Final Fantasy VII Advent Children
Publisher
Sony
Director
Tetsuya Nomura
Production
Sony, Square Enix
Country of origin
Japan
Format
OVA
Running time
100 mins
Year
2005
Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children XL-R8 roundtable review
By XL-R8 crew
1st Oct 06 John Huxley: Considering Final Fantasy VII’s enduring popularity since its release in 1997, it’s incredible to think that Square (or Squaresoft or Square-Enix or Squenix or whatever you want to call them) hadn’t really cashed in on this success until recently. Of course now they’ve come to their senses, we’ve got FFVII coming out of ears with new PS2 action games, crappy mobile phone things, rumoured PS3 remakes and a bevy of related merchandise. All I can say is - where the hell was all this crap when I actually wanted it?!?
Still, perhaps the most eagerly awaited FFVII related spinoff - and the one we’re here to review - is the CGI animated movie Advent Children. And unlike the hugely misguided Spirits Within debacle, this one’s actually based around the game and not some faux Hollywood pap. Taking place some time after the events of Final Fantasy VII, Advent Children introduces us to a planet devastated by the effects of Meteor. Sephiroth and Midgar may be gone, yet a deadly new virus called ‘Geostigma ‘ is plaguing those that were lucky enough to survive the impact. Worse still, several silver haired bad guys clad in figure-hugging leather outfits are banging on about the end of the world or some such nonsense, and the newly reformed Shin-Ra have understandably taken a disliking to them. Enlisting the help of Cloud and Tifa’s makeshift delivery service, they hope to put a stop whatever these guys are planning and maybe save some kiddies along the way. Well, that’s my version of events anyway... Martyn Rogers: Well, this one blew me away I must say. The cgi is breathtaking, the action is well put together and exciting and its it’s a continuation of my favourite game ever. The villains were handled badly and too unbelievable for me to care about, but hey they’re just there to give our heroes some target practice. The movie does use a shock and awe tactic and on closer inspection it does have some glaring weak points, but in the long run its still good enough to hold up as a worthy sequel to the game. In cgi alone its light years ahead of the mainstream. The attention to detail is exceptional and the characters are well interpreted in cgi, considering they had the game graphics to go on. The story is weak and so is the relationship between the main protagonists but what must be considered is this is “the difficult second album” if you will, it has to follow one of the best games of all time, and all things considered, I think it did a pretty good job. Adam Cook: I think the “difficult second album” analogy is far from the truth. If we are to use a musical metaphor again Advent Children is the cheap B-side cash-in that is there solely to milk fervent fans. This movie (and I use that word in the loosest possible sense as it really is nothing more than a vaguely pretty tech demo) was produced to line the pockets of SquareEnix and nothing more. This doesn’t enrich the Final Fantasy universe; it does not explore the FFVII characters in greater detail and it does not provide a remotely satisfying viewing experience.
I feel I must make clear that I am not a fan of the Final Fantasy games. Turn based RPG’s turn my blood cold and I never made my way through the 82 disks of FFVII. Yet this film should be able to stand on its own two feet and it never does. Its not that it is impenetrable to non-fans of the game because it isn’t, in fact everything is so over simplified you will find more complicated stories on Sesame Street. The problem is that you are supposed to believe these characters are fleshed out before the film. There is zero character growth on screen and many of the much loved characters from the game are reduced to superfluous walk-on parts for the sole purpose of placating the fanboys. John Huxley: But what if you are a fanboy, Adam? For most FFVII nuts the mere sight of Red XIII rendered in all his firey-mained glory will have them weak at the knees. I mean, it’s almost been ten years since what many would call ‘the best game ever’ was released and swiftly neglected by its creators who actually did very little to cash in on its success beyond the standard merchandising (until the Enix merger came about...maybe that has something to do with it?). Of course that’s not excusing the recent torrent of cash-ins, but it does at least explain the ferverent reaction from fanboys to this film’s release (and subsequent denial). If it seems like it's only placating the fanboys...well...that’s exactly what it was designed to do.
Still, I actually agree with most of your comments - and I adored the game back in 97. This is just a mess of a film from start to finish. The frankly uninteresting story and lack of character development (or any sort of character at all, as is the case with Cloud) would be excusable if the action were good enough to distract you from these shortcomings. And in short bursts (ie, the trailer) it seems to have all the dynamism, velocity and style that could only be conceivable in a CGI animated feature. Yet somehow I was left cold by the borish, over long and increasingly ridiculous scenes that passed for action in Advent Children. Sure, it looks great in the screenshots (the CGI sure it purrrrrdy), but in motion it’s just...dull. Hmm..maybe Mr Rogers can help put a more positive spin on this, eh? Martyn Rogers: Well the film has many, many flaws but for all it’s bad sides it fulfils its purpose, which I think it was purposefully designed for, as a background film. If nothing else, it’s a fantastic movie to just stick on in the background when your mates come round. If you end up talking and doing other things all the way through you haven’t lost much as the film has no real depth, however if you get a quiet moment there’s always something on the screen that’s cool. It’s a pitiful argument for it but it works, get some mates around, open a few beers and order a takeaway and stick that on in the background. That’s the kind of film this is, and while it doesn’t service the fans of the game or even a general film fan, it’s a good enough stop gap between what they plan for the future and what they had before. I honestly can’t see them stopping here, now that they have the audience, the fanbase and the money to finance further FF7 spin-offs, as well as the remake on PS3. All in all I can’t justify it as a film or a follow up to the game as great or even good, but like it or not, it’s something you should see anyway. Adam Cook: Martyn, I think you are justifying the film because of your love for FF. It’s weak to say this film works as a ‘background’ movie because no film with a narrative will be made for such purposes. John is correct in criticising the action; each set piece is repeated barring the odd change in background scenery. Most of the action is dragged out to ridiculous lengths just to stretch the running time. I may be alone here but I also think it doesn’t look that great. Spirits Within looked far better both technically and in its art direction. John Huxley: I'm not so sure Spirits Within looked better - that film ventured waaaay too far in to the uncanny valley for my liking; trully uncomfortable viewing. Anyway, I think we've come to a natural conclusion here. As Martyn quite rightly points out, this is a film that should appeal to fanboys no matter what its shortcomings. And in this sense Advent Children succeeds. Yet I think most people who aren't totally infatuated with the game will be much less forgiving, and in reality Advent Children never really stands up as a film in its own right. It's a spin-off in the very worst sense of the term. Tread with caution. And for a slightly more positive spin, you can catch a review from Martyn Rogers linked at the top of this page.
-- XL-R8 crew 1st Oct 06
Final Fantasy VII Advent Children Images         
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