5/5 final fantasy 7 advent children review
  by Jean-francois Gagnon (Quebec)
this is a amazing movie with so beautiful graphique, event wall disney can't do better.

3/5 NO ZACK ANIMATED FILM!
  by Tairyn M. Ayala
I have seen this movie like a 1000 times, it is beautifully made, if not a bit confusing plot wise (I have played the game like 1000 times too, so my confusion is not for lack of understanding of the FFVII universe)

But this is not what this review is about. I am reviewing the BluRay and lack of respect to us fans. I got the BluRay today and was VERY disappointed to find out the Zack animated short is not included AGAIN! I thought this thing would have EVERYTHING. If Transformers' 2 BluRay can have 6 hours of special features... well. Instead we only get the new Danzel short and a disappointingly short list of the same stuff we got on the DVD... no Zack short though, to me this feels like an excuse to squeeze more money out of us.

I previously bough the two disc DVD, in which of course, since there was a SPECIAL "Limited Edition Collector Set" whatever they call it, edition coming out at some point (which sold/sales for $49.99) wasn't included either. It was only reserved for those who forked out the cash. I thought, that by now, SquareEnix know that they got just about all they can from the DVD sales, so they should have included BOTH shorts in the BluRay plus whatever other incredible footage and revised scenes they claim to have, is not lack of space (neither was on the DVD) is just pure disregard for the fans who follow them even though they are the KINGS of delays and overrated hype. It disappoints me to see whoever decides what was to be included in the special features (or not), holding out on us fans like this. What, are they going to release a BluRay special edition with some fancy cover and charge $100 bucks for it just to get a 20 minute short film!? Do they really expect us to buy every release they put out there? I Guess I should just buy the most expensive one and shut up, but that is not the point.

I rate this a 3 because the movie is enjoyable and you do get the 1080p HD experience, but that's it. If you have the DVD, save your money, or buy another BluRay you don't have...like Transformers 2 lol.



5/5 Now It's a Movie
  by N. H Kan (Panama City, FL)
I kept track of the evolution of this movie. At first it was just going to be some 45 minute OAV, then what i call a Disney-length movie (about 72 minutes), and I never took it seriously as a movie. I thought it was just a sad attempt at making money off the fans. Then they extended it out to a full-length movie, and i got excited. I saw it. It was a fun ride, but it kinda left me dazed and confused. I knew the story of FF7 (though i had never finished the game), at least enough to know what was going on in general, but this story seemed like an excuse for the action that took up more than half the movie. It was rushed, the whole movie looked very gray and depressing, the transitions were very rough, and a bunch of other small nitpicky things annoyed me. I think i gave the original cut 5 stars at the time, but in retrospect, it was more of a 4. High marks for the animation being far beyond what we get in America for direct-to-DVD, and for the action being so wonderfully insane that it made my eyes tired.

This release deals with the big issue that kept the original cut from being a real movie and not just a movie for FF7 fans. The story. They really fleshed it out, and instead of trying to pick up where the game left off and continue that story, the additions have served to finally give this its own story (and one that fits the title much better). And like any decent movie based on a story told in another media (Serenity), you don't have to know what happened before, but there are obviously things that will be more significant to those that do, but mostly in a nostalgic sense. The pacing is also a lot better, so it doesn't feel so rushed.

They've added more than just talking though. Many of the action sequences have been extended and revamped, including the final duel (which definitely pushes this above the PG-13 rating of the original cut). There are a few more location shots here and there which are easy to miss, but help with the pacing. And this cut seemed more colorful. It's still pretty gray, but things like Cloud's shirt looking blue, and Vincent's cape now being bright red seemed to pop out at me. It also seems like the characters actually look beaten, bruised, and dirty during the fights, and i don't remember it being done quite so obviously before.

The only thing that bugged me about this is that it's only on Blu-Ray (i just got a PS3, so i finally got to see this) and that you can tell how old some of the sequences are (early in the movie's development, after they decided to do a full-length movie, new footage for Complete). But that's because they've been working on this for so long. I noticed that in the original cut. But unless you're as visually picky as me, it won't bug you too much.

So with all the additions, big and small, and even with it's shortcomings, Advent Children is finally a real movie to me. And it now earns a full 5 stars from me beyond all doubt.

5/5 fantasic movie
  by A. Kim
new scenes helped make the movie flow much better. visually stunning on 1080p tele. a bit sparse on extras beyond the film. overall a very solid addition to your sci-fi blue ray collection. and def a must for final fantasy fans.

4/5 Nice
  by Tiago R. E. Oliveira (Vitória, ES BRA)
Great images, great sound and a nice movie for gamers and Blu-Ray lovers!
Have Fun!