Art/Animation 5/5

This is one of the easiest decisions to make, period. It’s impossible to praise this animation highly enough. This is hands-down the best CG ever designed. Yes, Square is known for such graphically-rich masterpieces (Final Fantasy X and Kingdom Hearts II, to name a few) but this is so detailed, so well-designed, and so unbelievably beautiful that you cannot help but keep watching. Beginning with a good recap, every legendary moment of the game is recreated with some downright beautiful computer-generated images. The characters’ appearances are flawless; they retain every bit of what made them memorable from the game and add detail at every chance. You can see every bit of detail: from Cloud’s hair in the wind to Tifa’s beautiful and acrobatic kung-fu. And speaking of battles, the battles are so over-the-top and stunning that they could make the guys from DBZ drop their jaws in awe. When Cloud battles, there practically is zero gravity. Cloud flies through the air, Tifa jumps off walls, everyone has a beautiful grace and fluidity to their movements. Bullet-time is plentiful and hasn’t been used this well since the Matrix. Every scene is painted with such pristine detail and acrobatic scope that the entire movie looks so real, but so fantastic, making it walk the line between photographic realism and fantastic, over-the-top fiction. When the camera pans out, it can be hard to remember that this is computer-generated. Advent Children sets the bar for how good CGI can be and is by far the best use of it thus far.

Audio 4/5

Surprisingly, the dub is well done. Yes, the lip-sync is off sometimes, but overall, the dub is good. Steve Burton (the man behind the voice of Cloud in the Kingdom Hearts series) does a good job as Cloud. Tifa, voiced by Rachel Leigh Cook, is also voiced well. There is the occasional bad line here or there, but the dub’s emotion remains consistent. The sub basically has no problems. The music is covered by famous Final Fantasy composer Nobou Uematsu and, for the most part, it’s excellent. There are times where the loud guitar riffs feel a bit out of place, but the sounds and scores in Advent Children remain epic and extremely entertaining.

Story 3/5

This is where Advent Children stumbles. The story basically takes place two years after the events of the game; Cloud is part of a delivery service with the help of his party, and is suffering from a disease known as Geostigma. Turns out that Geostigma is caused by remnants of Jenova cells. Cloud encounters three silver-haired strangers, Kadaj, Loz, and Yazoo, who are trying to revive Sephiroth and follow Jenova’s wishes. Quite honestly, that’s it. Behind all of the beautiful animation and epic scores lies a story which really doesn’t live up to the Final Fantasy VII calibur. The game followed an intricate narrative with plenty of twists and turns. I do know that it’s hard to make a 2-hour movie live up to a 70-hour game, but there just wasn’t much happening. The entire movie’s plot is only there to string together the beautiful battle sequences. There isn’t much connection with the characters themselves, and it just disappoints when it comes to storyline. The game also doesn’t compensate for the viewers who haven’t played the game. Sure, there’s some recap and a nice documentary on the events, but the viewer will most likely want to dive into the world of FFVII immediately. The storyline is fragile and weak here, making this part a major disappointment.

Value 4.5/5

There’s plenty to do here. The movie itself is definitely worth another viewing, only to see the pristine and over-the-top battle sequences. The two-disc special edition has a recap documentary on the game, along with preview of future FFVII projects and a nice "Making Of" documentary. Some commentary would’ve been even better, but overall, the entire set is worth the $20.00 price tag.

Tilt 5/5

Anyone familiar with Final Fantasy VII will recognize its excellent cast of characters. From Yuffie’s perky lines, to Reno’s dorky, but cool ones, each character will be immediately recognizable to anyone who’s played the game. If you haven’t (shame on you), you’ll still be stunned by the animation. It’s amazing how downright beautiful this movie is. Just seeing Cloud fly a hundred stories and Tifa avoid injury by landing on a wall in bullet-time is worth anyone’s time. Square Enix has reinvented the world of CG with Advent Children, making this a bold step forward for their movies and games alike.

Final Verdict 4/5

Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children lives up to its legacy by providing a beautiful world to explore and some lovable characters to return to. Despite a weak storyline, Advent Children is worth the purchase to Final Fantasy fans, and anyone looking for a simply stunning movie will find Advent Children an excellent result. Square Enix presents nearly everything we love about Final Fantasy VII in this great continuation of an unforgettable narrative. If the rest are this good, bring more on. However, if you’re looking for a stellar story, Advent Children may disappoint. Anyone else will find Advent Children to be a roller-coaster ride that rises a hundred stories then flies back up and down the rest. It’s a great purchase, and worth anyone’s time.