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FF VII Advent Children - 1up.com review
- Thread starter Wario64
- Start date
Prince of Space
Banned
The fights were nothing but a series of fast cuts that really got grating by the time Cloud fought Kadaj. Maybe not hard to follow, but like I said in another thread:MrAngryFace said:
Watching Advent Children is like watching a porno -- try and watch it all at once and you're left feeling bored and unfulfilled. Pick a scene at a time, and well.... you know.
Shouta
Member
8.5 sounds about right to me. It's terrible as a standalone movie but the fact is, it really never was meant to be standalone . So much of the content of the film relies on knowledge of FF7 and understanding a lot of elements from the game and the movie that you could really never make it stand on its own. Hell, even the story itself is just a thin guise for the end of Cloud's story.
I've only got a few beefs with the film personally. The action is great but it could've used a few more shots that were slower and shot out farther to get the a better feel for the scenes. I would've liked more input from the characters to make the purpose of the story a bit more obvious to the viewers (it's a bit obtuse in unless you're really looking for it). I've also would've liked a bit more exposition on the actual story as well to flesh out the connections thoroughly (both theme and actual story connections).
Other than those, I enjoyed it quite a bit and I'm definitely not a big FF7 fan.
I've only got a few beefs with the film personally. The action is great but it could've used a few more shots that were slower and shot out farther to get the a better feel for the scenes. I would've liked more input from the characters to make the purpose of the story a bit more obvious to the viewers (it's a bit obtuse in unless you're really looking for it). I've also would've liked a bit more exposition on the actual story as well to flesh out the connections thoroughly (both theme and actual story connections).
Other than those, I enjoyed it quite a bit and I'm definitely not a big FF7 fan.
WrathOfOtaibah
Banned
One of the few times I agree with 1up.
maximum360
Member
Flashy with some nice eye candy.
Story was bad as usual. Who writes this stuff up really? I thought they learned their lesson after the first FF movie. I guess not.
Story was bad as usual. Who writes this stuff up really? I thought they learned their lesson after the first FF movie. I guess not.
Red Scarlet
Member
It might've been during the ending or the credits..I'd love to check but I can't till next week.
Companion Cube
Member
Deku said:
You reminded me I want a 360 for Mistwalker games.
R2 finally showed up today and watched it for the first time. Not really a FF7 fan, but I think 8.5 is right on the mark. Weak points were a very short, almost non-existant plot; basically no real characters besides Cloud (the old cast were more like cameo appearances than characters), bad action direction, and over the top ridiculous bits. But it was very entertaining, looked great, sounded great, and had some great bits here and there. A very rewatchable film and a nice reminder of FFVII the game. Not a very good 'movie' but good for what is was (and I have no clue what it was, but I liked it for whatever it was ^^
. So yeah, 8.5ish seems good.
Animation sucked after having seen that MGS4 trailer though I mean I guess its impossible to do motion capture for a decent budget with all the insane stuff going on, but the movement animation felt like a PS2 game and not like a nice CG film. MGS4 >>> FFVII:AC from a visual standpoint IMO.
. So yeah, 8.5ish seems good.Animation sucked after having seen that MGS4 trailer though
I mean I guess its impossible to do motion capture for a decent budget with all the insane stuff going on, but the movement animation felt like a PS2 game and not like a nice CG film. MGS4 >>> FFVII:AC from a visual standpoint IMO.VisionaryQuest0
Member
Deku said:
I'm pretty sure there were cars and helicopters in the game too.
Callo Merlose
Banned
Sephiroth's "brothes" names had meanings. Does anyone know what they are? I can't find this anywhere. Like Kadaj...
Like Kadaj...Not a very good 'movie' but good for what is was (and I have no clue what it was, but I liked it for whatever it was ^^
8.5 for a movie that you admit is not very good? So you give movies you really like get 15 out of 10? There's only 1.5 points from 8.5 to a perfect score.
The review was inflated and written by someone who already decided they wanted to like the movie.
Fenrir was in the game, but not volkswagon vans and circa 2004 cellphones. I never had a sense playing FFVII that it was anything like our world. Advent Children simply had too many things borrowed from this world and specifically, the world circa 2003 that at its worst it just looked weird. That's what I'm complaining about.
The Faceless Master
Member
i'd give it about a 3/10 and i'm a huge fan of FF7 the game...
the movie is a fucking travesty, and it's an insult for it to even share the same name as the game, much less the characters, music and locales...
i swear if someone at square took a heaping steamy shit and named it "tifa's chocolate", people would eat it, and review it as a tasty 5 star dessert snack...
the movie is a fucking travesty, and it's an insult for it to even share the same name as the game, much less the characters, music and locales...
i swear if someone at square took a heaping steamy shit and named it "tifa's chocolate", people would eat it, and review it as a tasty 5 star dessert snack...
The Faceless Master said:
Eating poo is a sexual deviance so I'm sure people will eat it and genuinely like it.
I'm not sure if liking FF VIIAC this much is something that people can say is an honest score however....
Bebpo said:
I guess we just have different scales. I give 'bad' films that are enjoyable more than 5. usually a 6 or a 7. I gave FFVIIAC a 6.5 which I feel is very kind and generous.
Most film critics would probably give it a 3 or less.
TranceVibrator
Member
Deku, chill out. A review is an opinion, if yours differs, write your own review 
I thought it was amazing. It's been a long time since I played FF7, but most of it all rushed back when I watched this. I thought it worked well as an extended ending to the RPG I've gotten the most enjoyment out of playing. I agree the mobile phones felt out of place, product placement anyone? (Sony z1010's I think they were). But other than that, the images were beautiful, the action scenes, although not entirely fresh, were stunning (the bike battles totally had me) and the music brought back many good memories. Shame about a fairly weak story but I didn't care as it just brought back so many good memories for me. A massive smile couldn't be wiped off my face the entire showing
I thought it was amazing. It's been a long time since I played FF7, but most of it all rushed back when I watched this. I thought it worked well as an extended ending to the RPG I've gotten the most enjoyment out of playing. I agree the mobile phones felt out of place, product placement anyone? (Sony z1010's I think they were). But other than that, the images were beautiful, the action scenes, although not entirely fresh, were stunning (the bike battles totally had me) and the music brought back many good memories. Shame about a fairly weak story but I didn't care as it just brought back so many good memories for me. A massive smile couldn't be wiped off my face the entire showing
Callo Merlose
Banned
Milkman said:
And you did a good job. Please, don't listen to this tool.
maximum360
Member
This new movie actually makes the first FF movie (dare I say it), more palatable.
Spirits Within = (6 Beers before) Advent Children
Spirits Within = (6 Beers before) Advent Children
Red Scarlet
Member
What do you guys equate numbers to representing (Bebpo/Deku)?
For me, it's like this:
10-OMGWTFAWESOME
9-Great
8-Really Good
7-Pretty Good
6-Above Average
5-Average
4-Below Average
3-Bad
2-Crap
1-Horrible
0-OMGWTFLAME
As such, it wasn't as good as the average movie, so I gave it a 4. Cause it was below average.
For me, it's like this:
10-OMGWTFAWESOME
9-Great
8-Really Good
7-Pretty Good
6-Above Average
5-Average
4-Below Average
3-Bad
2-Crap
1-Horrible
0-OMGWTFLAME
As such, it wasn't as good as the average movie, so I gave it a 4. Cause it was below average.
I thought it was enjoyable. Great visuals, good music, and lots of action. No, there wasn't much plot, and the laws of gravity didn't seem to apply, but it was enjoyable nonetheless.
Maybe because I'm not that big a fan of the setting and characers of FFVII (even though I really liked the game), I'm not over-analyzing it like some of you are.
It's also a sort of movie you can watch over and over, and in fact I liked it more the second time.
Maybe because I'm not that big a fan of the setting and characers of FFVII (even though I really liked the game), I'm not over-analyzing it like some of you are.
It's also a sort of movie you can watch over and over, and in fact I liked it more the second time.
Miburou said:
Yeah, I get the feeling the people enjoying this the most are those who don't really care about FFVII and its characters/world. It's like you don't really care if there isn't much character development, plot, or if the characters speak much because frankly you don't really care either about these characters enough to really want to see them expanded. They're not particularly interesting people ^^; Instead you just sit back and watch some nice cg, listen to some good music; it's fun
The fact that Square never intended for this to have even a limited theatrical release, and that they always refer to it as 'visual content' rather than as a 'film', is pretty explicit in my mind that they don't want to consider this a movie in the traditional sense. It's meant as a work exclusively for fans (which is why knowledge of the game is a must) and nothing more. If you want to criticize it for that fact, then fine, but just keep in mind that is akin to criticizing a romantic comedy for not having enough action-packed chase sequences.
Shouta
Member
Bebpo said:Yeah, I get the feeling the people enjoying this the most are those who don't really care about FFVII and its characters/world. It's like you don't really care if there isn't much character development, plot, or if the characters speak much because frankly you don't really care either about these characters enough to really want to see them expanded. They're not particularly interesting people ^^; Instead you just sit back and watch some nice cg, listen to some good music; it's fun
It's not like the film doesn't do anything for character development though. It may not be what people wanted but there is development. I think a lot of folks were expecting this to be a full blown film with a dense plot as a follow-up to FF7 and were dissappointed when it turned out to be a fanservice piece that acts like an extended ending that has some character material sprinkled within its action-laded reel. Personally, it seems the people that weren't expecting much ended up liking the film the most.
Bizarro Sun Yat-sen
Banned
The funny thing is that AC was originally supposed to be a 20-minute short that was 100% character material with very little action. The fight scenes weren't added until they decided to expand the running time, first to 60 minutes and then to 90 minutes.
I think the movie was decent given that char. design/set design/music/atmosphere just rocked, but the story was definitely definitely bad. I don't see neither a real cause
nor a real purpose/consequence
to the events that transpired in the film. The story also was lacking some serious meat, it's like
.
I think they tried to go between scales throughout the movie from the small scale to epic scales, and it is there that the movie's story also fails. They should've focused more on a particular novel event with more meat to the story, and having little connection with the events of the game, or gone all out with an epic story(more locales, more characters, longer, etc.). By going half way and mixing stuff
, the quality diminished.
Where did the 3 bad guys come from? No BS explanation, but any truly convincing reason why these guys'd appear 2 years later? How the fuck is rufus alive? What BS is this Geostigma crap?
Geostigma's gone or no? Cloud comes back to life, the 3 guys are gone, is as if nothing happened!!! Only important thing was Sephiroth's comment hinting at FFVII-2
a page of dialogue, and "mother, where's mother" is a significant chunk of it.
I think they tried to go between scales throughout the movie from the small scale to epic scales, and it is there that the movie's story also fails. They should've focused more on a particular novel event with more meat to the story, and having little connection with the events of the game, or gone all out with an epic story(more locales, more characters, longer, etc.). By going half way and mixing stuff
Bringing Sephiroth back in such an out of the blue made up way, trying to push the geostygma small-scale stuff(should've shown more people with it if they wanted to make it seem important.) as some sort of grand thing, etc.
Bizarro Sun Yat-sen
Banned
Again, the explanation is that the project started as an entirely "small scale" 20-minute short, with only two characters involved, and was only later retrofitted with "epic" elements and action.
Red Scarlet
Member
Bizarro Sun Yat-sen said:
Sounds more like the excuse, not the explanation. No one's rating the 20-minute short, they're rating the 100-minute movie that was released. Some people dug it, others found it fell kinda flat.
Bizarro Sun Yat-sen
Banned
No, an explanation is just that, an explanation. If I explain the causes of World War I, it doesn't mean I'm taking a position on whether the war was justified.
Red Scarlet
Member
Still sounds like an excuse as to 'no you cannot talk bad about it, because blahblah'.
Bizarro Sun Yat-sen
Banned
You can talk bad about it all you want. Whether you talk bad or good, though, your criticisms/praises are likely to be more relevant if you're aware of the context, and that's what I'm providing.
Red Scarlet
Member
That over a year ago, it was a 20-minute thing. But now, the final product is a 100-minute movie. Lots of things are lengthened as they go on, but who uses what it was over a year ago when discussing the final product?
Are people going to judge FF12 based on what it was in 2003, or what it was in 2006?
Are people going to judge FF12 based on what it was in 2003, or what it was in 2006?
Bizarro Sun Yat-sen
Banned
It's certainly possible that knowing what FF12 was in 2003 will help someone understand why it was what it will have been in 2006, yes. Xenosaga ep. II would be another case where some background knowledge (i.e. of how some of the top staff left/were forced out and they're no longer really following the original story outline) helps you make sense of the final product.
Red Scarlet
Member
Still sounds like that's giving an excuse though. Oh well.
Bizarro Sun Yat-sen
Banned
Are you one of those people who thinks that trying to understand terrorist organizations = supporting terrorism?
I give the movie a very critical 8 out of 10
It really was Final Fantasy VII, but it was missing that one element. The thing that made Final Fantasy VII something so unique. I'll call it the Sakaguchi element.
Really, Spirits Within should have been a combination of what it was and this movie. This had everything Spirits Within needed.
It really was Final Fantasy VII, but it was missing that one element. The thing that made Final Fantasy VII something so unique. I'll call it the Sakaguchi element.
Really, Spirits Within should have been a combination of what it was and this movie. This had everything Spirits Within needed.
Red Scarlet
Member
Bizarro Sun Yat-sen said:
:lol no. I just find that as trying to fall back onto something as to why the final product wasn't good, when that's all most people are probably going by. I know I'm not rating this as a movie that was originally a 20-minute thing, but as an FF7 movie for the fans, and it fell short as a good movie.
It just seems like a pulling-at-straws way of saying 'its due to being a shorter movie years ago, so that gives it leeway to being bad' when that really doesn't mean anything to me when forming my opinion on the actual finished product.
Bizarro Sun Yat-sen
Banned
Sure, if all you're interested in is "rating" the product, declaring it good or bad, giving it a score out of 10 or whatever, you don't need context, but that's not very interesting anyway. As soon as you start talking about why the thing was good or bad, and trying to draw general lessons from that, knowing the context becomes essential.
Tabris said:
What made it miss that one thing was the "Tetsuya Nomura element". The guy directs the movie like a 100-minute music video clip. The film lacks establishing shots, always concentrating on movement and looking "cool" - although that's probably because the script lacks pause. At climax points it gets hella cool,
like at the Cloud ascent vs. Bahamut, the last attack on Sephiroth (how they framed the last, downward attack),
like after Rufus threw the motherbox out the window (and we get like 5 cuts of Kadaj's angry face, one in black and white!!),
I'm still a raging FFVIIAC fanboy though. FFTSW's actions scenes are easier for the eye to follow, but I wouldn't trade one Cloud Strife for 10 Akis.
edit: sorry, spoilered
Red Scarlet
Member
What it WAS, and what it IS shouldn't really matter, though. *shrug*
This could go on forever. :lol
I talked more about it in the 'FF7 is out' topic. But I'm not a movie reviewer by any means.
This could go on forever. :lol
I talked more about it in the 'FF7 is out' topic. But I'm not a movie reviewer by any means.
Bizarro Sun Yat-sen
Banned
Cool, I'll never have to do this programming project I come here to put off doing.
Bizarro Sun Yat-sen said:
That's not actually true. In an interview I did in Venice with Nomura, he explained that the truth to this urban myth is that they originally were working on the 20 minute version as a test phase to see if a staff the size of the one that would go on to make Advent Children could handle such an undertaking. It was not, in fact, a 20 minute film that had a pack of fight scenes retrofitted after, nor was the original 20 minute demo representative of the final movie. I reckon this was a smart choice after the massive investment required of The Spirits Within.
So, I dunno how that affects your half-dozen subsequent posts, but I thought I'd just throw that out there.