Not to be outdone by Warner Bros. Japan’s currently loaded roster of manga/anime adaptations, December 1, 2017 will mark the arrival of Fumihiko Sori’s own contribution, Fullmetal Alchemist. The promotional campaign is going full-tilt this summer having stopped at Los Angeles and Paris before heading back to Japan and with none other than creator Arakawa Hiromu getting in on the excitement with a batch of newly-written mangas to coincide with event screenings of the film for fans.
It’s a big deal, too, from a creative standpoint with the promise of aiming to tell the complete story of the manga/anime within one film instead of several installments according to reports at Anime News Network. The film’s setting is a huge one at that, set in a time when alchemy, despite its benefits, is a widely-publicized controversial practice. The core of our story has two brothers, Edward and Alphonse Elric, whom after a botched attempt to revive their deceased mother, forces the siblings into a life-altering sacrifice that sets them on an incredible journey of redemption and healing amid the epic war to restore alchemic balance against the efforts of looming, afterworld demonic forces of evil known as Homunculi.
Edward Elric, a young, brilliant alchemist, has lost much in his twelve-year life: when he and his brother Alphonse try to resurrect their dead mother through the forbidden act of human transmutation, Edward loses his brother as well as two of his limbs. With his supreme alchemy skills, Edward binds Alphonse’s soul to a large suit of armor.
A year later, Edward, now promoted to the fullmetal alchemist of the state, embarks on a journey with his younger brother to obtain the Philosopher’s Stone. The fabled mythical object is rumored to be capable of amplifying an alchemist’s abilities by leaps and bounds, thus allowing them to override the fundamental law of alchemy: to gain something, an alchemist must sacrifice something of equal value. Edward hopes to draw into the military’s resources to find the fabled stone and restore his and Alphonse’s bodies to normal. However, the Elric brothers soon discover that there is more to the legendary stone than meets the eye, as they are led to the epicenter of a far darker battle than they could have ever imagined.
An art exhibit will also be held at Tokyo Dome City Gallery AaMo from September 16 to October 29 and at Osaka Nankō ATC Museum from November 3 to November 30, jam-packed with adverts for the film. Yamada Ryōsuke of Hey! Say! JUMP and Assassination Classroom fame leads the cast as Edward – here given a 20-year age advance for the film; the role of Alphonse is entirely animated in hybridized CG while the voice actor performing the role remains a secret (will update with an available source in due time).
Also starring are actress Honda Tsubasa as Winry Rockbell, and actor Fujioka Dean who finally gets some sizzling-hot screentime in the nee as the military’s own fire alchemist, Roy Mustang, along with Kunimura Jun as Dr. Marco, Sato Ryuta as Mustang’s best friend and close comrade Maes Hughes, and Ishimaru Kenjiro who plays Cornello, a corrupt small town priest intergral to introducing the Elrics’ to one of their first battles of their lives as State Alchemists.
Rounding out the cast are actresses Renbutsu Misako as Riza Hawkeye, Natsuna as Maria Ross and Harada Natsuki as Gracia Hughes, actors Oizumi Yo as Shou Tucker and Jun Kunimura as Doctor Marco, actress Matsuyuki Yasuko as Lust, Hongou Kanata Hongou as Envy and Uchiyama Shinji as Gluttony.
Check out the newest trailer and visuals below!
