Final Fantasy Spirits Withi: Alec Baldwin, Steve Buscemi, Ming-Na, Ving Rhames, Peri Gilpin, Donald Sutherland, James Woods, Keith David, Jean Simmons, Matt McKenzie, Matt Adler, Steve Alterman, Hironobu Sakaguchi, Motonori Sakakibara, Akio Sakai, Al Reinert, Jack Fletcher, Jeff Vintar, Ramin Mebdy: Amazon.ca: Video

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Additional Features

The special edition DVD of Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within can keep you occupied for hours. The first disc includes two feature-length commentaries. The first was recorded by co-director Motonori Sakakibara, sequence supervisor Hiroyuki Hayashida, sets and props lead artist Tatsuro Maruyama, and Phantom supervisor Takao Noguchi the day after the film was finished. They speak Japanese so you might have to read subtitles, but it's fun to hear them laugh as they enjoy the film. The second commentary, which is less giddy and more informative (and in English), is by animation director Andy Jones, editor Chris S. Capp, and staging director Tani Kunitake, who discuss technical elements of the animation, notes on the casting, and subtle details you might not have noticed. There's also an isolated version of the powerful score with infrequent but interesting comments from composer Elliot Goldenthal, and 11 scenes (81 minutes total) that alternate among storyboard, rough animation, and final film, with optional filmmaker commentary or subtitled factoids.

The bulk of the second disc is a 30-minute making-of documentary supplemented by numerous easy-to-find Easter eggs. There are also profiles of the seven major characters (including personal background, as well as voice actor and lead animator info), sketches and explications of three of the film's vehicles, DVD-ROM content, and an editing tool that allows the viewer to rearrange parts of the council-conference scene and play them back. Even the menu intros are interesting to watch! --David Horiuchi

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419 Reviews

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3.7 out of 5 stars (419 customer reviews)

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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars THE HIGH WATERMARK -Final Fantasy:The Spirits Within, Jun 21 2004

By A Customer

This review is from: Final Fantasy (Special Edition) (DVD)

Did you see the other movies that competed at the box during the summer of 2001? There was "Jurassic Park 3", "AI", "Cats & Dogs", "Tomb Raider" and "Rush Hour 2" -all unwatchable films. Seriously, these movies are like committee driven productions with very little originality. If you thought that any of these films were great, then stop reading here (it's obvious that what little brain space you have is needed for your basic survival and I wouldn't want you to actually 'think' for yourself)...

Then there was "Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within", a foreign film by a director, Hironobu Sakaguchi, who doesn't even speak english. And yet FF was absolutely original for a summer film; emphasis on story and character, post apocalyptic civilization coping with a mystery that has wiped out the majority of humanity, ghosts from another planet, a villian who is not a typical evil cliche -he's just trying to save the human race, a hero who may be infected by the spirits inside her and may subsequently be subverting a squad of marines, and the underlying theme of faith. All those elements add up to an underappreciated cult classic that Hollywood purposefully swept under the carpet.

Why was this film targeted with 0 marketing from the studio that distrubuted it, Sony Pictures? Cause the movie was totally financed by Square and Sony had no stake in it's success whatsoever. However, Sony was already in talks to create the cg for the all motion capture "Polar Express", a $100 million plus payday from Warner Bros to Sony for just making the graphics, disregarding the final outcome of the box office. That's a fat guaranteed paycheck. Check out this link regarding Tom Hanks public campaign to sink FF- (...)

(or just google "tom hanks digital actors") Hanks is quoted as saying that "I am very troubled by it" refering to the digital actors from FF! and this quote was in the trades around July 9th, the week before FF was released. He was worried that digital actors would replace actors, which is definately the case in "Polar Express" where Hanks plays most of the characters in the film!

So if you were Sony Pictures, would you market the hell out of FF and piss off America's most beloved actor or bury FF and then secure the deal to make "Polar Express"? Then, of course, Zemeckis and Hanks are now claiming that "Polar Express" is the first animated movie of its kind, which is not the case because Square did it first with FF.

So, check out the original.

"Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within" was a visionary film that scared the crap out of Hollywood and caused some major talent to emulate it. Don't buy the hype, "Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within" was not a Hollywood studio pic that was meant for summer blockbuster fare, it was a foreign film. And that said, how many foreign films have been so visionary as to create a new genre in animation?

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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars GREAT MOVIE, May 12 2004

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"maxwell-house-78" (ZION, NOT THE MATRIX, WAKE Up!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Final Fantasy (Special Edition) (DVD)

I know people are made that the movie had nothing to do with the games. Everyone please remember that the games are all different in many ways. The movie for example is a completely new world, new characters, and theme. And you really care about the story and what happens to the characters. That is what makes a Final Fantasy. Not Cloud or Squall swinging swords everywhere. People have just forgotten what makes the Final Fantasy series so great and that the storys.

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4.0 out of 5 stars 4 and 1 half, more like it. ___sory for misspelling___, April 2 2004

By

Jose L. Madrigal (Homestead, Florida United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)

This review is from: Final Fantasy (Special Edition) (DVD)

Yea, ok u all say it sucks and is nothing about final fantasy the vedio games. True i love the games me myself have ff9,10,10-2 and im about to get more. The movie is preety clear. Although nothing is got to do with the game, look more at the computer, see the detalies, and read u wanabe critices that is a new ff,,,, since it doesnt have much action i gave it 4 stars, but it's still a must see.....DETAILS..... The women faces of a challeng on collecting spirits to save the world.Not that easy plans are being made but not followed, and these plans leave to bad concequences.{{{{dont want to spoil it}}}} as she encounters freinds and foes, but overall the animation is great, as the girl walks, the hair moves according to her movements, in other words everything effects everything, and for all u coachpotatoes,eating bums, look at it again, and look wats good. There are even these moments where u doze off thing its
not computer because of its realness.

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