Quick Review #9: "Hagane no renkin jutsushi Kanketsuhen Fukushuusha Scar" (movie)

Title: Hagane no renkin jutsushi Kanketsuhen Fukushuusha Scar 鋼の錬金術師 完結編 復讐者スカー

Currently available for viewing on: Netflix (subject to geographical location)

* Do note that this is Part 1 of the finale so there is no ending as yet.

Rating: 2/10

Recommended for: 

- Those who have no prior knowledge of the original manga

- Those who have prior knowledge of the original manga but don't mind alterations to the storyline and character settings

Liked:

Actually, nothing. The reason why I gave it 2 points was for the efforts by the cast and staff in attempting such a difficult task of doing a real life adaptation for this manga.

Disliked: 

- Despite the title, the story didn't put enough focus on Scar and his elder brother so the whole motive behind his hunt for the State Alchemists, his internal turmoil after "inheriting" the alchemy powers from the latter and why his elder brother was obsessed with research into alchemy were not presented in its entirety. As such, it was difficult to empathize with Scar or even see him as a dark hero given the skewed portrayal of who he was. If there had been a proper explanation on what happened, I think it would have made Scar a more compelling and attractive character. In view of this, I can see why Arata Mackenyu couldn't bring out the depth in Scar's character but it also didn't help that he was too young to bring out the masculine and jaded sides of Scar. Muscles and trying hard to put on a cold face alone are just insufficient.

- There were also many side stories going on clamouring for attention as if they were in a hurry to wrap everything up. I get it that this is the finale but still... For example, I vaguely remember that during the Scar arc, the story about the Xing royals seeking the secret to longevity wasn't featured so I got the impression that the timelines were also jumbled up to squeeze everything together. Not to mention the longtime issue with the Homunculi as well as King Bradley's identity.

- Maybe it's the pandemic that made it impossible for them to go on location shooting in Europe like what they did in the first movie. The CG this time was very unnatural in certain scenes e.g. when Hohenheim left Pinako's home and the surrounding scenery stood out like a sore thumb. Maybe it's best to spend most of the CG budget on the fighting scenes which were generally OK.

- As for the cast's suitability for the roles they played, I could go on and on about that. However, I think the issue this time is more about everyone having to fight for limited screen time with so many storylines going on that nobody really stood out. They were pretty much going through the motions so there wasn't much character development to speak of.

Winners of the 91st Kinema Junpo Best Ten & Individual Awards (2017)

Top 10 Japanese movies
1) Yozora wa itsudemo saikou mitsudo no aoiro da
2) HANAGATAMI
3) Aa, Kouya Parts 1 & 2
4) Osanako warera ni umare
5) Sanposuru Shinryakusha
6) Bangkok Nites
7) Kanojo no jinsei wa machigai janai
8) Sandome no Satsujin
9) Kanojo ga sono na wo shiranai toritachi
10) Karera ga honki de amu toki wa

Top 10 foreign movies
1) I, Daniel Blake
2) Paterson
3) Manchester By The Sea
4) Dunkirk
5) The Woman Who Left
6) Silence
7) The Other Side of Hope
8) Hidden Figures
9) Moonlight
10) La La Land

Best Leading Actor: Suda Masaki (Aa, Kouya / Hibana / Teiichi no Kuni / Kiseki - Ano hi no sobito)

Best Leading Actress: Aoi Yu (Kanojo ga sono na wo shiranai toritachi)

Best Supporting Actor: Yang Ik-Joon (Aa, Kouya)

Best Supporting Actress: Tanaka Rena (Osanako warera ni umare)

Best Male Newcomer: Yamada Ryosuke (Namiya Zakkaten no Kiseki / Hagane no Renkin Jutsushi)

Best Female Newcomer: Ishibashi Shizuka (Yozora wa itsudemo saikou mitsudo no aoiro da / PARKS / Misshi to bannin)

Best Director: Obayashi Nobuhiko (Yozora wa itsudemo saikou mitsudo no aoiro da)

Best Scriptwriter: Ishii Yuuya (Yozora wa itsudemo saikou mitsudo no aoiro da)

Best Foreign Director: Ken Loach (I, Daniel Blake)

Source: Kinema Junpo

Top 10 movies box office ranking for the weekend of 30th & 31st December 2017

Numbers in brackets indicate the number of cinemas showing the movie:

1) Star Wars: The Last Jedi (377)

2) Eiga Yokai Watch Shadowside Oni Ou no Fukkatsu (367)

3) Hachinengoshi no Hanayome Kiseki no Jitsuwa (320)

First-day-screening event of new movie "Hagane no Renkin Jutsushi"

The first-day-screening event of new movie "Hagane no Renkin Jutsushi" was held at Marunouchi Picadilly on 2 December which was attended by the director Sori Fumihiko and cast members Yamada Ryosuke, Honda Tsubasa, Dean Fujioka, Renbutsu Misako, Hongo Kanata, Uchiyama Shinji, Sato Ryuta, Kohinata Fumio, Matsuyuki Yasuko and Mizuishi Atomu. Yamada commented that the filming was done about one and a half years ago so he was very excited that the film was finally released. The director also commented that he was very touched and close to tears upon seeing the packed cinema hall and said that they had tried their best to convey the essence of the original manga through this movie.

Top 10 movies box office ranking for the weekend of 23rd & 24th Dec 2017

Numbers in brackets indicate the number of cinemas showing the movie:

1) Star Wars: The Last Jedi (377)

2) Eiga Yokai Watch Shadowside Oni Ou no Fukkatsu (367)

3) Hachinengoshi no Hanayome Kiseki no Jitsuwa (320)

Top 10 movies box office ranking for the weekend of 16th & 17th Dec 2017

Numbers in brackets indicate the number of cinemas showing the movie:

1) Star Wars: The Last Jedi (377)

2) Eiga Yokai Watch Shadowside Oni Ou no Fukkatsu (364)

3) Hachinengoshi no Hanayome Kiseki no Jitsuwa (320)

Top 10 movies box office ranking for the weekend of 9th & 10th Dec 2017

Numbers in brackets indicate the number of cinemas showing the movie:

1) Kamen Rider Heisei Generations Final: Build & Ex-Aid with Legend Rider (330)

2) DESTINY Kamakura Monogatari (363)

3) Murder on the Orient Express (355)

Japan premiere of new movie "Hagane no Renkin Jutsushi"

The Japan premiere of new movie "Hagane no Renkin Jutsushi" was held at TOKYO DOME CITY on 15 November which was attended by the director Sori Fumihiko and cast members Yamada Ryosuke, Honda Tsubasa, Dean Fujioka, Renbutsu Misako, Hongo Kanata, Uchiyama Shinji, Natsuna, Sato Ryuta and Matsuyuki Yasuko. The movie is due to be released in Japan from 1 December.

Top 10 movies box office ranking for the weekend of 2nd & 3rd Dec 2017

Numbers in brackets indicate the number of cinemas showing the movie:

1) Hagane no Renkin Jutsushi (341)

2) Tantei wa BAR ni iru 3 (333)

3) It (202)

4) Justice League (347)

5) Hibana (317)

6) HiGH & LOW THE MOVIE 3 FINAL MISSION (319)

7) Touken Ranbu Hanamaru Makuai Kaisouroku (21)

8) Eiga Kaiketsu Zorori ZZ no Himitsu (113)

9) Last Recipe Kirin no shita no kioku (312)

10) GODZILLA Kaijuu Wakusei (158)

Source: Eiga.com

Completion press conference of new movie "Hagane no Renkin Jutsushi"

The completion press conference of new movie "Hagane no Renkin Jutsushi" was held at Tsunamachi Mitsui Club on 3 October which was attended by the director Sori Fumihiko and cast members Yamada Ryosuke, Honda Tsubasa, Dean Fujioka and Matsuyuki Yasuko. The movie will be released in cinemas from 1 December after it is shown as the opening film of the 30th Tokyo International Film Festival on 25 October. The date of the press conference was specially chosen as such to coincide with the date when Edward and Alphonse left for their trip to find Kenja no Ishi in the original manga.

MISIA to sing the theme song for new movie "Hagane no Renkin Jutsushi"

MISIA will be singing the theme song for new movie "Hagane no Renkin Jutsushi" starring Yamada Ryosuke which will be shown in cinemas from 1 December. The song titled "Kimi no soba ni iru yo" (I am by your side) was written by MISIA for this movie and will be her 40th single to be released on 29 November before her 20th anniversary since her debut.

Fan event of new movie "Hagane no Renkin Jutsushi"

The fan event of new movie "Hagane no Renkin Jutsushi" was held at Shinjuku Picadilly on 12 July which was attended by the director Sori Fumihiko and cast members Honda Tsubasa, Hongo Kanata and Sato Ryuta. About 500 fans gathered for the event.

The movie which is based on Arakawa Hiromu's bestselling same-titled manga serialised since 2001 and had sold more than 70m copies to date, features the Elric brothers Edward (Ed) and Alphonse (Al) who embark on a journey to find the Philosopher's Stone so as to regain their bodies lost when performing a forbidden alchemy ritual to bring their mother back to life. As a result, Ed has mechanical limbs to replace his lost right arm and left leg. As for Al, his soul is attached to a huge metal armour since he has lost his entire body. Hey! Say! JUMP's Yamada Ryosuke plays Edward in the movie.

Honda who plays the heroine Winry, spoke about the movie's promotional events at the 26th Anime Expo in Los Angeles, US on 3 July and the 18th Japan Expo held in Paris, France on 7 July where they got a warm reception from the local audiences. Sori revealed that they are still in the final stages of preparing the film for the release on 1 December while Hongo who plays Envy in the movie, jokingly said that he was so jealous that they got the chance to go to France even though he would love to do the same. Honda also revealed that she was under a lot of pressure when she got the role although she was happy about it at the same time and worried if she might look convincing as Winry. Upon hearing the loud applause from the audience, Honda said that she was relieved that her image as Winry was well-received.

It was also announced that as a special gift to those who go to watch the movie on the first day, they will be able to get a new installment in the Hagaren series by Arakawa which ended 7 years ago. Hongo who has been a fan of the manga, said that it was such good news to get not just one piece of illustration but a whole book so he will try to watch the movie twice to get two copies i.e. one for reading and the other for keeping in his collection.

Sources: Eiga.com / Nikkansports

Filming wraps up for the real-life adaptation movie of "Hagane no Renkin Jutsushi"

The filming for the real-life adaptation movie of "Hagane no Renkin Jutsushi" was wrapped up on 26 August. The movie which is based on the original manga by Arakawa Hiromu that hald sold more than 70 million copies to date, was directed by Sori Fumihiko. Filming started at Italy in June and lasted for about a month before the crew and cast moved to various locations within Japan. During the filming, Arakawa visited the shooting location where she interacted with the crew and staff and expressed interest in the costumes and set made for the movie. She also drew an illustration on a display board at the shooting venue which was meant as a surprise gift to the crew and cast.

Source: Oricon

Real-life adaptation movie of "Hagane no Renkin Jutsushi" to be made

There will be a real-life adaptation movie of "Hagane no Renkin Jutsushi" (Fullmetal Alchemist) to be made which features Hey! Say! JUMP's Yamada Ryosuke as the lead character Edward Elric. The movie which is based on Arakawa Hiromu's bestselling same-titled manga serialised since 2001 and had sold more than 70m copies to date, features the Elric brothers Edward (Ed) and Alphonse (Al) who embark on a journey to find the Philosopher's Stone so as to regain their bodies lost when performing a forbidden alchemy ritual to bring their mother back to life. As a result, Ed has mechanical limbs to replace his lost right arm and left leg. As for Al, his soul is attached to a huge metal armour since he has lost his entire body. The movie which is directed by Sori Fumihiko, will be shot in Italy from June before continuing in Japan and is expected to be wrapped up at the end of August.

The list of the cast is as follows:

Edward Elric - Yamada Ryosuke
Winry Rockbell - Honda Tsubasa
Roy Mustang - Dean Fujioka
Lust - Matsuyuki Yasuko
Maes Hughes - Sato Ryuta
Riza Hawkeye - Renbutsu Misako
Maria Ross - Natsuna
Shou Tucker - Oizumi Yo
Tim Marcoh - Kunimura Jun
General Hakuro - Kohinata Fumio
Envy - Hongo Kanata
Gluttony - Uchiyama Shinji
Cornello - Ishimaru Kenjiro

Source: Oricon

Comments: Frankly speaking, I'm not very thrilled at seeing a Hagaren adaptation especially considering the action scenes and the amount of CG needed. It brings to mind the bad memories I had with "Shingeki no Kyojin". In fact, it seems like there is this belief among critics that adaptations set primarily in Japan and features Japanese characters tend to do better overall e.g. Death Note. On the other hand, if the source material is based on another country and features non-Japanese characters, it is generally more difficult to replicate the feel and atmosphere. In Shingeki's case, the European feel of the story's setting and the deliberate changing of the characters' names from German-sounding to Japanese Katakana ones were pointed out as some of the major reasons why the films did not do well.

With every real-life adaptation, there is bound to be disagreement over who plays which character. By the looks of this lineup, it seems more like a selection of the more popular actors rather than those who may look more like the actual characters. For example, in the case of Mustang who is one of my favourite characters, I thought that Oikawa Mitsuhiro would be more suited to show the narcissistic side of the character. In fact, the author of the manga had actually mentioned before that he had Oikawa in mind when designing Mustang. Not that I have anything against Dean Fujioka though. As for Yamada, his image of Kindaichi Hajime sticks too much in my mind that I have trouble visualising him as Ed. Winry is supposed to have a long ponytail but Honda who has been sporting short hair all this while? Sato Ryuta as Hughes? Natsuna as Ross? I'm quite baffled by why they were chosen but anyway, hopefully they will prove me wrong. The only person who I'm quite confident of is Matsuyuki Yasuko who plays Lust.

There are some very obvious omissions in the cast list i.e. Al and Sloth. I know Al appears in an armour most of the time so they will probably take care of that via CG but surely there must be someone who plays Al before he lost his body. Sloth is also important due to her significance to the Elric brothers but there's no mention of this character. Too many questions to be answered so I'm quite apprehensive as to how this will work out.