Anyone who watched Fate/Stay Night and found it to be worthy of addition, this movie is for you. Don’t expect anything directly based on the anime (this movie covers a completely different path of the game the FSN anime was an adaption of… It’s still mostly the same character cast, but e.g. Saber gets marginalised, while Archer takes the spotlight… and it might be me, but Shirou doesn’t seem to be a total wimp this time. `XD)

Story-wise, this film covers a few plot holes the original series left open, though it is pretty fast-paced right from the start so empathising with the characters proved somewhat hard for me. Still, I found “Unlimited Blade Works” to be enjoyable in its stress of the action/ fantasy/angst aspect, providing a few standard twists without being entirely predictable, and once you get into it, the plot is quite well thought-out and an enjoyable addition to the Fate animes. Stress lies on the strong master/servant relationships, which are conveyed quite well. The dialogue’s overall good, perhaps somewhat exaggerated at times, but definitely provides a few good laughs, whilst the animation is about the same as in the original series but with plenty of intense action.

To me (not having been all too keen on Fate/Stay Night and still wanting to complete the experience, lol) this was an enjoyable movie, and any FSN fan who has not yet stumbled over this might want to check it out (don’t expect something directly related to the anime!). This movie provides a few laughs, a quite well thought-out though pretty fast-moving storyline, and plenty of intense action. Overall a quite good addition to the Fate anime series! (show less)

I have become a Fate fanatic in this last week. Since I saw Fate/ Zero I have been curious about its predecessor Fate / Stay Night and needless to say I was a bit disappointed in the TV series but surprisingly enough the movie is worth watch if you ignore the slight change in storyline. Although based on Fate / Stay Night, Fate / Stay Night: Unlimited Bladeworks is rather cool. the animation is really beautiful and the action intense. The strength of relationship between Master and Servant is paramount and carries this film as far as to the end. The only thing I hated about this film is that Saber seemed to be the marginalized character - she barely fights in this film. Also even more interesting is the significance of the characters Archer and Emiya Shirou. Although I like how there are such close relations and strong bonds between the characters, I love even more how this does not turn into some cliche love story at the end of the film. Still when compared to Fate / Zero (yes there are only two episodes but if you have read the novel you will know what I mean) Unlimited Bladeworks does not compare. Good to watch when you need a change of pace. This one gets a 4 out of 5 from me. (show less)

unlimited blade works initially follows the same storyline setup as the tv series, but very quickly deviates after the meeting with rider to a completly different storyline.
the romantic interest is completly different, and it moves at a much faster pace, where iliya hardly gets a mention, while other characters get way more time in the spotlight.
That being said, despite being a much shorter time frame, the plot of unlimted blade works is much more convoluted and gripping than that of the tv series!
-though, it would make little or no sense if you haven't seen the tv series (so watch that first)- the fact that emiya isn't a full magician, and what exactly "trace on" is and how it works is not even mentionb- and despite having seen teh series a few months back, was slightly confused myself as to whether such things were different or even existed in the movie, until they were suddenly brought up.
it's got amazing animation and captivting fight scenes (though not the beautiful score of the series) and explains a few of the mysteries of teh series, so is well worth watching if ytou liked it (though, if you liked some of the canon of the series, you may end up disappointed)
but if you haven't seen the series, watch it before this, becuase this will give you more greif and confusion than its worth trying to figure out whats going on. (show less)