to see how it holds up to the viewer. I could enjoy it more with a RiffTrax-esque commentary if one is made.

I give Fullmetal Alchemist: The Sacred Star of Milos a 3.8 out of 10.

Feel free to leave a comment...

olittel - 2014-12-07 07:05:08

A near-miss compared to either of the Full Metal Alchemist series. 

The animation is inferior to either series and it has a much rougher feel. The story has some great points, but I felt that it was derailed by the various (fairly predictable) revelations at the climax of the movie. There was nothing wrong with the sound (as far as I could tell), but nothing outstanding either. Due to the rougher animation and inferior storyline, I didn't enjoy it nearly as much as either series. 

carlo45 - 2014-08-18 18:56:56

Story
The Sacred Star of Milos main plot is a mess. The story is not well explained and the twist at the climax is stupid. It claims to be a sequel to Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood, however the movie does not expand on the ending of the series AT ALL. It is supposedly somewhere in the middle of the FMA:B, but the plot in the movie does not intertwine with the series at all, and opens giant gaping plot holes that are not addressed in any way. The lore that the first series developed, is ignored in this movie and as a "sequel" to FMA: B or even the first series the story makes little sense. 4/10

Animation

The animation style is different from Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood (Again, this is supposed to be a SEQUEL.). This is annoying because you expect the new animation style from Brotherhood to be tweaked and updated here. However the style is entirely different, and it's not bad. It's alright but the detail from Brotherhood is not present here. Armstrong looks horrible. The action scenes are well animated and no shortcuts are taken which is weird because character designs are not as detailed as in Brotherhood. 6/10

Sound

The soundtrack is good but unmemorable. Then only memorable songs are the opening and ending. The dub features the same actors of Brotherhood and the returning voices do a good job as expected. The new cast is pretty good too, except for the voice of the character Julia. When she's regularly talking she's fine, but when she's trying to express emotion she sounds like she's over acting. She's also the main female protagonist, so get used to it. 6/10

Character

None of the supporting cast from FMA:B makes an appearance in this movie. No Olivier, no Ling, no May, no Hommonculi, no Father, and no Bradley. The characters from Brotherhood that do make an appearance besides Ed and Al are barely used. Winry, Mustang, and Haweye are only there to be there, and the movie would have ended the same way if they weren't there. The other characters from the original series that make an appearance are not on screen for longer than 20 seconds. The new characters Julia and Ashley are really horrible and although they receive development, they are not likable. Julia is supposed to be a strong character but it is not shown why. At the beginning of the film she is frail and weak and suddenly she's a strong brave character. Ashley, is mysterious and is supposed to be a good guy, but does actions that makes him come off as greedy and selfish. The new characters are poor and if they are not Ashley or Julia they don't last long. 3/10

Enjoyment: 3/10

Overall

Collectively, Fullmetal Alchemist: The Sacred Star of Milos is a mess. It tries to tell an interesting side story, introduce new characters, and make a new Fullmetal Alchemist story, but fails in every way. Sure the action is cool, but as a supposed SEQUEL it is a horrible movie and should be avoided at all costs to preserve your love for Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood. At this time, like everything Fullmetal Alchemist is licensed by Funimation Entertainment, and is available on DVD & Blu-Ray. It is also available for legal streaming on Netflix.

tskiles - 2014-03-10 17:45:03

fschultz - 2013-07-24 08:58:25

Fullmetal Alchemist: The Sacred Star of Milos, produced by the animation studio, Bones, seems to be your typical 'a down-trodden people' story. The land of the proud people of Milos was conquered by Amestris, and the people were forced into slums in the surrounding valley. The story goes from a rebellion to the creation of the film's namesake: The Star of Milos, or otherwise known as a Philosopher's Stone. Of course, this ties in Edward & Al, and they also venture there to find the user of a mysterious form of Alchemy. The story isn't really anything special. However, Ed & Al really feel like they are side-lined in this film and don't feel important to the plot. Their connection to the events are limited to the Philosopher's stone (which comes around halfway through the film), and their attempt to find the mysterious form of alchemy (which is scrapped very early on). The backgrounds and artwork look amazing and really, well, what you would expect from film quality. However, most of the shots are of cliff-faces and caves, which gets old fast. Animation is all around good, but where this film really falls down is in terms of the characters; the sheer lack of detail is horrendous and the dreadfully apparent changes in figure when they are in motion looks horrid. After watching Brotherhood, this are a real let-down. The characters, all in all, just look bad, which is unacceptable for a film like this. The battles, thanks to the animation, have a good exciting motion, but it is in some of these where the degradation in character detail really becomes apparent. Also, note: The transformation from Human form to Animal form for a Chimera looked really awesome. Voice acting is decent, as you'd expect, with returning voice actor Romi Paku for the Japanese voice of Edward (w/Vic Mignogna for the English) & Rie Kugimiya as Alphonse. Music was entirely forgettable, which is apparent to me because I have forgotten it all in the space of 10 minutes after watching the film. For me, the movie is too long. The second act goes for way longer than it should've and the film dumps so much useless crap about Milos origins that it is hard to stay interested during some of the dialog scenes. The main villain also was a dud, but this being the case did leave open for a good revelation nearing the end of the film. The final battle is adequately epic and the spectacle of the creation of the Star of Milos is certainly well done. All in all, it’s your average shounen, FMA flick; Nothing special, not bad, but nothing mind-blowing. If you’re a Fullmetal fan then sure, check it out. If not, this film isn’t for you.

brenda77 - 2013-04-25 22:18:23

First off - I'm a massive supporter of FMA....I rank the manga within the best manga's I have ever read, I loved Brotherhood, the Gecko season 1 and the OVA's.The prospect of a feature film was something I looked forward to, I wanted to like it......and then it came!Story...The main character is a pretty (I assume) teen girl with a tragic past, living in a repressed civilasation - her journey begins pretty much just as Ed and Al are on the scene.We now have a plot, so no need for persoanlity when we have the 'sad and serious' setting in place.Now, we enter into a story of; mysteries that scream predictability and idealism threatening genuien hardship.It's difficult to describe the story's content without spoiling it, however, you only need to view about half an hour of it in order to predict spoilers - take thefilms description, my discription in the first sentence within this 'story...' paragraph, aswell as the words 'predictability' and 'idealism'.Sound...Fine, good vioces, appropriot music threwout the scenes and a pretty uplifting ending theme.Art...As usual, the scenery is beyond stunning - great detail in the grand buildings and pretty sky views.The character design on the otherhand seems massivley rushed - the proportions are slightly off and the shadeing is almost absent at times.Characters...As stated above - no personality surrounding the lead - those connected to her play minors pretty much and also, fail to stand out.Honestly, Ed and Al are hardly make it to 'minor' status - the two of them taking a back seat as they were getting wrapped up in someone elses tale would easily prove approriot, but no, this film is the equivalent of a zealous fanfiction with the author shipping their ideal characters in their retelling of a series.Both anime's featured side characters and the 'never to be seen' receiving their 'moment in the spotlight' in a sensible manner that made them of the up-most importiance, yet the leads still relivant.The odd few fellow known faces such as; Winry and Mustang are simply background art.Enjoyment...This was a chore to get threw. :(Overall...Hardly FMA; it seems more 'material for a stand alone film with the FMA title and characters thrown in to give it a better chance'.To be frank, I can only sum this film up as a masive waste of time!This 1 hour and 50 minute of mediore could have been condensed into 30 minutes and branded a OVA, it may have been a tad more enjoyable then?Difference being, the OVA's feature content that could contribute to the overall story- this, hardly.