Final Fantasy Vii: Advent Children

There are already lots of great reviews here for Advent Children, so let me add my review for the half-hour OVA "Last Order," which is bundled in as an extra in this release and makes it more than worth buying: Let me start by saying this OVA... was perfect. Tetsuya Nomura has proved himself fifty times over as a fantastic director with this brief, poignant, and unbelievably powerful little 30-minute OVA. No overt sappiness, no slow-motion tears flying about, none of that. Cloud doesn't even comprehend what has happened. Nothing but grim reality with its edge of grittiness--and it is utterly devastating. I'm sitting here typing in tears and I think, even if I hadn't had the special fascination for this obscure, long-dead side character that I have had since playing FFVII, I still would have been moved to tears by this OVA's plaintive look at the last few hours of this man's life. It would have been so much easier for Zack to escape on his own; slowed down and strength sapped from carrying the nearly comatose Cloud, Zack could have traveled so much faster and less-conspicuously if he'd just abandoned him. With his strength and wits, he would have made it. It's a mark of what a wonderful person he is that he went so far as to shield Cloud with his own body---Cloud, this random, low-ranking soldier who was probably only an acquaintance before the Nibelheim incident, if at all (SOLDIER first class, the highest of the high, and Cloud, a common, faceless foot soldier!). He didn't owe him a thing, but he still valued this poor kid's life enough to protect him all the way to the end. That's why I'm so happy we have this OVA touching on the truly tragic and unfair fate dealt to such a wonderful person. Zack is such a minor character in the grand scheme of the original game (he's even dead long before it begins!), but still---if you're watching closely---you see, little by little, how much his deeds have effected the story. He starts out just as shock factor--you see the photo taken at Nibelheim the day Tifa led Sephiroth's party up to the Mako Reactor, and instead of our familiar, blonde-haired Cloud standing there as we expect, it is a taller, dark-haired stranger. From here, little by little, Zack's influence grows and discover slowly, rather painfully since you know of his sad fate, what sort of person it was who lost his life (and even identity) so that Cloud could take it. You discover that he was the wonderful boyfriend of Aerith's whom Cloud reminded her of, that he was the elite SOLDIER 1st class who was friendly even with the foot soldiers, that he went on his own to try to stop Sephiroth during the Nibelheim massacre, that he suffered side by side with Cloud in Hojo's laboratory for those five, long years of their imprisonment, and it was he, alone, who managed to break free and literally CARRIED Cloud back across two continents and was finally killed defending him when he fought alone against an entire squadron of Shinra soldiers. It hurts, doesn't it? And he did all that never knowing that his actions would give Cloud the strength, motivation, and will to save the world someday. That's why I love this OVA so much. Just like the cool, unassuming guy that Zack was, it doesn't come at you with this, "look at me, this is such a tragedy!!!" sort of "tragic epic" attitude. It's just "there was this cool guy, and this is what he did. He fought simply for a chance to live in freely, and died trying." It's just the way Zack would've wanted it, I think. Directiorally, it was very nice how the movie begins with Cloud (as we expect, Cloud being our cherished hero of FFVII). But all we see is his clouded, green, mako-tinged vision, and all we hear is his gasping breath. He doesn't actually speak a coherent line until much later in the story. In this way, we make the transition from Cloud, who IS FFVII, to Zack, who is (just as in the original game) our "hidden" hero. You realize long after the fact that Zack is the one we're actually focusing on (every time he enters a scene, it's in a rather unassuming way--the opening, and in the Nibelheim flashback, when he wanders in from the background in the midst of the disaster). All the things you wanted to see most happen--from some of the most AMAZING animated fight scenes I have ever seen (when Sephiroth elegantly slashed away Zack's sword strike, did your heart stop for a moment? Mine did...), to that beautiful moment when Tifa discovered that Cloud did keep his promise (though she later thinks she just hallucinated it... ^^; ), to the perfection that is animated Sephiroth whispering "Mother, come with me," to Cloud's truly incredible moment in the fight against Sephiroth. Wow, the power of this animation! (I love you, Mad House!!!!!) And let's not forget that quiet, last scene. Our esteem and affection for Zack is just growing and growing as he cheerfully (and somehow, fatalistically) expounds on the fortunes and adventures he'll have hereafter and then, his famous and haunting line, "We're friends, right?" to the man who will steal his entire life and identity later on... wow. Ah, the Turks. Now that was a truly clever touch! I love how they become a sort of sympathetic third party. Tseng's quiet sadness and contemplation of the pitiful fate that Zack and Cloud were dealt, even as he hunts them down, gives the audience solace. We know (as the Turks know) that their escape is futile, but the fact that the people who are actually tracking them down feel sorry for them as well is somehow soothing for us. I love how Tseng's sympathy, and his order to try to take them alive, gave me this wild, completely irrational hope that maybe--just maybe--they would make it through this impossible situation alive. In particular, that last scene when the Turks' helicopter is right there, rushing toward the scene and offering some sort of salvation (at least for their lives) for Zack and Cloud just at their fateful hour. But of course, they don't make it in time. History has already laid down its cold order, hasn't it? And anyway, Zack says it all in that one line--"I don't want assurances that my life will be spared. All I want is FREEDOM!" I guess for him, it was better to have died fighting of his own will than to return to Hojo's lab of horrors to live as a test subject to the end of his days, ne? But still... ;__; I love that we see the last moments of Zack's life back in Cloud's point of view. It is satisfying to know that, whatever he forgets or blocks out of his memory later on, he did bear witness to Zack's final sacrifice for him. But that grieving is for later. For now, I love that Cloud has no reaction, no sappy screaming, etc. Just silence and the haunting echo of the gunshot that ends it all. That shot is so devastating, so inevitable... just as we know from the moment we began watching this OVA that Zack would soon die despite all his efforts, that shot is so inevitable and heavy, and we (like Cloud) are so helpless to stop it. We don't even get to see it happen--just the sound signalling that it has been done somewhere beyond our reach and we are only hearing the declaration of its completion after the fact. It's wonderful and SO painful. Really, truly, hats off to Nomura-sensei and his entire crew. This OVA was everything I had hoped for. Thank you so much for it and for this incredibly well-deserved tribute to that nameless soldier who gave Cloud his life, his sword, and even his memories--and gave us one of the most memorable video game stories of all time.

Amazing movie i don’t care what people say it’s peak

I refrained from buying this prime video because I noticed the audio was only in Japanese with English subtitles. However, I didn't want to waste money buying the physical copy if I end up not liking the movie. So...I just spent $1.99 on the rental and--- Let me tell you---it was SO worth it. Ugh... by the end of the movie tears were streaming down my face like the life stream. My heart strings were being pulled along like a puppet. I forgot I about the false advertising and complaining I did about the JAP DUB/ENG SUB... at that point, it didn't matter. I watched this movie down to the last second! This was the real ending I was looking for. I'm so happy I had to write a review. For years and years... ever since this originally came out eons ago... and given many chances, I refrained from watching Advent Children. I don't know, I like, maybe I had identity issues, who knows. Admittingly, I played FFVIII, FFVII, and FFIX in that order. Perhaps... I was too preoccupied with FFIX. I don't know, but I do know that my interests in FFVII was premature and that might be okay given that I'm fully invested now. Recently FFVII:R came out, and tbh at first, I wasn't that interested... remakes in video games and movies (especially movies), generally turn out to be 'meh'. But suddenly I had interest in it a week before the release date after "trying out" the demo. LOL. What ensued was 200 hrs gameplay of FFVII:R, 120 hrs of OG FFVII, 60 hrs of FFVII Crisis Core. It was a beautiful and sad emotional roller coaster. And as you all know FFVII:R left on a cliff hanger and lately I've been searching for something to fill that void when I suddenly realized I hadn't watched ADVENT CHILDREN yet!!! For the price of my life story, just watch it... and maybe $1.99, I give it 5 stars. I still want to watch the English version when I get a chance. If you're complaining about the language/subtitle issue... just don't buy the prime version. Get the actual **** blu-ray.

based on the complex story line of the final fantasy 7 role playing game, this movie pics up from a few years after the game ends. in terms of visuals, this movie is awesome. this movie pushes the boundries of "fantasy" to the limits-the characters are beautiful, the scenes are breath taking, and the battle scenes properly incorporate all aspects of physics, but at the same time is continually breaking every single law. unbelievably beautiful. from the single drop of water, to the dematerilization of the body, this movie doesn't disappoint. as for the story line, i'm all about the inner termoil. and of course, this story revolves around mr. blond haired dude who's all about that. but it's an interesting resolution as he realizes not every battle is won with skill, strength, and determination. this movie was worth every penny for me-but then again, i'm a sci-fi loving kind of guy who has a love for the ff games of the past (i stopped playing at ff10). i appreciated every aspect of the movie, especially the very few tidbits that were taken from the games and cleverly incorporated to the game. and as for the characters, everyone's back. and although i wished certain characters were in the movie longer, i think that purposely limiting their presence in the movie brought a lot more weight to them for when they appeared. and the japanese-style thug humor? very funny. although certain parts illustrate cultural differences that an american would not typically understand, if you observe their actions, i think it offers a tidbit of insight to the traditional japanese sempai/kohai relationship. (but that stuff was minor) only bad point i can think of was that some of the scenes were too fast. i mean, crap, it was like you were following a bullet in real time. sheesh. i mean, i like action, but when it happens, i'd like to actually have it register in my brain before jumping to the next sequence. (but i have to admit, there's no time to complain about it-if you do, you miss the next thing, which they slow down....lol) i guess they didn't want to play-out the slow motion thing. (that made me appreciate those sequences even more). so all in all, it was a great movie. although i'm biased for playing every single ff game until ff10, and for being a huge sci-fi fan, i'd have to say that if you appreciate art, you would appreciate this film (if not for the story) for what the makers were able to do with cgi. and honestly, i think this movie did a great job of blurring the lines between reality (as in physics) and fantasy (characters, storyline, and fantastic action sequences). hope this helps-

This movie was outstanding. It takes place a little after Final Fantasy 7, where the game ends. I'm glad this movie came out because it was meant to put a conclusion to the game. If you've played and beat the game it leaves some stuff in question. After I beat it I wanted to know more about what happend to the characters, well this answers that. We here in the beginning of the movie a battle going on in crater between the Turks, and 3 unknown young men. Next we see Cloud driving a motor bike, he's now a deliverer. The same unknown 3 reveal themselves and attack Cloud on the way. Cloud meets up with a few of the Turks and someone who I won't mention that was from the FF7 game. Clould learns a little about the 3 from them, the main leader of the 3 is called Kadaj. Cloud is asked to help stop them for everyones sake. Later we learn that their true intention, is to find the one they call Mother, quite a lot through the whole movie. The one who they call Mother. The first former comrade and child hood friend Tifa is the first one Cloud meets again. Tifa too has some trouble with Kadaj's group. There are other appearences by Cloud's former party members helping out. Cloud not only contends with Kadaj but also his own guilt still about what happend to Aeris in the game. So he has his own inner battle going on at the same time. The movie makes the main character Cloud even more interesting in this way. The story may seem somewhat short, but the game was close to 70 hours, with many mini-quests along the way, not just battling Sephiroth, but many monsters, and Shinra's Empire. This of course will seem like a much story. The grahpics of the movie are superb. They look like the game characters, the design of them has been redone though, they are more real types. Not as anime looking as the game characters looked. The environments of the city, to the rain effects really set the mood. A fantastic battle scene towards the end with a well known FF monster was terrific, and my favorite battle. There will be lots of battles in this movie. Some people felt they had to many battles, I felt it was just right. There were enough story points in the movie to tell everything they had to. Also I'll mention again this is only a 2 hour movie here. They had a lot of time to put out focus on all the characters, including a lot on Shinra. Not much of Shinra as an evil force here, lot's more on Kadaj and company. And there was alot of action in the game too remember. I've watched the Japanese and the Dubbed. I like them both, from what some people were saying I was expecting the worst from the dubbed. The voices fit well, I did not feel the need to have to switch to Japanese again, since I saw that first already. That's about it. So remember this is meant as a conclusion to the events of FF7 mainly, with a new side story mixed in. This movie was a wonderful experience to watch. FF AC made up for the movie Final Fantasy Spirits Within, yes, I did not like that movie. This is much more entertaining in every way, and is actually based on one of the games.

Final Fantasy VII Advent Children is such a great movie! Once watched the movie 5+ times back to back.

I owned the first DVD of Advent Children and I can tell you that buying this Limited Edition is well worth the price of admission. The extras in the box are of superb quality and the english script is a great addition for those who like to put on their own "Fan Fiction" plays. Of course anyone reading these reviews want to know one thing... is it really worth it to pay the price just for 2 books and some pictures? well thats not the only thing you get with this set, the DVDs themselves have been remastered (or at least from what I can tell). The bonus disk in this set now has the "Last Order" anime movie that helps as a quick refresher to the story of Zack, but lack of an english language track and just having subtitles might leave a few in the cold (though if you watch anime on a regular basis you know its the only way to watch it). The Movie itself will go down as a technical marvel. The story a non Final Fantasy Fan might not get without some research. However a seasoned vet will have already bought this set even without reading the review. The quality of the movie is amazing, I owned the set before this and it looked like any other DVD... no better and not less. This set however I instantly noticed a more richer color and more defined areas, on my DVD player of choice it looks like an HD movie. In conclusion, if you are a Pixar / Shreck / Happy Feet fan, you might be in for a shock for what this movie has. The Graphics: Blow anything any other movie has done to this point. The Action: Defy the bounds of reality but at the same time is slick, smooth, and in a grand kick booty fashion. The Story: If you have never heard nor played Final Fantasy VII then you might need to do some research before purchasing as far as the story goes, this is a sequel meant mostly for those who played the game. Regional Language: Probably the only and most annoying part of the whole disk is that the English language track seems as though it is a second off from the lip movement of the characters. The English cast did a good job, just seems out of sync. You might want to go into Otaku Mode on this one (Japanese Audio with Subtitles) For me, it was well worth the buy and if you buy it for a fan or if you are a fan, you'll enjoy it too.

Didn't watch the movie. I purchased it believing it was in English due to the preview being in English...but it was not. it had only English subtitles. There was another listing for the movie available for purchase but the preview was not in English. I believe they are selling the same version with two different preview page listings in two different languages but only offer it in foreign language. I am very disappointed because I wanted to watch this movie. Be sure to confirm the movie is actually in the language they are advertising it in...No Refund For Me.

他商品のコンプリートと見比べるためにも保存物の一品でした。

Me encantó que tiene la opción de elegir entre el audio original o doblada y aparte los subtítulos además de los extras con los que cuenta excelente para fans de la saga

Otro gran entrega de la serie FINAL FANTASY si eres fan de ella claro. Imagen y sonido de primera. Lástima no haya habido una edición mas lujosa tipo caja metálica.

Are good plots your do all and end all? Can you sacrifice graphics and filming for some well developed characters, and a well thought out incredibly deep storyline? If so, then boycott this like the plague. The movie was fantastic if you're a fan. If you watch it and think of it like a video, the entire movie plays out like a cinematic and is beautiful. The graphics are to die for and the characters all fit their roles well enough from the classic FF7 title. That said, it's all action no plot. Expect to see delicious fight scenes - including a gem for the fans in which a battle takes place with the classic FF7 fight music, complete with the 'victorious' jingle when a cell phone rings. But of course, you're going to get some faults: - The lipsynching is good but never bang on. - The script definitely leaves something to be desired. The characters tend to use a lot of one liners and the language is that an elementary student would use comfortably. - The plot is basically nonexistant. If you think of the movie as virtually one long fight scene, or a long video game cinematic you might not care as much but if you're looking for a deep continuation of FF7 story you'll be left disappointed. If you're a fan none of that will matter and simply seeing them fit a bike chase, or a scene with Bahamut, into the movie will be completely worth the money spent. This movie succeeded overall as a treat for the fans even if it won't be winning any academy awards.

In arguably the most anticipated game-to-movie sequels of all time and being a huge fan of FFVII I didn't waste time in buying this film. To begin with I doubted the film for even being able to compare to the immensely deep storyline that runs through the game. For those who aren't familiar with the game, here is a brief background. The game starts with an unlikely cocky hero called Cloud joining a group called Avalanche in taking down a corrupt organization called Shinra Inc. who are draining the planet of "life energy". The game takes a hell of a lot of plot twists including brief flashbacks from Cloud, the troubled main character who interestingly finds himself aligned with the main villian, Mr Sephiroth himself. An insanely powerful villain that is one of the toughest villains in any game I've played other than the Final Fantasy games. The game continues down a winding path, introducing more and more characters as the plot thickens further. After finding out Cloud is merely a 'puppet', a failed clone of Sephiroth, the story really picks up into an action-packed game. Without giving too much away, to fully understand the story of the film I strongly recommend you buy the game and unravel the mysteries that may be plaguing your mind after watching this film. If not, the bonus material on the DVD 'revisiting VII' is an excellent source to do your homework and if you have no ideas about the story, watch this first...I cant stress this enough. What sets this game apart from the other final fantasy games? The passion you develop for the characters and the interesting twist of humour, love and action all thrown together in a very satisfying game spills over to the film. Watching this film, I was regularly questioning myself as to whether this really was CGI throughout the film or whether 'real-time' screenshots of Japanese towns had been thrown in for good measure. To full appreciate the time and effort spent on this film it really is a masterpiece. The film is a huge success in my opinion and has lived up to the expectations if not exceeded mine. I would strongly recommend everyone to watch this film as it really is well worth the money. Obviously every film has its downfalls and the only things I can question here is the character of Barrett. He was a huge part of the game and supplies only a few lines. His body work is also questionable as in the game he seems to me to be extremely muscley with a big physiche. However, in the film he looks far too skinny to be Barrett! The only other flaw I can find here is that too few of the main characters from the game say more than 2 or 3 lines through the film but hey, can't please everyone right? BUY this film now it is well worth the money!