My girlfriend and I sat through the entire series of FMA in the past two months, and immediately afterwards we decided to check out the film. Surprisingly, both of us found it incredibly disappointing, and a somewhat lacking end to the series as a whole.

I’d rather not write any spoilers, so I’ll just say that this film lacks in a lot of areas. Most of the major characters from the series come back as minor ones, with some even relegated to being cameos. Hell, much of the important elements of the original series aren’t even touched on in the film, making it seem like something entirely irrelevant in terms of continuity. If it wasn’t so connected to the finale of the original series I wouldn’t know where the hell to place it (in fact, when the heck did the beginning of the movie take place in the series?).

Personally, I think it could’ve been better. Much better. Both my girlfriend and I agree that the ending of the original series – which leaves things open to interpretation if you exclude the film – was much more fitting.

The Full Metal Alchemist movie takes place after the end of the Full Metal Alchemist series. It seeks to tie up all the lose ends, and it does a really good job at it—all while managing what I saw as a poetic ending. If you’re a fan of the anime, you should definitely watch this movie.