Rating: 
Summary: Pay no attention to the critics behind the curtain...
Review: I'm getting rather tired of people bashing this movie. True, today's moviegoers are somewhat jaded - things that would have floored people back in the 70s and 80s are "been there, done that" affairs with us. What makes "Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within" unique, however, is that it offers a welcome depature from the deluge of highly forgettable CG-effects-laden movies (Godzilla, anyone?) we've been getting hammered with ever since Jurassic Park. People griping that Final Fantasy "tries too hard to approximate something that could easily have been done with live actors" are missing the point entirely. It's like asking "why paint a basket of fruit when you can just photograph it?" Simple: because painting provides a much greater degree of personal interpetation and expression, lets you stylize your subject rather than having to accept the limitations that reality imposes on it. Instead of dissecting Final Fantasy piece by digital piece, I think people ought to try just sitting back and enjoying this movie for what it is: a beautifully conceived and executed, thoroughly entertaining film that just happened to be made with a computer instead of a camera.
Rating:
Summary: For those who write bad reviews for this movie...tsk tsk
Review: Abosulutely positivly wonderful! Anyone true ff fan that thinks this movie was no good should be ashamed of his/her self. As should anyone else that didn't like it. First of all the obvious. The movie looked absolutely gorgeous, when there's parts where you couldn't tell the difference between the animation and real life you know someone did a good job. Second, the story. Yet another Final Fantasy story masterpiece. Some people disliked the shortness of the story but think about it this way. IT'S A MOVIE PEOPLE. I think they did an excellent job of fitting an amazing story in the time allowed. For those people that didn't understand the story, I have one thing to say, see it again, you'll figure it out. For those thinking not to see the movie i leave this. SEE IT, IT IS YET ANOTHER SQUARE MASTERPIECE.
Rating: 
Summary: Bad story, good visuals...from someone who actually saw it
Review: Okay, let's start with the good stuff:1. The visuals were incredible. Some scenes seemed so real that it was scary. Unfortunately, that's about it... The bad: 1. The story was pathetic. It built up the whole length of the movie, and maybe had some hope of being good, but the ending just ruined it. It completely strayed away from the story that took 2 hours to build! In short, the thing that was supposed to save the day could have, but it wasn't used...instead, some jerk sacrifices himself (which is sooo insanely non-sensical) instead! It just didn't make sense. Not one bit. 2. Also, the "acting" was terrible. Everyone seemed like stiff puppets, not real people. They looked like people, but your average Disney cartoon has far better voice-acting. Think of a bad soap... that's the movie. 3. Now, I've said that the visuals were good...but only most of the time. The bad parts were the lighting and the camera angles. Now, the year is 2065, so you'd expect some fancy-schmancy lighting, but you won't get any in this movie. About 90% of the scences with characters interacting with one another are in blue/gray light. They might as well have made the movie in black and white, cause it would have been out a year sooner and been just as hard on the eyes. As for the camera angles...they were a sloppy mess of blurred, jerky motions supposed to simulate real-life I suppose. Pitiful. 4. The final point is this: the movie was stupid. It was a scam to make money off of millions of people...and it worked. The characters and the story were as "cliche-ed" as you can get. It wasn't worth the money. I'm disappointed. I'd just like to say in closing that the movie did show the potential power of entirely computer-generated feature films starring human-like characters. There's hope out there, but this movie certainly didn't deliver it! 1/5 ( p.s. I never played any of the games, so my opinions are totally unbiased. I'm not some "hater" who had high expectations or who's angry cuz it didn't follow the games' storylines/styles)
Rating:
Summary: Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within
Review: This movie was quite exceptional, but probably is not for everyone. It is very deep, very emotional, and was probably designed more with the Japanese viewing audience in mind. Not only is it the depth that makes me think this, but also the amount of self-sacrificing you find in this film. Not very common in the American philosophy. (No, I'm not Japanese.) The movie itself was STUNNING, down to every minute detail. No, it was not based on any particular game Squaresoft already has on the market, but I could definitely see the influence of games they do have available already. One of the most noticeable, of course, is that they ALWAYS have a character named Sid/Cid/other spellings. (But, there always is one.) Another is that there were many items I could pick out from FFVII. The meteor, for one. Another was Gaia, which was not actually a spirit form, but appeared to be an incarnation of the Lifestream. Probably one of the most difficult parts for viewers to follow will be Aki's dream segments, which foreshadow the conclusion and how they have to beat the alien spirits at the end. Watch for signs in these dreams and it'll come to you. Very deep. I think FF fans can enjoy the movie if they go with an open mind. Don't compare it to video games. Go to enjoy it for itself. If you have the depth and the intelligence to play FF games, you can follow and enjoy this IMMENSELY. I give it a definite rating of FIVE, and recommend it HIGHLY to anyone who not only wants to be entertained, but stirred emotionally in the process. (Are we sure these are not real characters? Coulda fooled me.)
Rating: 
Summary: Amazing Animation Hide Poor Plot
Review: Well, I could honestly say the animation was probably the most amazing I have ever seen, but unfortunately the plot just wasn't up to par. If a movie can only be liked by hardcore Final Fantasy fans then it must not be that great of a movie. The character's personalities were almost more 2-dimensional than the plot. It seems they were trying to make a children's movie more than a sci-fi thriller. I'm sorry but I just can't praise a movie with the plot of a Disney film. If anything see it for the animation but don't expect anything from the plot or characters.
Rating:
Summary: I was surprised... it was great! Sets the standard in 3-d
Review: I was a bit skeptical to see the hyped-up Final Fantasy Movie. Considering how Squaresoft has given us lackluster efforts in the series, (example- Final Fantasy VIII) and how commercialized the Final Fantasy francise is now... well, all my worries were put aside when the movie started. The intro is just gorgeous... it shows Aki wondering the abandoned streets of Old New York City. It is dark, pitch dark, and Aki is wondering the streets alone. She uses a radar to detect life forms, and suddenly strange holographic creatures appear and start to attack her. Fortunately, Aki manages to escape with the help of a rescue team. At first, you can tell it's computer animation, but then the character models and animation will look so realistic you'll forgt about it. I've never seen computer graphics this realistic - the characters have intricate detail, from moles to wrinkles. What is good about this movie is that both anime/videogame freaks and mainstream movie people will enjoy it. Fans of the series and anime wil enjoy that finally a movie of their speed is out in the theatres. Mainstream movie-goers ill enjoy it becuase while it is different from their American Pies, the graphics and slighty-to-understand plot will make sense to them a well. The movie as a whole is memorable... definately something I'll be getting on DVD. There are some flaws in this movie as well: The ending is a little weak, but that's good becuase it sets up a sequel. (Square already has a sequel planned!) There are some plot wholes too, but what movie doesn't have these flaws anyways? But one major gripe for me: even though this movie is labelled as FINAL FANTASY, the only thing that closely resembles the series is Doctor Sid anyways. And the spirits thing was similar to the crystals I guess, but it doesn't matter, this movie is enjoyable on its own anyways. Basically, how can you go wrong with this movie... it's only 108 minuteslong, and 7 bucks to get a ticket. Give it a shot if you're skeptical like I was, you might be surprised.
Rating:
Summary: Worth watching in theaters and offers more for your money.
Review: Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within is one of those few movies that made me feel that the price of the ticket was well worth it. I had read a few reviews of the movie ranging anywhere from 3-4 out of 5 and didn’t set my expectations too high, thinking that it would be just another average movie. I was surprised by the fact that it was actually quite a good movie. It is not the greatest movie ever made, but it is worth the money to watch in theaters while you can and is probably one of the best films this year. In fact I will probably go see it again. The following is a thorough review of all aspects of the film sound, story, flaws, etc. The visuals were nothing short of spectacular and are definitely a landmark in CG graphics. However this is the just the first step in CG graphics design and while it isn’t photorealistic yet, it is huge leap over films such as Shrek, Toy Story, etc. This is one movie that would benefit from digital screen theaters, since there were details that projection screens tended to blur like the fiber detail on clothing. The story begins as a somewhat generic sci-fi/fantasy thriller but evolves just a bit more through the course of the movie. Written and directed by Sakaguchi of Final Fantasy fame, players might discover some similarities between the underlying meanings and relationships in the games and movie, especially on spirituality. The movie doesn’t explain everything but relies on the audience to think and pick out the logical and correct answer. For instance, the relationships between the characters or the connection between Aki’s dream sequence and what is happening around her. These require a little thought to understand and one should watch the movie by being intrigued and reasoning why things happen. Don’t expect the obvious to be force fed to the audience. Like the games the movie is interwoven and you should be able to make a connection and say something like “I see, so that’s why she avoided that before.” The Spirits Within relies heavily on spirituality, or at the very least the human soul. You have to be open to the ideas presented within in order to fully understand this movie and enjoy the ending. Traditionalist Final Fantasy fans should have no problem with this movie. This is not just a kids movie, there are ideological concepts within that I felt kids would not be able to understand. It is enjoyable for adults of all ages and contains meaning that requires mature understanding. The characters of the movie, aside from Aki Ross, Dr. Cid, General Hein and perhaps Capt. Grey are somewhat [standard]. The movie relies on heavy inspiration from movies such as Aliens, and the movie uses those preconceived [standards] to add a little more to the characters. You might be surprised that you might understand more about the characters than the movie actually said or showed about them. Those without having seen these [standards] before will definitely find them flat. Like the Final Fantasy franchise the movie does add the same elements of the characters from the games to the movie, but there is no time to fully develop them, unlike the 50+ hours available in the game. However the movie does its best with the lead characters and they are developed beyond the aspects of the traditional good and evil. Although the actors are CG, one can feel an attachment to them more than in any animated film but less than in a human movie. The music is average though there are a few scores that might warrant buying the soundtrack. Considering the visuals I have to admit I hardly noticed the music, so it might actually be better than I described it. The end theme by Lara Fabian is a good example and is very haunting. The movie does have some flaws, although these flaws rarely detract from the movie and when they do, they can easily be forgiven when you consider the movie as a whole. For instance, lip-synch of some characters are out of tune and are readily apparent. However they seemed less apparent or non-existent after the beginning. Steve Buscemi is a wonderful voice actor but don’t expect the exact same energy than in Armageddon, but rather a toned down energy of when he appeared in Con Air. The humor as well isn’t that exciting, but basic enough to be endearing though not really remembering. The Spirits Within is an engaging movie that brings the viewer to try and understand its world. Unlike most movies, we don’t just watch the movie but ask ourselves questions in relation to events or themes that appear on the screen. I didn’t really like FF7 or FF8 by Sakaguchi and felt the concept of aliens in a Final Fantasy movie to be ridiculous. Yet it is pulled off with the same finesse to be a memorable movie. While it doesn’t have all the same standard icons of FF like chocobos and moogles etc, it does keep the same underlying meanings, which is the reason FF is a great series of games. I didn’t really realize how much I liked the movie until it was over and began to reflect upon it. Reluctantly, I had to admit that it was a great movie. I readily admit that the movie does have its flaws like most other movies, but I find myself looking beyond it, who really cares? It is a tale reminiscent of Princess Mononoke and Titan A.E. yet better. In a year with movies such as A.I. and Shrek this movie easily outdoes them, and in terms of visual splendor this movie easily beats all movies that have come out and will come out this year for an Oscar, it’s that visually stunning. If this is the first step of CG movies, I’ll definitely wait in earnest for the next CG movie from Square Pictures.
Rating:
Summary: very very special movie
Review: i loved this movie. it had very special elements. i also liked the female character.
Rating:
Summary: Wow... great story... very gripping. But cheesy bad guy
Review: Well... Before seeing this movie I had read alot of the critics reviews. they all went like this... weak story, bad acting, good animation, but the charachters look fake. .... The movie was truly emotionally gripping. the beginning was slow... but it picked up pretty quick. the acting was great all around... nothing oscar worthy. Yet it was still great. and again... let me just say that the story is pheonominal. But you need too have an appreciation for japanese style story telling, in other words, have a brain and the ability too use it too appreciate it. The story moves fast and not everything is all laid our for you... you gotta think while your watching it. and the animation was incredible. I truly forgot sometimes I was watching CG animation. Thats how good it is. The Writing was great as well... I liked almost all the charachters. and when your favorites die... and they will... you are sad too see them go. The only one I didn't like was General Hein. The films token bad guy, and the most poorly animated charachter in the film, he looks like a second couson too Snidely Whiplash from the old hanna barbara cartoons. This guy is just too Eeeeee-vil in the cheesiest sense. he's well played... and he's got some good scenes. But he's just so over the top and obsessed. But still... he's not so badly written that he spoils the film... he just adds a pinch too much melodrama too some scenes. Hey... forget what the critics are saying, unless you actually bought Dude wheres my car, will like this film for it's pheonominal and sometimes too real animation, this is the first film ever too scare to the point where I got genuine chills, intenese and gripping story, and likable charachters. And if you truly did buy Dude, wheres my car... see it anyway. maybe there's still hope for you and you will like it anyway.
Rating: 
Summary: Good Until The End
Review: Guns and explosions! Those things in themselves are entertaining enough. But Final Fantasy also entertains with its top-notch animation and wacko-but-interesting storyline. Plenty of action and whatnot--especially whatnot--to keep you amused. In Final Fantasy, these screwy-looking aliens have spread throughout the earth, and the surviving humans live in shielded cities. These two doctors come up with an idea to get rid of the aliens by cancelling out their life energy or something with eight mystical spirit thingies. While the doctors and a few soldier friends go galivanting around in search of these spirits, an evil general reasonably concludes that they are all insane and tries to get rid of the aliens using large guns and explosions. The only thing that got screwed up in this otherwise excellent movie is the ending. The excitement and suspense were ruined with some laughable references to "Earth Gaya" and "Alien Gaya" and a confusing mish-mash of alien and human spirits. It turns out that the head-hancho bad guy alien was just a big blob.
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