FINAL FANTASY VII - ADVENT CHILDREN
The follow up movie to the most popular rpg
ever created! The game of course is Final
Fantasy VII! It is about a group of characters
that form Avalanche. Together they battle
against the evil empire Shinra!
If you haven't played the game, or if it
has been a long time, there is a special on
this dvd called "Reminiscence Of Final
Fantasy VII" which is kind of an overview
of the highlights of the game! This is
VERY well done!! Worth watching
even if you've played the game 100 times
(like some people I know!)!!
The movie is set two years after the
setting of the game, and the main issue
here is the plague that was created in
the aftermath of the battles with Shinra!
Also at the forefront of the plot is the
"reunion" that some of the "brothers" of
Sepheroth are anticipating, and their
attempt to find "mother"!
As an added special on the second disc,
there's a making of special that is very
good!! Be ware that this is in Japanese
with English subtitles, so no looking away
while you're watching it!!
It is well done, with, of course, great
animation, and the music is just wonderful!
Very much a must watch for all Final Fantasy
VII fans (which is just about everyone who's
ever played the game!)! A+
From Amazon.com:
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