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Fullmetal Alechmist: The Revenge of Scar
By Brian Costello,
Common Sense Media Reviewer
Common Sense Media Reviewers
Graphic, creepy violence in action-fantasy sequel.
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Fullmetal Alechmist: The Revenge of Scar
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What's the Story?
In FULLMETAL ALCHEMIST: THE REVENGE OF SCAR, a mysterious figure named Scar has appeared on the scene, targeting State Alchemists. Alchemist brothers Edward (Ryosuke Yamada) and Al Elric work together and with their allies Roy Mustang (Dean Fujioka) and Winry (Tsubasa Honda) to stop his rampage. Meanwhile, Edward and Al learn why Scar is so determined to get revenge, and how it's connected to the genocide in Ishvalan perpetrated by the State Alchemists, who were simply following the orders of their leaders. Meanwhile, the Homunculi have returned, and the perpetually-ravenous Gluttony is on the warpath, eager to get revenge for the death of his caretaker Lust.
Is It Any Good?
This is an overly long and needlessly complicated action-fantasy. Fullmetal Alchemist: The Revenge of Scar tries to do too much with the little time it has, even as it surpasses the two-hour mark. It's about, among other things, the horrors of war, the limits of revenge, charity at all costs. There are two central storylines, and both contain their fair share of backstories and exposition, with some flashbacks to the previous movie, 2017's Fullmetal Alchemist. You don't have to watch the previous movie to understand what's happening in this one, but that's not so much due to this movie standing on its own, but more because context doesn't really help things.
It makes the classic anime mistake of going into hydra-headed story threads that don't make distinctions between which ones are more important than the others. The main (the most main) story concerning the titular anti-hero Scar makes the most sense -- but more often than not this feels like two movies crammed into one. The action and fighting sequences have their moments, even if they're drowned in the proverbial CGI sauce of digital flames, smoke, and crushed streets and walls. Of course, it's not spoiling anything to say that there's a hint of a sequel; here's hoping the expected sequel has more focus.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about the violence in Fullmetal Alchemist: The Revenge of Scar. How is the fantasy violence different from the war violence? Was the violence necessary for the action of the story, or did it seem excessive? Why?
What would the challenge in adapting a book or TV show into a movie franchise?
How is this similar to and different from other fantasy movies you've seen?
Movie Details
- On DVD or streaming: August 20, 2022
- Cast: Ryosuke Yamada , Tsubasa Honda , Dean Fujioka
- Director: Fumihiko Sori
- Studio: Netflix
- Genre: Fantasy
- Topics: Magic and Fantasy , Adventures , Book Characters , Brothers and Sisters
- Run time: 125 minutes
- MPAA rating: NR
- Last updated: September 30, 2022
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