Final Fantasy VII Advent Children movie review

Final Fantasy VII Advent Children, released in 2005 is a sequel to the Playstation game Final Fantasy 7 (1997), which is a widely popular game. Final Fantasy 7 is by many considered one of the best of the series, and by some to be one of the greatest J-RPGs of all-time, with its epic story that captivated gamers, and brought tears many a gamer. The game spawned two sequels and two prequels, the first of which was the film Final Fantasy VII Advent Children, then also released on Playstation 2 was Dirge of Cerberus (which told the story of the character Vincent, there was also Before Crisis for mobile phones which focused on Cloud and the Turks, and Crisis Core for the PSP which focused on the character Zack. Instead of discussing the plot of this movie, which will probably be confusing to those who have not played the game, I will talk about the movie itself. First of all, if you haven't played the game, the plot and characters may be confusing, because nothing is really explained too clearly. This movie seems to have two types of fans, first of all are fans of the game, as this movie is for them, it is a love letter to Final Fantasy 7 fans who crave more of the amazing story, who were dying to find out what happened after Sephiroth cast meteor and destroyed Midgard. This movie does that very well. As a fan of the game it made me happy to see the characters that I have spent so much time with come to life, and have continued adventures, it is nice to see Cloud's limit break attacks used in the battles, and to see so many elements of the game represented, as well some of the locations. Though the locations seemed to be consolidated to a local area, where in truth some of the locations actually exist on different continents and would take much longer to reach than the movie would have one believe, which is something that always kind of bothered me about the film. Another thing that has always bothered me about the film is the fact that it appears on Gaia gravity must not effect people the same way as it does on Earth, as the characters are always flying through the air, and climbing on walls, and such, which don't get me wrong looks really cool, but I have never liked the whole gravity defying aspects of superheros or action heroes. The other negative critique I have of this film is that it feels like the story itself is lacking and it feels like the story parts are just to get the film from one action sequence to the next, and to me that is not what Final Fantasy is about, so that was disappointing, even though it is those action sequences that are what some people love about the film. On one hand I love this film, as I love EVERYTHING associated with Final Fantasy 7, but on the other hand the film disappointed me. I wish that the film had more adventure to it, that it had more of a focus on the story and the characters, I mean Yufi, Cid, Red XII, and Cait Sith feel like they are just added in as an after thought in the final battle. Even Barret seems to be merely a background character that we hear on the phone a few times until the final battle. I don't know, I guess if they made the movie that I want it would be like 10 hours long though, so I suppose that is an unfair expectation to hold, but I feel like if the film focused more on story and less on battle that it could have been better. Okay, so don't get me wrong, I do love this movie, I first saw it as an illegal leaked bootleg back in 2004, and then when the special edition boxed set came out I purchased it without hesitation, I will always continue to love this film, and re-watch it, but it is also not perfect. But let's talk about what is perfect though: The character designs are absolutely amazing, they look perfect to me. The set designs are also nearly perfect, they look amazing and bring in a lot of elements of the game to make them feel familiar. The concept of the story is also great, and it is an amazing continuation of the game, when supplemented with the novel and the anime that came with the boxed set the story gets much deeper and much more enjoyable, I feel without those bonus materials the plot feels kinda thin and confusing. I love that the creators brought so many elements that we all loved fro the game into the film. I also love how Nobuo Uematsu, composed the music for the film, bringing in many of the songs from the game with an updated remix to them, so that they fit the mood of the film. Nobuo Uematsu is one of my favourite composers, as he has done music for almost all of the Final Fantasy games, including some breath-taking songs that create an amazing mood for the games. I do love that all of our favourite characters from the game make an appearance, honestly I get chills when I see Cid flying Highwind (his airship) into the climactic scene with all of the characters aboard. I love that all of the characters behave appropriately as their characters would based on the game. This is definitely one of the best CG movies ever made, and a huge improvement on Final Fantasy The Spirits Within, it seems as though Square learned from that earlier film, that it is better to make a film that their fans want, which is exactly what they did with this one. Also watching the anime that came with the special edition boxed set of the film, I feel like there should be a whole anime series including movies based on the game and all of its sequels, I feel like there is a huge market for it, and that it would be very very successful, especially with anime being so popular right now. I loved the Final Fantasy Unlimited anime, and I wish that they would have done more Final Fantasy based anime series. Would I recommend this film? Yes, absolutely, though I do understand those who have not played the game will not get the full effect of the film, so I would highly recommend playing Final Fantasy 7, and spending upwards of 100 hours with these characters, for I feel after that seeing this movie will have a far greater meaning to you, than if you just watched it. Also find the special edition boxed set release, and read the novel, and watch the anime and other special features, as I feel they will also enhance your ability to enjoy this film. Again, I really highly recommend this movie, whether you just want to jump into it, or whether you are already a fan of the game, it is a beautiful movie, and a lot of fun to watch. So do it for the amazing effects action, or do it for the story, either way it is a film that is sure to please.