| Fullmetal Alchemist the Movie: The Sacred Star of Milos | |
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Movie poster for Fullmetal Alchemist the Movie: The Sacred Star of Milos |
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| Directed by | Kazuya Murata |
| Produced by | Masahiko Minami |
| Written by | Yuichi Shinbo |
| Music by | Taro Iwashiro |
| Cinematography | Yoshiyuki Takei |
| Studio | BONES Aniplex |
| Distributed by | Shochiku |
| Release date(s) | July 2, 2011 (Japan) January 20, 2012 (USA) January 15, 2012 (Canada) |
| Running time | 110 minutes |
| Country | Japan |
| Language | Japanese |
| Box office | $7,401,480 (Japan Only)[1] |
Fullmetal Alchemist: The Sacred Star of Milos (鋼の錬金術師 嘆きの丘（ミロス）の聖なる星 Hagane no Renkinjutsushi: Mirosu no Sei-naru Hoshi) is a 2011 anime film based on the Fullmetal Alchemist franchise. The film was first announced after the airing of the final episode of Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood. Japanese premiere was on July 2, 2011.
Funimation Entertainment has licensed the film and will release in the United States in 2012.[2] The film will be distributed by Eleven Arts for North America, showing at more than 100 theaters. Manga Entertainment plans to release the film theatrically in the UK[3].
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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.
The idea to create a Fullmetal Alchemist movie set during the second anime's storyline came from the series's producers. The movie's original plot was written by Yuichi Shinbo who also came up with the new characters' names. From there, director Kazuya Murata did research on India to develop Table City, intended as a contrast to Amestris, which was based on Germany. Because it was the only time in the series that the main characters traveled to another country, Murata had difficulties concluding it, wondering if it would have an impact on the canonical storyline. Therefore, the story was set during the time Edward realized Alphonse's human body existed somewhere, with the logic that that knowledge would encourage him to travel to another area to do research. Hiromu Arakawa was not included as part of the staff but was still looking forward to the film.[4]
The official theme song for the movie is "Good Luck My Way" by L'Arc-en-Ciel. The song is the band's fourth contribution to the franchise. On May 30, 2011, singer-songwriter Miwa confirmed that she'll sing for the opening, titled "Chasing Hearts".
In its first weekend, Fullmetal Alchemist: The Sacred Star of Milos earned US$1,791,646 despite being exibited in only 90 screens across Japan, ranking #4 in overall revenue.[5]
The film debuted in North America at the 2011 anime convention Otakon held at the Baltimore Convention Center on July 30. Funimation in coordination with Aniplex were credited with subtitling the movie and premiering it the United States only four weeks after its theatrical release in Japan. The former announced holding the license for the movie which is slated for a limited theatrical release with English dub in early 2012 and a DVD and Blu-Ray release in the spring. The film won three awards at the Burbank International Film Festival, which hosted the West Coast premiere of the film. It won awards for each of the three categories it was nominated in (detailed below). [6]
| Year | Name of Competition | Category | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | Burbank International Film Festival | Best Feature (Animation) | Won |
| 2011 | Burbank International Film Festival | Best Writing (Animation / Adaptation) | Won |
| 2011 | Burbank International Film Festival | Best Director (Animation) | Won |
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