When we last heard of Square Pictures, Hironobu Sakaguchi was still with the company, and the first fruit of their labor, Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within, actually became the only one at the time. That's because of a few things that came into the picture. Number one, the film cost $140 million to produce, and came back with a box office that didn't even equate to half of that. Number two, it didn't really base itself off a story from the Final Fantasy game realm, but tried to strike out with original territory, which was a disappointment to many expecting something more. Number three, the script was handled by two writers from Hollywood instead of someone directly related to a Final Fantasy project, leaving the film with a tone that was rather flat, despite its absolutely beautiful visuals that seemed to bring humans to animated light in a good way for once. Still, the movie had its fair share of moments, and developed a decent fan base on DVD.

But now I guess we stumble upon the REAL animated Final Fantasy epic that many have been waiting for, five years down the road. And while it probably won't stand out as the existential Final Fantasy piece because of a few slight issues, Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children is nothing to be scoffed at. The movie follows up on the events of the original PlayStation game, two years down the road. Cloud and company have managed to stop the evil Sephiroth from summoning a meteor to a planet using Black Materia, but not before the loss of one of their most crucial members of their party, Aerith. Cloud, a former member of SOLDIER who may or may not have ties with the evil Sephiroth, finds himself still living with the torment of the loss of Aerith, but soon finds things a bit more problematic when he runs across a trio of baddies who want to reawaken "Mother", some kind of dark project that somehow ties in with the befallen Sephiroth. If that's not enough, a disease called Geostigma has set in across the land and is somehow infecting children, something else that may be tied in with this drastic trio.

Now, I approach Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children not really completing the initial game. I've played it aplenty and I'm very familiar with the characters at hand, but I admit I got a little lost at a couple of points because I managed to miss out on a couple of crucial details. Co-staffer Eugene Huang is a bit more familiar with the territory, and expressed some disappointment in his blog about the film, but, from the way I'm looking at it, it really isn't that bad at all.

Sure, something could be said about the pacing of the film, and its incssant need to hawk Panasonic cell phones, but when it delivers, it really delivers. All the way throughout, you're treated to some truly outstanding visuals, even moreso than what Spirits Within managed to offer. The world that Cloud, Tifa, and the others inhabit is truly breathtaking, whether taking a mere walk through Aerith's garden or getting caught up in a high speed pursuit that involves everything from gun and sword battles to the emerging of shadow creatures, which Cloud tries to take apart with some well-timed sword swipes. There's nary a flaw in the visual performance here, and it shows.

The DVD contains the original Japanese language track and English subtitles, so those seeking out the true presentation of the movie will be happy to have such an option on hand. For the curious, however, the English dubbing isn't really half bad, with the likes of Steve Burton (Cloud), Rachael Leigh Cook (Tifa), and Mena Suvari (Aerith) providing more-than-sufficient work with the lip-synching on hand. Not all of the voices work, but the majority do, and I suppose that's one for the win column.

As for the film itself, it helps to approach it with a knowledge of Final Fantaasy VII and its events, but it still contains a great deal of action to keep you satisfied, including some visceral battles that look absolutely grand in their unfolding. Not one but two finale battles stand out in the second hour, one against a gigantic beast that involves the whole gang getting back together and the other involving the emerging of...well, who am I to spoil it? It's way better paced than the original Spirits Within, and I have a feeling that even the most casual viewers will be satisfied.

However, those who want an idea of what they're getting into will find a helpful extra on the first disc, in the form of Reminiscence With Final Fantasy VII. It's a twenty four minute piece made up of game footage that tells a little bit of the back story, all backed by Nobuo Uematsu's outstanding music. Mind you, it is packed with spoilers (including the scene that shows off the death of Aerith), so approach with caution if you haven't finished the game yet. It doesn't tell the entire story, but it does fill in the gaps.

There's also a second disc loaded with a number of features, including deleted scenes that never made the cut (which aren't bad, but you can see why they were cut), a Venice Film Festival piece that shows a condensed version of the film, a number of trailers from previous Tokyo Game Show events, and the highlight, an item called The Making of Advent Children, where the process of making the film is drawn out in utterly fascinating detail. If you ever wanted to learn how such a film can be put together, this is the feature you want to watch.

It would've been nice to have an audio commentary with the producers, like Spirits Within have, and maybe a few more extras related to the game, but you can't really nitpick, especially when a lot of stores carry this awesome two-disc set for a meager $15. Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children provides fans with the kind of product they've been deserving from the get-go, and casual fans will be pleased by the excellent visuals and blood-boiling fights. No, it's not perfect. No, it's probably not the quintessential video gaming film. But it overshadows Spirits Within and finally gives us a glimpse of what Square's had in mind for this sort of medium all along. Can't wait for the next one to come along.

Our Final ScoreGood

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