Visuals: 10/10
Graphically, this movie was stunning. The movements and details of the characters seemed lifelike, except for the fighting sequences of course. This movie is based around the action scenes, which were beautifully choreographed. Though the camera does move a little fast, it emphasizes the characters' supernatural abilities well.
Sound: 7/10
The music is just a regurgitation of the game's soundtrack. Some of the tracks are used from the Final Fantasy VII Piano Collection, such as Aeris and Tifa's themes. The music is superb of course but that fact that they just recycled it keeps the movie from getting a perfect score.
The sound effects were done well. The clashing swords and the exploding bombs roared out of the screen, harmonizing perfectly with the fast-paced action sequences. Of course, this made for very enjoyable fight scenes.
Story and Characters: 3/10
Here is where the movie falls apart. Of course, the movie is designed for people who have played the game before. Though they briefly explain the world of Final Fantasy VII, it's hardly enough to cover the game's complex story. The movie make no mention of what Materia is and the movie doesn't even introduce "Tifa's friends." They all just randomly come flying in to save the day against what seems to be Bahamut.
The movie's story had no coherent plot. Sephiroth's revival at the end was cheesy and seemed to be put in there simply because the story writers couldn't think of a more interesting antagonist. The shots of Aeris were also randomly placed. Though these scenes did reveal Cloud's guilt about letting her die, the director definitely overused the scenes.
The transitions to the fight scenes look like they were written by a drunk fourth grader. There was absolutely no point to Kadaj's engagement with Cloud at the beginning other than for the sake of fighting. He sends his two goons to go rattle Cloud's feathers then calls them back just before he's about to get hurt. Quite the same happens in Tifa's fight with Loz. Loz doesn't even clarify what it is he's looking for. All he does is say "let's play" then on comes the fight scene. These sort of transitions pretty much continue all the way until the hero is victorious and everyone is happily celebrating.
The characterization is absolutely terrible. Kadaj doesn't seem to have any clear cut ambitions; he only wants to "see his Mother and have her tell him what to do." In the first half the movie, Cloud just seems to be bumbling around until he magically develops his will to fight in his meeting with Vincent at Ajit. Tifa remains a static character, apparently serving to help Cloud to change himself to do whatever it is he needs to do. As for the rest of Cloud's party, we know nothing about them except what they look like and how they fight. Red XIII says only one line during the entire movie.
Reno and Rude of the Turks made for nice comic relief though their appearances were random. They too were static characters. Rufus was a little too mysterious in his dialogue and appearance, especially when compared to his personality in the game.
There are some continuity errors, if the movie is supposed to be a sequel to the game. In the movie, Cloud is confused and depressed. In the end of the video game, however, he is exactly the opposite of that. It seems like the movie writers decided to take his character transformation from the game and duplicate it in the movie. Also, I was under the impression that Midgar was pretty much destroyed by Meteor almost hitting it. I guess a few parts of the city survived despite having a moon sized rock come almost crashing into it.
Overall: 6/10
It's not a bad movie for those who have played the game. It's a nice visual aid to see how the battles are fought in real time and what the characters really look like (aside from blocky polygons). However, I don't recommend this movie at all to those who haven't enjoyed the game. You will be absolutely lost since the video game's plot is extremely complex in and of itself.
For those who have enjoyed the video game's excellent story, this movie will visually blow you away. If you want some good old action, this is the movie to watch. If you want anything more than that, look elsewhere.
Graphically, this movie was stunning. The movements and details of the characters seemed lifelike, except for the fighting sequences of course. This movie is based around the action scenes, which were beautifully choreographed. Though the camera does move a little fast, it emphasizes the characters' supernatural abilities well.
Sound: 7/10
The music is just a regurgitation of the game's soundtrack. Some of the tracks are used from the Final Fantasy VII Piano Collection, such as Aeris and Tifa's themes. The music is superb of course but that fact that they just recycled it keeps the movie from getting a perfect score.
The sound effects were done well. The clashing swords and the exploding bombs roared out of the screen, harmonizing perfectly with the fast-paced action sequences. Of course, this made for very enjoyable fight scenes.
Story and Characters: 3/10
Here is where the movie falls apart. Of course, the movie is designed for people who have played the game before. Though they briefly explain the world of Final Fantasy VII, it's hardly enough to cover the game's complex story. The movie make no mention of what Materia is and the movie doesn't even introduce "Tifa's friends." They all just randomly come flying in to save the day against what seems to be Bahamut.
The movie's story had no coherent plot. Sephiroth's revival at the end was cheesy and seemed to be put in there simply because the story writers couldn't think of a more interesting antagonist. The shots of Aeris were also randomly placed. Though these scenes did reveal Cloud's guilt about letting her die, the director definitely overused the scenes.
The transitions to the fight scenes look like they were written by a drunk fourth grader. There was absolutely no point to Kadaj's engagement with Cloud at the beginning other than for the sake of fighting. He sends his two goons to go rattle Cloud's feathers then calls them back just before he's about to get hurt. Quite the same happens in Tifa's fight with Loz. Loz doesn't even clarify what it is he's looking for. All he does is say "let's play" then on comes the fight scene. These sort of transitions pretty much continue all the way until the hero is victorious and everyone is happily celebrating.
The characterization is absolutely terrible. Kadaj doesn't seem to have any clear cut ambitions; he only wants to "see his Mother and have her tell him what to do." In the first half the movie, Cloud just seems to be bumbling around until he magically develops his will to fight in his meeting with Vincent at Ajit. Tifa remains a static character, apparently serving to help Cloud to change himself to do whatever it is he needs to do. As for the rest of Cloud's party, we know nothing about them except what they look like and how they fight. Red XIII says only one line during the entire movie.
Reno and Rude of the Turks made for nice comic relief though their appearances were random. They too were static characters. Rufus was a little too mysterious in his dialogue and appearance, especially when compared to his personality in the game.
There are some continuity errors, if the movie is supposed to be a sequel to the game. In the movie, Cloud is confused and depressed. In the end of the video game, however, he is exactly the opposite of that. It seems like the movie writers decided to take his character transformation from the game and duplicate it in the movie. Also, I was under the impression that Midgar was pretty much destroyed by Meteor almost hitting it. I guess a few parts of the city survived despite having a moon sized rock come almost crashing into it.
Overall: 6/10
It's not a bad movie for those who have played the game. It's a nice visual aid to see how the battles are fought in real time and what the characters really look like (aside from blocky polygons). However, I don't recommend this movie at all to those who haven't enjoyed the game. You will be absolutely lost since the video game's plot is extremely complex in and of itself.
For those who have enjoyed the video game's excellent story, this movie will visually blow you away. If you want some good old action, this is the movie to watch. If you want anything more than that, look elsewhere.