Fullmetal Alchemist: Revenge Scar (2022)

Review

Envy's original form looks just like in the manga and he looks great. They got the same actors as the first movie, I really like both of the films and there will be a third one eventually. It helps alot if you have read the manga ahead of time because that will fill in the gaps between the first movie and the second movie. The manga also fills in the gaps in the second movie as well since it compresses many volumes. The ost is forgettable to be honest, after watching the movie I can't remember anything about the music which is not good if you ask me since alotnof films have recognizable ost like Star Wars, etc. Scar looks great as well.

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Disappointing FX

LIKES:
Some of the casting is well done.
Music was suitable and didn’t over power the actors/actresses when they were speaking, but nothing stood out either.
It still has the cheesy moments like in the first movie.
I loved the panda of Lan Fan, too cute!
Costumes for the most part were accurate for the characters.

DISLIKES:
EDITING: CGI is very noticeable, same with green screen use and both are used way too much.
FX: For Armstrong, you can see where the scull cap ends, they didn’t blend the makeup well. Also the scar on SCAR is so badly done, to the point of being tacky. Some of the special effects for the alchemy (like Ed’s shafts of stone) were so badly done, they were a disaster.
DIRECTING: fight scenes could have been choreographed much better.
Also hated how/where they chose to end it. I understand that it’s a series of movies, but it should be able to stand alone too.

OVERALL:
It’s on par with the prequel movie, but I expected more in terms of graphics, FX and production considering the first film was in 2017 and it’s 2022 now. Even though I’m a fan of some of the actors, I won’t rewatch this and don’t recommend it to anyone who either watched the Fullmetal Alchemist anime or read the manga.

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I may be biased again but this sequel actually isn’t bad!

Maybe I was over expecting on the first movie that I rated it that bad (and now I put the bar so low LOL). This movie however, nailed all the emotion-evoking scenes!! I loved how they did it. Frankly, I’m not comparing to the anime/manga because it’d be very tough to capture everything, but the way the screenplay flowed through was flawless!!! Not the best opening scenes but still, the part halfway (not expounding on it to make this review spoiler-free) until the end had my whole attention captured. It is worth watching, to everyone who liked FMA or in general like the actors and actresses that are part of this trilogy.

I, myself, am watching for Mackenyu more than I am a fan of FMA. Kidding aside, I still think Tsubasa Honda’s acting is great. Cinematography on the war was excellent. Tiny bits and pieces of exposition on the overly complex plot of FMA was nicely done. I know the whole plot already, but it’s like watching without a clue because it’s been so long since I’ve finished the anime. I still got surprised at what happened in the last few scenes. WHAT. A. CLIFF. HANGER. Imagine releasing this without the next movie. I would go crazy mad. Chad production move there, don’t make your audience angry!

Anyway, as per tradition, a summary and TLDR:
Cast: still a superb cosplay display, 9/10
Acting: I’m not gonna complain a lot, since the latter half is good, 7/10
CG: I’ve seen better CG, but ok 6/10
Story: 8.5/10
Overall:
Good screenplay and cinematography, lackluster CG, some actors carried the others, great costumes!, good important bits of the plot picked up and shown-so good plot! 8/10

Recommend for: fantasy fans maybe, and FMA fans of course.
-from an FMA fan who already forgot the story

P.s in all honesty I enjoyed the latter half, the first half bored me to death. So I’m still probably rating based only on the good 2nd half of the movie. Skipping and watching on 2x speed helps, though!

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Doesn't get better

Should I not have watched this after disliking the first movie? Yes. I stupidly had a tiny kernel of hope that it would somehow be different than the first movie, which, non-spoiler alert, it's not! Should I have stopped watching from the beginning? Also yes, but the writer in me wants to see what the hell they're doing to the story. (I am not impressed...)

Things I like:
- Lin, good casting choice
- Al's scream at the end
- I guess Envy's true form? (with the FX caveat below)

Things I didn't like:
- The plot! Unsurprisingly. You can tell which parts they're smushing together but it leaves me pretty frustrated by the lack of... good details/consequences that are left out (the train scene, meeting Lin, meeting Mei, Ed getting injured in that "fall," Al losing his hand to Gluttony, ETC)
- Some characters just look stupid the more I see them (Gluttony and Armstrong, which to be fair are hard to portray "accurately" but. Not this way either)
- FX is still not good, it looks very Fake, like most of the decor - I don't think there was much set. They also ignore the alchemy laws - if a wall becomes a TON of weapons, there's little to no wall left, sorry not sorry
- I had a glimpse at wikipedia and ok, they waited to make the movies until the technology got better for CGI, but I
wouldn't go so far as say they succeeded in challenging Hollywood's FX like they wanted (though I hope they pave the way
for Japan to become better at it/use it more)
- Fight scenes are meh, if not obviously fake. From the angles and the editing it's very easy to see *how* it was faked, which is a bummer and always brings me out of immersion (which, again to be fair, I didn't have from the get go, so, rock of salt)
- Adding in Winry everywhere for lack of other characters and a mashed plot, not a fan, even though I love Winry but this... this is done with abandon and it makes it obvious she's going to be in Danger and needing ~to be rescued~ so when it happens it's not at all surprising or shocking (because it keeps happening 🙃)
- Similarly, very little emotional resonance and impact throughout (again). I don't find the poignant moments successful at all, this is very much a live action that relies on viewers already knowing FMA rather than building up characters and letting us see them grow and have use get attached to them (and if you watched the movies first, please do yourself a favor and watch Brotherhood or read the manga, I promise it's worth it)
- Pet peeve but the Ishval flashback(s) we get through Hawkeye *should NOT* include Scar's story?? Those are two different POVs! Find another way to show us Scar's past (like making a series instead of a trilogy 😭)
- Related but, a lot of flashbacks aren't clearly flashbacks, which detracts from, I don't know, continuity/following the story?
- Mustang getting a scratch on his leg and like, bowing out of the fight?? Nope, don't buy it, it's contrary to his character, unless he's legitimately bleeding out (and needs to cauterize himself)

So. No I would not recommend any FMA fan to watch any of these movies, take those 6+hrs and use them on the other content.

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