Fullmetal Alchemist

Reviewed by kuro-hime




SYNOPSIS :

Edward and Alphonse Elric are two alchemist brothers searching for the legendary stone called the Philosopher's Stone, a powerful object which would allow them to recover their bodies (which were lost in an attempt to bring their mother back to life through alchemy). Born in the village of Resembool from the country of Amestris, the two brothers lived there with their mother. Their father, Van Hohenheim, left home for unknown reasons and years later, their mother, Trisha Elric, died of a terminal illness leaving the Elric brothers alone. After their mother's death, Edward became determined to bring her back through the use of alchemy, an advanced science in which objects can be created from raw materials.
They tried human transmutation to bring their mother back but they failed.
Edward lost his leg while Alphonse lost his body.
So now, the two brothers travel to look for an answer to regain their body.

REVIEW :

The plot of this manga is wonderful, very creative and something very original. This is something quite rare in the anime and the manga world.

However, the pacing of the story is a different story. Some parts of the manga were very draggy and long which is something I hated. I almost nearly dropped the series but thank god, I did not.
But then again, certain parts of the manga were very intense and filled with suspense. Those parts are very good. It kinda takes your breath away AND leaves you hanging till the next chapter comes..

The art is tolerable. Not my favourite kind of art but it's ok. It's quite neat at certain times BUT completely messed during fight scenes. But then again, which shonen(action) manga art isn't messed up during a fight scene?

The characters are very believable and lovable. AND you will actually root for the protagonist. AND you will find the antogonist very disgusting and evil. Unlike some manga/anime, you might root for the antogonist because they're goodlooking or that their character backstory demands it.

All in all, a great manga. I would say EPIC. IT will be a classic and a manga to be remembered. IT will be talked about even years from now like Death Note.

I rate it 4 stars and half out of five.

I look forward to Hiromu Arakawa's new work and I wonder if it will be as good as Fullmetal Alchemist.

Phoebe In Wonderland

Reviewed by kuro-hime



The movie tells a story of a 9 year old girl, Phoebe, with apparent Gilles de la Tourette syndrome. While she deals with being odd and insecure, her mother and father are dealing with complexities in their relationship with each other and their challenging child. Her little sister feels neglected as Phoebe gains more attention.

-adapted from wikipedia-

REVIEW :

This is a story about a girl who is very different from everyone else. She seems to have OCD (Obsessive Compulsive Disorder). In that sense, she has difficulty in connecting with the world and everyone else. While, her family and the school find it hard to handle her.

I like the idea of how a girl cannot follow the rules. How she feel uncomfortable and resist to follow the world. And how she created her own imaginary world and feel comfortable in it.

To me, the story connected with me. After all, it's about a girl who is different and that she finds it difficult to connect to the rest of the world.
The plot was good and the pacing was nice.

Even the drama teacher who looked like a minor character played a major role in the movie.

I like the idea of the movie that being different is okay and that we should let children be independent.

The cast did an excellent job. Each and everyone carried their role so well. They were all very believable. Elle Fanning really did a great job. Hopefully, she will appear in more great films.

The director did a great job, directing the movie. There were alot of intense moments and scenes in the movie.

A great film.

I rate it 4 stars and a half out of five. I have never seen such a film in my entire life and I look forward to more of these unique independent films.

The Law Of Ueki

reviewed by kuro-hime



SUMMARY :

The story starts out with the Battle of the Supernatural Powers, a tournament to decide who will be the next god of The Celestial World (rendered as God Candidates in the Animax version and Kami (天界人) in the Japanese version).

Each candidate (100 in total) is required to choose a junior high school student (middle school) to act as their fighter. The student is given a unique power and told to eliminate as many enemies as possible. The winning god Candidate will become The New god of Heaven and the winning student will receive the Blank Zai (or talent), a talent that can be anything they choose.

While this leads many students to thoughts of greed and selfishness, Kosuke Ueki decides to take it upon himself to win this tournament to keep that power away from those that would abuse such a gift.

Review :

This anime art is not so awesome so if you're expecting bishonens(hot guys)...then, this is not the show for you. I'll tell you that this anime is totally about fighting, friendship and determination.

The plot of this show...hmm...there is no plot. I mean, they wanna save their god candidates and that's about it. Everyone else in the competition except Ueki and his buddies want to win the BLANK TALENT!! So yea... but to me, I don't see a plot except a bunch of people fighting and upgrading powers.

Hmm...interestingly, Ueki has one of the most weirdest powers EVER which is something cool. He's power seems to be weaker than the others BUT actually it's SUPER AWESOME. He's character is a little weird, over the top and unreal BUT somehow, you just like him. His determination scares you but interests you. AND if you're not careful, his determination is infectious.

I like that Ueki is stupid and yet smart. I like his bondage with his buddies and I like how this anime is done.

I cannot exactly explain it. This anime has a certain magic and pretty original characters. There is no emo here (example, Sasuke, Hitsugaya..etc..) AND the main character of this shonen anime is not your usual main shonen character. HE doesn't wanna save the world nor is he the chosen one.
He just wanna save his hero, Kobasen (who's not much of a hero anyway...)

This anime is just one of the best shonen anime ever. It is totally original and interesting. Somehow it just gets you.

I rate this anime 4 stars and a half out five.

Alice in wonderland

reviewed by kuro-hime



SYNOPSIS :

Troubled by a strange recurring dream and mourning the loss of her beloved father, nineteen-year-old Alice Kingsleigh attends a garden party at Lord Ascot's estate, where she is faced with the expectations of marriage and of the society in which she lives. Unsure of how to reply and increasingly confused, she runs away to chase after a rabbit in a waistcoat, and accidentally falls into a rabbit hole. She is transported to a world called Underland where she is greeted by the White Rabbit, the Dormouse, the Dodo, and Tweedledum and Tweedledee.

-adapted from wikipedia-


REVIEW :

I have really high expectation of this movie. All of my favourite actor, actress and director are here.
This movie is not as dark as Burton's other movies such as Sweeney Todd but his quirkiness can be seen in this movie. And I know why it's not too dark. It's because this is a children's story that is made by Disney.
The plot is quite nice and enjoyable. Not only that, this movie is refreshing compared to so many movies that are out there right now. This movie also gave depth to the characters

I like how the story is about a girl who thought she knew herself, lost herself and found herself again. I like that idea...and it's very true.
Tim Burton put his own opinion and gave this movie it's own personality.

Personally, I never liked this story but Tim Burton made me love this.

The cast carried this movie very well. Johnny Depp did his thing...however I feel that his character didn't have enough craziness for him to flaunt. Helena Bonham Carter did an excellent job as the Red Queen. Alan Rickman's as the caterpillar was brillant. Even Anne Hatheway did a great job.

All in all, a great enjoyable movie. The cast was great and so was the plot.

Tim Burton did it again. However, I do prefer it if he made another movie like Sweeney Todd. I'll be waiting Tim Burton.

I rate it 4 stars and a half out of 5 stars.