Naked News: Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children Complete [Blu-ray]

Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children Complete [Blu-ray]

02:15 | Posted by kurng | Edit Post

Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children Complete [Blu-ray] Review

Others have remarked on how this movie would be confusing to someone who's not familiar with the Final Fantasy VII video game. As one who first watched this movie in that state, I'll offer my comments on both `before' and `after' impressions. I've been a long time fan of both science fiction/fantasy and animated movies. Four or five years ago I watched "Final Flight of the Osiris" a CGI video short on a dvd called Animatrix. I was so impressed by it that I looked for other work by the same artists and found "Final Fantasy: the Spirits Within", and the original dvd version of "Final Fantasy: Advent Children". "Spirits Within" had phenomenal and imaginative imagery and some gripping scenes but overall it didn't have a `spark'. "Advent Children" though was another matter. I fell in love with it. The characters are terrific; the graphics are awesome; the settings fresh and some quite beautiful; the action is out-there. The dystopic science fiction setting and elements of magical fantasy were very satisfying as a fan of those genres. And it has some nice wit and humor. But yeah, the story was confusing. Being as innocent as I was though of the story that led up to the movie, I was in a state of not knowing how much I didn't know, so I didn't miss it. I enjoyed the movie so much I watched it a couple more times over the next few years.
It wasn't until surfing the internet this summer, coming across the movie's protagonist, Cloud Strife, by chance and reading about him that I became aware of the huge story world behind "Advent Children". I soon learned that Cloud is a renowned character among gamers, as is his enemy Sephiroth; that Final Fantasy VII is regarded as groundbreaking and one of the best video games ever; and that there's a massive amount of verbiage on the internet about both the characters and the game. The more I read, the more I was drawn in. I read complete synopses of the game and bios of its characters and - branching out to its prequel Crisis Core - watched all 3 hours of cutscenes from that video game in 10 minute Youtube segments. Then I watched "Advent Children" again, knowing that the first few times around, I'd been watching it through a dim fog. This time it all seemed to be in focus. I knew what the glowing round spheres were. I knew who the secondary characters were and how they connected. I knew why the city of Midgar was in ruins. My enjoyment of the movie was substantially enhanced, so much so that I was left wanting more. The only solution was to play the game itself.
This took me a bit of self-convincing, since I'm old enough to be Cloud's grandmother and hadn't finished a video game since Zork Nemesis, but I took the plunge. I just finished it a few nights ago. And I agree that the game is everything it's cracked up to be. But I know this is a review about the movie, not the game. I'm leading up to how much more still having played the game adds to the pleasure of the movie. I watched the movie again last night, and this time I watched the blu ray extended version. Of course I expected it to be better this time around what with the added minutes, the increased clarity of the blu ray format, and the much deeper understanding I'd gained from the game itself, but the movie STILL exceeded my expectations. The additional footage is a great improvement, from tiny little insertions to some complete new scenes, they're all worthwhile. Some serve to fill in story and character development, others add even more wow to the over-the-top action sequences. The blu ray clarity makes these quite a bit easier to follow. And now having played the game, I understood even more than I'd expected about what takes place in the movie that I'd not recognized before - Sephiroth's tragic background and what took place between him and Cloud; why Cloud camps out in the church; Aerith's huge significance. And Zack! I was delighted to see more of Zack, who's an awesome character in his own right. He deserves his own movie. I was surprised by the impact of the music this time. It derives from the game, and strongly evokes the game's themes, from battles to uneasy exploration, to Aerith's warmth and Sephiroth's sinister terrificness. This time around, the characters, their friendships and animosities and traumas were much deeper for me. The interconnected FFVII stories are more like a tv series than a single movie or book in the amount of time one spends on, or `in', them, and as with a really good tv series, I found I'd come to really care about the characters. A lot of excellent creativity and effort was put in to Advent Children. Considering its limited prime audience, it's a grand gift from Square Enix to FFVII's fans. I'm glad it's been successful for them, and very happy they put the effort in to making this new "Complete" edition. Sure it helped to sell blu-ray playing PS3s and generate interest in the FFVII PS3 download, which is what I played. But they did a great job. They have my appreciation. I think Tetsuya Nomura's sense of character and story is genius.
In summary, I recommend this movie to anyone who's curious about it, especially if you have a fondness for epic sci-fi fantasy action adventure romance. It hits on all cylinders (ok, the romance part is mostly in the games). But "FFVII:Advent Children" also has thought provoking currents underlying its save-the-world plot, the personal challenges faced by its characters and its sensational, adrenaline stirring action and battle scenes - the tradeoffs of degrading our environment in return for energy; the use of a soulless corporation as an excuse for committing atrocious acts; the importance of friends. The depiction of Mako energy and the lifestream as having a healing/destructive duality also intrigues me, especially as there's a similar 'planet force' depicted in some of Hiyao Miyazake's animated movies, which I also adore. In this extended version of "Advent Children", Reno asks how a person could ever manage to atone for the horror brought about by the Shinra Corporation (which occurred during the game), and there's mention of the destroyed Mako reactor still emitting too much lifestream energy to be safe. I can't help but wonder if this is a conscious or unconscious reference to nuclear energy, also both beneficial and hugely destructive, and if it comes up in these Japanese stories because Japan's the only country in the world to have been exposed to a nuclear attack. Then there's the whole question of Jenova and what she represents. That FFVII has this depth and breadth (which you can take or leave as desired) helps make it an A+ story for me.
If you're already a FFVII fan who by some chance hasn't learned of this movie already, I doubt you need much further encouragement to watch it. If you aren't familiar with the game, I do recommend reading a summary of it and the characters beforehand. With video games now rivaling movies for entertainment dollars, it's worth learning about the game if only for its `historic' value. But the game stories are well worth it on their own terms, and do enhance the movie. I also recommend watching the movie in Japanese with English subtitles. Sometimes in dubbing, the translation has to be altered in order to fit the spoken words into the character's visible speaking time, and clarity or nuance can be lost. And the Japanese voice acting here is superb. I find that despite my knowledge of Japanese extending no further than 'hai' and 'arrigoto', the tone and inflection of the voice actors' portrayals, especially Cloud's, adds greatly to the characters' presentation. And, compared with my memory of the dvd version, the English sub translations have been improved in the 'Complete' edition.
Yes, this movie is escapist entertainment, but it's also deeply satisfying. My only consolation in being done now with the game and having again watched the movie is that there are several more Final Fantasy games yet to play.

Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children Complete [Blu-ray] Feature

"Legacy of Final Fantasy VII" Featurette
"Reminiscence of Final Fantasy VII" Original Story Digest
On the Way to a Smile - Episode: Denzel Animated Film
Exclusive Sneak Peek at Final Fantasy XIII
Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children Complete Trailers

Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children Complete [Blu-ray] Overview

Continuing the storyline based on the hit Playstation® game Final Fantasy VII, two years have passed since the ruins of Midgar stand as a testament to the sacrifices made in order to bring peace. However, the world will soon face a new menace. A mysterious illness is spreading fast. Old enemies are astir. And Cloud, who walked away from the life of a hero to live in solitude, must step forward yet again . . .

Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children Complete [Blu-ray] Specifications

The question facing any viewer of the Japanese CG feature Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children is: do you have to know the games on which it’s based in order to understand the film? And the answer is: it certainly helps. But even complete novices (i.e., most parents) in the Final Fantasy world will find some entertainment in its wealth of fantasy-based action, and the animation never fails to astonish. Picking up two years after an epic battle between the forces of good (represented by brooding soldier Cloud) and evil (Cloud’s former general, Sephiroth), FFVII opens in the devastated city of Midgard, whose youthful occupants suffer from a ghastly disease known as Geostigma. A trio of brothers arrives with what appears to be a cure for the plague, but their gesture conceals a more sinister purpose: to revive Sephiroth and bring about the end of the world. Cloud and his companions must once again rise to the occasion to stop the siblings and the revived Sephiroth from unleashing total destruction. Complex and self-referential to the point of occasional incomprehension, Final Fantasy VII will definitely be most appreciated by fans of the game series, but if others can look past the numbing dialogue and frenetic action (which is a bit too intense for very young children), the film offers a carefree and action-packed viewing experience. The two-disc set contains the original Japanese language version of the film as well as an English-dubbed edition (Rachel Leigh Cook and Christy Carlson Romano, among others, provide the vocal talent) and a version edited for the Venice Film Festival. A 30-minute featurette that recaps the Final Fantasy story up to VII, as well as a making-of documentary, deleted scenes, and promotions for future Final Fantasy VII games and products round out the extras. --Paul Gaita

Stills from Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children (click for larger image)