The live action adaption of the popular anime "Fullmetal Alchemist" took the No.1 spot on its first week in the Japanese box office.
The "Fullmetal Alchemist" live-action adaptation was aired in 411 theaters across Japan. The film garnered $3.4 million from its earliest screenings, which was close to the earnings of the "Rurouni Kenshin" live action adaptation
The film was estimated to have been seen by 291,000 people in three days, on the Dec. 2 to Dec. 4 weekend period in Japan.
However, Comicbook notes that the figures for "Fullmetal Alchemist" are still far from record-breaking. They said that the film did not yet make half of what the "Gintama" live-action adaptation made. Additionally, the film did not make 5 percent of the revenues of the adaptation for "Assassination Classroom: Graduation."
However, they add that the film might make even better numbers in its second week.
Reviews of the film have been mixed, but so far the film has received more positive than negative comments. Praise has been given to director Fumihiko Sori for creating a right balance between adapting elements from the original anime and putting his unique touches on the plot.
Other hit films populated the rest of the Japanese box office. "The Last Shot in the Bar 3," third in the series of comedy films from TOEI, was ranked second place in revenue. The film earned $1.3 million and garnered 116,000 admissions— good figures but a little bit lower than the previous films in the series. The film is projected to finish at $10 million.
Third place went to the Warner movie "It," which is now in its fifth week in theaters. It earned $940,000 last weekend, bringing its total earnings to $15 million.
The live-action adaptation of "Fullmetal Alchemist" is now showing In Japan. There is no word yet on when the film will be released the United States.
