[General Discussion] FFVII Compilation Thread

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I didn't play DoC, but I heard it too leaves hints for yet another sequel. I wouldn't want it to end with Vincent, anyway. Like you said, Cloud pretty much cleans away his angst by the movie's end. I want the final chapter to show us what a happy Cloud looks like, and they need to give a final resolution with his relationship with Tifa. While I feel they subtly confirmed things in this movie, it wouldn't hurt to see at least one definitive romantic gesture before the series ends for good.

"You have to choose: A memory...or us?"

Buuuuuuuurn

And I'll admit it; the Turks stole the show.

This thing is sticky, and I don't like it. I don't appreciate it.

Well I just wondered, since the scene where Tifa's berating Cloud for not living on the present, they zoom in on the ring, as if there was some significance to it.

And Newborn's Seph grew on me. The voice really went well with the subtle yet evil vibe Sephiroth is known for. I admit, he scared me silly in this movie. I didn't envy Cloud.

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I think details like that is probably better left to fandoms. Considering that in Japanese cultures hints and innuendo is very important markers for specific plot point, fans who are familiar with those clues usually doesn't need overt deceleration in order to make conclusion of such things.

That's true, but the FF series is usually much more blunt regarding romances. Take the pond scene with Tidus and Yuna for instance. And it is something a lot of fans want to see, so I feel they should go ahead with it. If anything it would be a final indication of their happiness; Tifa is lonely when Cloud isn't around, and vice versa.

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and I wish he could get over Aerith - or at least resolve how he felt about her.

I feel this was definetely resolved in the movie.

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Aerith was reiterating what Tifa said, telling Cloud that he needs to let go of the past and embrace his present. The image of Aerith leaving with Zack in the end should be clear cut proof of this. Aerith wants Cloud to live happily with Tifa just as much as Tifa does.

I am a dolphin, do you want me on your body?

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Vincent's VA was also spectacular. If I'm not mistaken, isn't Cowboy Bebop's voice actor for Spike the same guy who did Vincent?

He is. I can't wait to hear a whole game with him (DoC).

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I'll agree to an extent about the lack of emotion, but the only person I really saw it from was Tifa. I think Cloud's was due to his personality and lack of social skill, but I couldn't really find an excuse for Tifa.

Secluded Cloud=Sad Tifa. It's simple really.

Also...

Spoiler:

It's apparently Omnislash version 5. While it's puzzling enough what happened to Omnislash 2-4, I thought it was Cloud doing Knights of the Round. The weapons were all stationed together, and he did zip around using each one.

I was speaking idiomatically.

You can find "On The Way to a Smile" and "Case of Tifa" in this site (along with Aerith's story "The Maiden", written by a different author).

http://xthost.info/ffwebnovel/ EDIT: beat me to it, damn.

I strongly recommend you check it out, as it really helps showing the transaction from post-FFVII characters to their AC counterparts. It also helps making the final scene in the movie even more poignant.

Spoiler:

Cloud and Denzel's relationship is very touching, even if it's only shown briefly in this movie. You get a good father/son vibe with them, and Denzel is ultimately the strongest link to chaining Cloud and Tifa together.

I took a look at Disc 2's extras, and here's some brief thoughts.

The Before Crisis trailer is pretty damn disappointing. The cool anime footage created just for the commercial is obscured with constant videos of the actual game. The rest of the trailer is just footage from Last Order, making its exclusion even stupider.

The Crisis Core trailer is better done, not obscuring any of the anime footage (most likely because they didn't have any actual game footage to show), although plenty of people are going to wonder about this "FFVII anime". The line at the end seems to strongly hint that you won't just be playing Zack, but maybe Cloud, Sephiroth, and Tifa as well.

The Dirge of Cerberus trailer is the best of the bunch, showing off plenty of cool footage that almost warrants it as "Advent Children 1.5". Even if the game still plays poorly, it will make little difference; it looks hot as hell.

The deleted scenes are basically alternate takes on certain dialogues, although I really wish they kept the one with

Spoiler:

Cloud telling Sephiroth how he once viewed him as a hero. Sephiroth's sarcastic response is vintage villany.

The "Distance" extra is very nice, showing you just how serious the guys at Square take the series. I also find it amusing that they refer to FFVII as the pinnacle of the FF series, as it's definetely going to make some jaded fans angry. The interview with Uematsu was a highlight as well; the man has a certain prescence with him that Nomura or nobody else has, speaking with true experience and imagination. Plus it's amusing how he verbely recites the first notes of OWA. You'll also get a chuckle out of Nomura admitting that Cloud is a very weak character emotionally, but how it's also a key in showing his humanity.

My favorite part of the interview was their explanation to why Cloud distances himself from Tifa, even after 2 years. It was pretty much what I was thinking as well.

Oh, and Nomura also spells out how this movie is basically "a first step toward something bigger." If he can continue to outdo himself, the encore will be something spectacular indeed.

Anyway, now that I've given time to let the movie sink in, I've grown to love it even more with time. The fights were the most spectacular I've seen in years, especially the final battle. My most major complaint was the small screentime of the rest of the cast. It was so cool seeing them all again, I really wanted more scenes where they work together. Even Tifa felt underused, and she got a lot of screentime. Remake or sequel, game or movie, I really hope the next iteration will focus more on everyone in total.

What does everyone think about

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Rufus remaining an active role now? Do you think they're trying to play him as a reformed villain now, like with the Turks? I for one don't like it; this is the same guy who set up a public execution for Tifa and Barret. He's bad, and I only approve of his return if he continues to be bad.

What kind of toxic man-thing is happening now?

That was one of the funniest moments in the film too.

Spoiler:

"I managed to survive by-"

"Whatever, don't care."

"...escaping at the last minute-"

"Shut up."

" "

FELIPE NO

If you watched the MTV interview about KH2, you'd see that Cook also has an accurate look at Tifa's personality (strong on the outside, fragile and quiet in the inside, is a mother type figure, etc). By comparison, Suvari's interview merely consists of her going on about Aerith's dress (so pink and fluffy and light, I love her wardrobe, etc). Also, Spike TV had a short interview where Cook mentioned how she did a lot of practicing on how she should sound when hitting and being hit.

Say what you will about her performance, but I'm convinced they got the perfect actress for the job.

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I'm also a bit surprised how much punishment she can take. Loz slammed her face into a podium, then smacked her a few times with that weapon of his, which could pierce concrete.

What, you don't want my bikini-clad body?

Well, if you take a look at the "Distance" feature, they state outright that they weren't concerned with physics, and just wanted to let loose. Techincally everyone's at lvl 99, so it shouldn't be too far-fetched.

Although there were plenty of times where I stood up and said "Oh come on, Cloud can't do THAT."

Jam it back in, in the dark.

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Incidentally, I'm surprised that people seem to like Vincent's dub VA. Waaaaay too gravelly for my taste.

I thought he was one of the best. I was slightly worried when I heard Blum would take the role, as he's prone to using the same tone of voice. But fortunately, he used a variation of his Darcia voice (from Wolf's Rain) for Vincent, and it worked really well. I can't wait to hear more of him in DoC.

Speaking of remnants...

Spoiler:

I'm still not completely sure what Kadaj was supposed to be. Was he a normal human that was injected with Jenova's cells, like Cloud? Was he a genetically created speciman that's actually younger than he appears? Was Shinra even responsible for his creation, or was he spawned from Jenova's remains? And when he mentions his "brothers and sisters", is he referring to the kids infected with Geostigma, or perhaps there are more guys (and girls) like him out there? I'll assume it's the latter, as it's a good enough excuse for Sephiroth to inhabit more bodies...

I watched the movie again today, and it's even better the second time. If I had to pick a favorite scene aside from the final battle, it would be

Spoiler:

When everyone helps Cloud reach Bahamut. It was teamwork at its finest, right up to the very last person. It also makes one dream about a PS3 sequel incorporating KH2's reaction commands

Does anyone have links to:

1. translations of the director's commentary, or just highlights.

2. the lyrics for the new songs.

Edit: I found some highlights of the commentary, courtesy of Vileath of ac.net. Some very interesting things found, and maybe some hints of what's to come. My comments are in paranthesis.

Spoiler:

I have a couple of quick points from the commentary:

- There's a lot more languages in the FFVII world besides Japanese. (probably referring to the accents)

-Apparently during the remade scenes of the game's last battle, Cait Sith doesn't have the fat moogle due to workload issues? (huh?)

- The representation of the Lifestream was hard to create.

- There's a meaning to the number of birds seen flying over the mounts of wreckage, but they don't say what it is. (maybe it equals the number of party members? I guess I'll go count)

- There's a meaning to the angel statue, but they didn't say what. (angels in RPGs are never a good thing)

- Healin was designed based on a hot spring resort. There's slopes for Rufus up to the entrance, but since thinking it's be a struggle for him to get up them they designed an elevator. But it doesn't show up at all in the film. Nomura laments its lose. The wheelchair was also motion captured, and is still in the studio. (well, he always has Reno and Rude to carry him..)

- Rufus's left hand is hidden, but he has Jenova's head at that point in time. There were some people doing the commentary who didn't know about that.

- Marlene originally threw a rock at Loz. It was changed to Materia later (along with the addition of the scene where Marlene looks at the box before).

- Some of the commentary staff asked what was that black thing that appeared when Kadaj stepped into the water, to which someone replied that it was the the dye from his clothes bleeding. Really, it's the will/'shinen' overflowing from Kadaj that's flowing into the water, like Kadaj himself (being a 'shinentai'/remnants) flowing into the water. (that answers my other question)

- The reason the children's movements are quite super-human is because they drank the water mixed with Kadaj's will, and Sephified them.

- Shogo Suzuki, who plays Vincent, did the title call/said the title in the trailers at first. They hadn't decided to cast him as Vincent at the time, but apparently the title call is what triggered it.

- During production of the game the tips of Vincent's boots were rounded, but Yoshinori Kitase [producer] told them to "make them pointier" so they were changed to the pointy ones you see now. The reason he asked for them changed was that they 'didn't fit Vincent's character', but the meaning behind this isn't explained. (probably to do with his design. He has quite a few pointy things around him)

- The scene with the Kadaj and Rufus in the building was added later. There's a meaning behind the '13' on the building they're in, but they didn't say what. (FFXIII)

- The name of the Bahamut in the film is "Bahamut SHIN" (Tremor). This name was only revealed with the figure, so it's not well known. The names of FFVII's Bahamuts come from old Japanese fighter planes. (KAI/Neo, REISHIKI/Zero, SHIN/Tremor). (Lost in Translation; it's SIN now)

- The reason Bahamut Shin is digging where the memorial statue was is because Kadaj ordered him, believing Jenova's head was there.

- Nomura didn't design Yuffie or Barret's outfits. Yuffie's was done by some of the female staff, and Barret's by the art director Yuusuke Naora. Barret's tattoo was design by Luz (who made the cap and T-shirt from the boxset).

- The scene where everyone helps Cloud jump up towards Bahamut Shin is called the 'Relay Battle', and is a homage to the scene from the game's ending where when Cloud reachs up towards the light Tifa is holding out her hand. (Reaction Command: Relay Battle. Heh)

- Rufus' gun was originally a small design that could be hidden in his sleeve.

- Kadaj, Loz and Yazoo's bikes have a machinegun installed in the front. Even though it isn't used in the film, during the early stages there were scenes where they used them.

- The scene where water bursts out in the church was a homage to the game's ending where the Lifestream flows out from the ground. For that reason, the camera angle was made the same.

- There was a scene where Kadaj and Cloud fought on top of debris, climbing up it, but it was cut.

- The scene where Kadaj looked down on Cloud was planned to have the rest of the party members gather around as well. (dammit...)

- For the scene where Kadaj absorbs Jenova, there was a plan for him to absorb it by eating Jenova. (I imagined the same thing. I got Silent Hill 3 vibes for a minute, but it would be stupid for him to eat an entire head. Unless it's only part of Jenova's head....)

- The Sephiroth battle was originally planned to take place in at dusk.

- The black substance Sephiroth summoned was a kind of negative Lifestream, from the people who had died of Geostigma. (this is mentioned in Aerith's story, about how Sephiroth can manipulate the negavite aspect of the Lifestream. I expect this to be the center of future stories)

- Advent Children was made with the theme of 'family'.

- Since they had really wanted a scene showing Tifa and Aerith's connection, they added the "so you've been with us all along" scene. (the second most bittersweet scene, after Cloud and Denzel. In many ways, Aerith has helped Tifa as much as she has Cloud)

- During production the scene where Aerith put her hand on Cloud's forhead and says 'mother?' Cloud's eyes were open during the scene.

- The scenes where the wolf appears are at the cliff where Zacks was killed, the Forgotten Capital and the church. The wolf symbolizes Cloud's feelings of regret towards the events associated in these places. Once he's able to settle all these the wolf (Cloud's feelings) return to normal and disappears. (Wolf = Cloud's scene of regret.) (well there goes the theory that it was Zack)

- Casting Red XIII was apparently difficult. (it's ONE line!)

- The scene where the children jump into the water and Aerith and Zacks appear wasn't changed at all since it was completed. It's the scene they most wanted to show since the start of development.

There's nowhere I can't reach.

Nice find on the lyrics, but I was hoping for english translations of "Promised Land" and "Divinity". The OWA lyrics are pretty amusing; it's like Nomura wasn't really trying. But I guess he just wanted to find some lyrics that would sound cool in Latin.

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Spoiler:

The term, from some other translation on Chinese Website I visited in there is a passage that Vincent called Kadaj the "thoughts", "memories" and "body" ( 思念體 ) of Sephiroth. Of course, putting those three word together is actually suggesting that they are a type of spirit body that are formed through the memory and thought of either Jenova or Sephiroth, but not actually a real spirit. Not sure if that make sense.

It doesn't, really. I never thought of Kadaj as

Spoiler:

an extension of Sephiroth, but rather his own individual, serving his Mother by his own will. None of the brothers really resemble Sephiroth's personality, aside from Yazoo (the creepy laughs).

Now for the one scene that's really been bugging me.

Spoiler:

The image of Cloud and Tifa passed out in a field of flowers. I've been wondering what they were implying with this scene. Now knowing that the wolf depicted in the movie represents Cloud's hesitance and guilt, I'll take a stab at it; I believe the scene is meant to show the life Cloud wants to have with Tifa, and with the wolf keeping a fair distance away symbolizes Cloud's hesitation to embrace that life.

Or maybe this could be a hint of something that could happen between them later on.

This thing is sticky, and I don't like it. I don't appreciate it.

One of the few ac.net threads that don't make me cringe; a list of easter eggs found throughout the movie.

http://forums.adventchildren.net/sho...3&page=1&pp=15

(the password is Sephiroth ;/ )

I noticed a few when I was watching, but some of the more deeply hidden ones made me chuckle.

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My personal favorite though is

Spoiler:

the Loveless sign that hits Rude on the head has a picture of Aerith on it. Other Loveless signs in the movie also have a picture of Tifa.

I am a dolphin, do you want me on your body?

Here you go, I've been taking quite a few screencaps using PowerDVD lately.

Spoiler:

As for "Loveless", I don't remember the exact story, but it dealt with something about two lovers seperated by war I think, with the male making a promise to come home after the war. Something like that.

I was speaking idiomatically.

Are you going to upload those in a Photobucket journal? If so, send me a link.

This may be another easter egg, or just a coincidence.

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I kind of hope for the latter, as I really hate the idea of them referencing that awful FMV. At least she's proportional this time.

On the subject of designs, I'd like to mention that the ones in AC are probably the best Nomura has ever done. Even the anti-Nomura crowd shouldn't have any qualms, especially since he didn't overload anyone with zippers or belts.

Tifa definetley gets my vote for the best redesign ever for an RPG character, even if the dress seams do sometimes give the illusion of nipples.

There's also an interesting alternate take with her in the deleted scenes.

Spoiler:

In the part where she berates Cloud for living in the past, she holds back a lot in her lecturing, then timidly says "There, I said it.", as if she had been mustering the courage to tell Cloud off. The fact that she's more aggressive toward Cloud (pissed, even) is definetley more welcomed.

Oh, and does anyone know if "Water" from the OST is an arrangement of an existing FFVII song? I'm pretty sure I heard it in the original soundtrack, but I can't figure out which song it is (I think it was during the ending).

Most amazing jew boots

That isn't Loveless, it was some fantasy play. Loveless is mentioned but never shown. But hey, maybe we'll finally see something in the next game.

FELIPE NO

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Check it out: from the beginning of the movie:

Nice.

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I never saw the Tifa Loveless image, but this confirms it. I wonder if the 6 written on her dress has any meaning? Also, it sort of looks like she's holding a rose, or maybe that's just a blemish on the sign. There's all sorts of theories going on with the women appearing in the Loveless signs (my take; the sign with Aerith's dropping down shows that her role as a love interest is over).

Also, here's a shot of the beginning.

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They said there was a meaning behind the birds shown, but they wouldn't reveal it. I thought it would represent the number of the main group, but there's over 20 birds.

What, you don't want my bikini-clad body?

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Probably, if you do some digging on Japanese auction sites. As so far, all the known custom jobs (to me) have been from Japan. Haha, but good luck, if I remember correctly that last custom job I posted went for over $500.

How about the domestic Cloud with Fenrir? Any places selling it for less than $60? I still want that Cloud PlayArts figure, bike or no.

I just watched the Venice footage. It's basically an unfinished version of the movie, no real big changes, aside from the battle at the Forgotten City. The most interesting parts are the musical cues (interesting how they use "Water" during the conversation with Tifa and Marlene in the church), and the funky DNA-style credits.

Probably the most interesting feature in Disc 2, aside from Distance, are the AC trailers. It's interesting looking at the first trailer ever made, which served as a teaser for the official unveiling in TGS 2004 2 days afterwards. I can't imagine the surprise and shock that befell those lucky attendants when they first saw Cloud walking down the church, with the cryptic line of "THIS IS NOT FOR PLAYING". They probably didn't see it coming, just like we didn't.

I can also see why the rumors about Cloud being the only survivor of the group originated; the first trailer did give off a creepy apocalyptic vibe, especially when Marlene said that many people died on the day of the final battle. Still, common sense should've told them that there was no way Square would kill off all the other characters like that. It's small wonder that Tifa's unveiling in the Jump Fiesta 2004 trailer brought forth the most number of hits.

Also interesting is the E3 2005 trailer. I don't recall that particular trailer ever being available for download. Either that or I didn't decide to view it, thinking the movie was due that following September. Yeah, I'm still pretty upset over that.

As for the Gamestop bonus disc, while it's upsetting that only Cloud Tifa and Aerith's VA's are interviewed (why no George Newbern!?), it's still pretty neat. Despite Southjag's rant, Cook continues to show just how much she got into the role. The way she mentions how she focused on nailing every line as perfect as possible and hoping that fans will approve of her voice for Tifa was almost adorable. I've never seen any of Cook's movies (and I don't plan to), but I really think she found her calling here. I was happy to hear how couldn't wait to play Tifa's voice again in a future game. You and me both.

As for Suvari, while she seemed generally interested in what she was doing, the scenes shown of her at work kind of gave me the impression that out of all the actors, she probably needed the most retakes.

As for Burton, the guy is pretty cut. He's a soap opera star after all. Like Cook, he showed much enthusiasm playing the role of Cloud, and he stated how nervous he was playing such a hugely popular character. While personally it looked like Cook was more into it, both actors have shown that they truly care about the roles they were playing. And that's why they're the two best voices out of everyone else, in my opinion. I hope we get to hear Burton's work on a more confident Cloud later on.

Is it me, or is Advent:One Winged Angel the best song ever? I've heard it at least ten times and it still hasn't gotten old. I had doubts, but Uematsu has managed to surprass the original arrangement in every way. It is by far the best song in the entire soundtrack, with Divinity II, Tatakau Monotachi and Promised Land as close runner-ups.

Jam it back in, in the dark.

Nice FAQ. It lists a lot of interesting points, especially

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the fact that Cloud is actually a level beyond 99, while everyone else is 99. The Turks, however are at a lower level, so that dispels a certain person's claim that the Turks are top tier, or that Rude is stronger than Tifa.

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Spoiler:

Q. Was there a meaning in the number of birds there were? (From commentary)
A. There was 29 birds. It's rumoured there was 29 people in the staff when FFVII went on sale but it's unknown if it's true or not.

The thing is, if it's true, why keep it a secret? Unless

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they only put 29 birds because that's what the original ending had, and as a result they themselves don't know the significance, since it was already established in the original game.

This one is the most interesting.

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Next to the "family" photo of Cloud, Tifa, Denzel and Marlene, there's a can of Amino-D. Amino-D is a drug used to help patients who are chemically injured or who have a chronic disease.

Do you think the drug is for Denzel? Or could it be for something else?

There's nowhere I can't reach.

Forgot to comment on this:

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Oh, and I've noticed that everywhere I've stopped by, AC has been sold out! I'm quite surprised, even a big chain store like HMV had no copies left. Maybe it was a small shipment or something...

Why assume it's because of small shipments? Maybe it's because the movie has been highly anticipated for so long and is selling like hotcakes. Even though everyone on earth but me downloaded the movie, I still wouldn't be surprised if it pulled some big sales numbers. I'm not sure if it'll sell as much as a big SE game, but I do expect it to make more money than the standard anime release.

Here's an interesting read about the potential of AC's sales.

http://animenation.net/news/askjohn.php?id=1307

Even though I was mostly thinking about more sales sealing the deal for a remake and other movies by SE, I failed to look at the big picture; an outbreak of serious CG films to replace kiddie embarassments like Hoodwinked and Ice Age 2. There's always been a potential there, but Square has been the only company brave enough to try it in America. Plus, CG movies can do many action scenes that are otherwise impossible to do in live movies (or it wouldn't look nearly as seamless). So I hope AC starts a trend, either way.

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I watched until the end, since I know it's Square's practice to always include a final image or whatnot. Plus, I already knew that this particular movie had something past the credits, I just wasn't sure what. Besides, what FF fan would skip through the traditional FF theme?

I am a dolphin, do you want me on your body?

You should keep in mind that the original running time was only 60 minutes. It's not like they had room to insert much dialogue. What other choice did they have but to make sure all the characters got required screentime, AND do something useful? And despite the fact that it's FFVII, Square was still taking a big risk by making this movie, like they did with Spirits Within. The majority of fans want to see their favorite character in action, not sitting around and chatting all day.

Personally speaking, anyone who says AC was just mindless action is wrong. Above anything else, it gave proper closure to one character's emotional conflict that the original game failed to do. If you want more dialogue, wait for the inevitable finale (which, I've decided, should play out like FFVIII and focus more on the characters and their relationships, while the whole "saving the world" deal takes only second priority).

I was speaking idiomatically.

The 20 minute feature was a completely different story. The story with Kadaj and co was 60 minutes.

I think I finally figured out

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the reason it's called "Omnislash v.5". The 5 probably represents the 5 different variations of the limit break. So what about 2-4? Think about Cloud's other appearaces.

FFVII: Omnislash
Ergheiz: Omnislash 2
Kingdom Hearts: Omnislash 3
Kingdom Hearts 2: Omnislash 4
Advent Children: Omnislash 5

The only snag is that AC predates KH2. But maybe they had KH2's Omnislash finished before AC's.

What kind of toxic man-thing is happening now?

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At any rate, I kinda wish they went into more about why he was feeling guilty (I reckon he feels maybe slightly guilty about the state of the world in that his actions ultimately amounted to fuck-all) and more about what geostigma was, how it was affecting people, that sort of thing.

You can find the answer here.

http://www.ff7ac.net/?s=pages/shorts/4

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That's why Tseng and Rufus are back (although the way in which Rufus came back was great) and Cloud is still distant and weak.

That should be spoiler tagged, but

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I'd say Rufus being alive would be considered a change to the story. And it's pretty obvious Cloud overcame his weakness and guilt by the movie's end. I'm told that despite a brief appearance, Cloud appears more confident in DoC.

And people are a bit mistaken when they say that the Cloud in AC is no different than the Cloud from the original game. That isn't really true. In the beginning, Cloud was basically an asshole. He was arrogant and lonesome, but he was distant or guilt-ridden. He becomes this way halfway through the game, after Aerith dies and he finds out about his past. He regains some confidence by the end of the game, but is clearly full of guilt again by AC. I don't think this was forced in order to milk the story, it's just a natural progression of Cloud's character. There was never a moment in the game where Cloud lets go of his past (you can blame the ending for that one).

Like I said before, the final story, whenever SE decides to end it, should focus on Cloud clearing away any problems he has left. Finally being able to settle down with Tifa and their "kids" without any regret should be the perfect way to end the series for good.

FELIPE NO

Well yeah, it would've been nice if the story was at least included on the DVD or summarized (especially since it tells you where Denzel came from, and why his prescence is significant). At least "Distance" describes the reason for Cloud's mood in better detail.

Despite some similarities, I still find AC Cloud a much more extreme case than game Cloud at his worst.

What, you don't want my bikini-clad body?

The situation you're describing was a result of Sephiroth's tampering. I don't really count that, as those events were beyond Cloud's control. And he didn't go completely mental on his own, it was the mako poisoning and mind control that did his brain in.

Jam it back in, in the dark.

A (pretty much) complete translation of the DVD commentary. It's quite amusing, especially Nomura's insistance that the angel statue represents a big meaning, even though his own staff think he's making shit up.

Spoiler:

# Opening Message

Nomura: So, we start with a message.
?: Haha, that was quick [starting the commentary].
?: Nice message.
Nomura: I wonder who wrote it.
(Laughs)
?: "Who wrote it?" (Laughs)
Nomura: Secret.
?: Secret? (Laughs)
?: Oh, so we're starting [the commentary] with a secret.
Nomura: I’ll tell you what it is at the end of the movie.
?: Right, don’t forget to tell us then! (Laughs)


- The original game opening BGM and ending scene was used for the beginning of the movie.


# Red XIII running towards the camera.

?: We changed this part a bit.
?: His tail’s on fire (Laughs)
?: Forget what he said.
Nomura: It’s a flame coming from his tail.

Nozue: It’s been 8 years since the development of the original game.
?: 8 years, huh.
Nomura: 7 years actually.
?: Er, well that’s… (Laughs)
?: I’m sorry…
?: Hmmm…
Nomura: Anyway, this story takes place 2 years after the game…


- Originally the movie was supposed to go on sale 7 years after the game went in development but it was delayed and released 8 years later instead.

- The story begins 2 years from where the game ended.

- Reno had too thin of a character so Nomura and Nozue wondered if they could characterize him but, after adding more action scenes for him, his character was expanded enough.


# Center of the foggy Northern Crater.

?: Quite a turn of events here.
?: The tension’s growing.
Nomura: It was hard depicting the tension here using sound alone, really. (Laughs)
?: But this is supposed to be a movie.

Nomura: We were lacking materials… Weren’t we? That was a question. Really, that was a question.
?: Yeah, we know (Laughs)


Commentators are:

Director / Character Designer, Tetsuya Nomura
Co-director, Nozue Takeshi
Scenario Writer, Nojima Kazushige
Associate Director, Hazama、
Advertising Department, Oofuji、
Head of the Kingdom Hearts Motion Capture, Handou
Head of the FFVII Compilation Project, Imaizumi、
Goods Department, Matsuzuka。


# Flashback to FFVII when all the characters were gathered on green background.

?: Was Japanese the main language in the world of FFVII?
?: No, it was one of many.
?: But looks like there’s quite a bit of Japanese in there.
?: Well, it’s not Earth after all.


- It appears there are various languages in FFVII besides Japanese.


# Sephiroth comes down to strike Cloud.

?: This was the last scene [from the game]… wasn’t it?
Nomura: Yes, it’s the way we depicted the scene from the game.
?: Amazing.
Nomura: Well, that was the time of my debut so I couldn’t really tell you about the scene.
(Laughs)
Nomura: And that’s why I asked if we were lacking materials earlier.
?: Stop that, please. Seriously, stop.


- The representation of the Lifestream was hard to do.


# Birds flying over the ruins of Midgar

Nomura: See the birds flying here? There’s a secret to number of birds flying.
?: Seriously?
?: What is it?
Nomura: Well, that’s another secret. I’ll tell you later.
?: Is there a secret to the number of people too? (Laughs)


- Rumours have it that the number of birds represents the number of people in the staff at the time.

- The monument was designed according to the disaster that took place in the game when the Meteor hit Midgar..

- There are many signs in the city of Edge and playing around, Visual Works decided to add the staff’s names to them such as “Hazama’s Warehouse.”. Of course, many of the signs that appeared in the game were added too such as the Loveless signs. Maybe Nomura’s name was added too.

- Cait Sith didn’t appear on his Moogle due to workload issues.

- The motion capture and camera angles for the scene where Denzel is lying on a bed with Marlene sitting next to him, was revised many times. What you see is what resulted towards the end of the production.

- There’s a meaning to the angel statues that appear but they don’t say what.

# Camera passing by the angel statue.


?: There’s a lot of secrets to this movie, isn’t there (Laughs)
?: Is there really a secret to it? (Laughs)
?: How many secrets is that now? (Laughs)
?: The third secret.


- The design of the new Seventh Heaven is different from the old one that was destroyed. The new bar is located in Edge, a city that was built around Midgar so that the ruins are concealed.


# Wolf appears next to sword.

Nomura: See the wolf here? There’s a great meaning to it.
?: Is that the old sword?
Nomura: Yes, it’s Cloud’s old sword.
?: But the wolf’s taking shelter behind it now (Laughs)
?: "Oh, so cold…" (Laughs)
?: That’s going to be the fourth secret now.
?: Fourth now? (Laughs)
Nomura: The wolf’s quite important, you know. Think about what it means.
?: All I can think about are the number of secrets right now (Laughs)
?: Well, it’s definitely the fourth secret now (Laughs).


- Meaning to the wolf mentioned later.

- The story takes place within a 3 day period in the movie and the weather was set appropriately such as the direction of the wind and how strong it was.

- In the scene where Kadaj knocks Cloud’s sword to the ground, it was written in the script that he “ignores and knocks it away from the spot as if it was never there” but, in the final version it was only kicked to the ground.

- The lighting in the scene where Kadaj and his two companions appear were revised many times.


# Bike scene where Yazoo and Loz leaps down hill to go after Cloud.

Nomura: Hmmm, what happened to the “vroom” sound here.

Nomura: Loz turns on the engine and makes the “vroom vroom” sounds himself.
?: Loz is my two year old son.
(Laughs)
?: He’s always making funny noises, “Vroom! Vroom! Bang Bang!”
?: So that’s where the sounds came from.
?: Yeah. And besides that, all he can say is, “play with me”.
(Laughs)
?: Don’t they say that in Manga? (Laughs)


- One of the commentators said, “It’s impossible for the bikes to move like that”, and Nozue answers, “It’s CGI after all.” It appears Nomura was after the impossible since it was CGI they were using.

- The large sword Cloud uses during the bike chase scene is referred to by Nomura as the “First Sword”, the first sword of the six Cloud carries with him. When his sword gets knocked away, Nomura wants the viewer to imagine him going off to search for it.


# Remnants leaves Cloud behind without his First Sword.

Nomura: His First Sword was knocked away but I’m sure he goes off to look for it at this point. Have fun imagining that part.
?: He looks really upset here.
?: Must be crying rivers. (Laughs)
?: So he goes off to pick up his sword at this part.
?: He couldn’t find it, could he? (Laughs)
?: “Where could it be…”
?: Wow, it sure got knocked far away. (Laughs)

# Cloud on his way up the path to Healin Lodge

?: This is the part after he found his First Sword again?
?: Yeah. This scene takes place afterwards.


- “Healin Lodge” was a temporary name but, it ended up being left as it was. It was imagined as a hot spring resort for Rufus. There is a slope that leads up to the entrance but thinking that it would be rough for Rufus on a wheelchair, an elevator was designed for him but wasn’t shown in the movie sighs Nomura. The wheelchair was motion captured and remains in the studio.

- Facial animation was added to Cloud for the first time when he speaks with Rufus. They concentrated on his eyes for his expressions as they thought that was most appropriate for him.


# Cloud talking to Rufus at the Healin Lodge.

Nomura: One of his hands isn’t moving so you don't notice it.
?: Is he holding it already?
Nomura: He is.
?: What’s “it”?
?: You don’t know? (Laughs)
Nomura: Jenova’s head. He probably…
?: He’s probably been holding onto it all this time.
?: All the way until the second half of the movie.
Nomura: I had tried to watch this part with the thought that he held onto it the whole time in mind but, it didn’t give me that feeling. It was more like his left hand was wounded and that’s why it wasn’t moving. It was planned so that you wouldn’t notice until it was revealed later but, it’s a shame really.
?: So he had it the whole time?
Nomura: He did.
?: Really? He really had it the whole time??
Nomura: If you look at the way Rufus is just now, it makes you think he has nothing in his left hand but when you think about it, he should have it. His arm doesn’t look like it’s injured at all (Laughs)
?: Did Reno and Rude know he was holding onto it?
Nomura: There’s no way they would know.
?: Yeah, you’re right.


- When Rufus had his left hand hidden, he was holding Jenova’s head. Many of the staff didn’t know.

- Not known if Reno and Rude knew where Jenova’s head was. Tells you later in the movie.

- Cloud lives in the ruins of the church.

- Various additional scenes and changes were made to enhance the flow of the movie due to the scene where Marlene saw the box full of Materia.

- A kind of black “pus” flows out from the Stigma and originally it looked like an unbearable thing. A lot happened to tone down the substance’s appearance. What you see in the movie is the toned down version.

- Even though Rufus was holding Jenova’s head with Kadaj before him, he wasn’t agitated. He enjoyed watching how Kadaj was reacting to the situation.

- The place where Cloud’s original sword lies is where Zack died. It’s set there as a gravestone. The script for the scene where Cloud sticks the sword back into the ground was revised many times.

- The Kingdom Hearts motion capture staff helped with the scene were Loz arrives at the church. Scenes that were used during the auditions for Loz’s motion capture actor were also used here. Originally Nomura wanted a very quiet tune added to the fighting scene but it ended it as a piano score.


# Loz arrives at the church.

?: Loz went there to play, didn’t he?
?: Feels like he can be a good friend.
?: He probably doesn’t feel the same way (Laughs)
?: Gulp.


- Someone commented they want to go have a drink with Loz.

- Since they couldn’t watch through the whole movie to check everything, only the important scenes were adjusted and shown in the Venice Film Festival. During the premiere, the movie slipped off from the projection screen and Nomura was really worried. Later, the sound recording was completed on the last day just before the showing at Tokyo International Film Festival,.

- It was the layout staff that suggested the Fanfare melody being added to Loz’s phone.

- Originally, Marlene threw a stone at Loz. Taking into account the scene where Marlene sees the box of Materia, they changed it so that she threw Materia instead.

- Eye movements were adjusted in millimeters.

- The girl holding the Moogle doll gained popularity. When the Moogle doll appeared during the oversea premieres, viewers got very excited.

- Cloud’s face was redone many times in the scene where he rushes over to Tifa in the church. It took a lot of work to adjust the lighting so that his eyebrows would give the right impression.

- The scene where Marlene looks at the box of Materia was added so that viewers would get the idea that Cloud was looking around for the Materia, realizing that it was gone and Loz had taken it.


# Cloud passes out from the Geostigma.

?: The camera seemed to be moving towards Cloud and Tifa. Who was it that was running towards them?
Nomura: Secret.
?: Secret? (Laughs)
Nomura: Look, there’s the wolf again.
?: Is that the sixth secret? (Laughs)
?: No, it’s the fifth.
?: The secrets are all about numbers (Laughs)
?: Just watch [the movie] (Laughs)


- When Cloud passes out due to the pain from his Geostigma, the screen goes white and the camera shakes as someone runs towards them. It was only revealed that they were Rude and Reno after Cloud wakes up back in Seventh Heaven and the same commentator asked Nomura the question again.

- They redid Cloud’s face many times as he wakes up from the bed. It was hard work getting the lighting right.

- The scene where Kadaj attaches the Materia to his arm was added due to the scene where Marlene saw the box of Materia. Even though the production staff told Nomura that they wouldn’t be able to add in the scene on time, he stressed many times about how important the scene was and it was eventually added just in time.


# Back to Seventh Heaven.

?: There’s the angel statue again.
Nomura: Yes, there it is.
?: Is there really a meaning behind it? (Laughs)
Nomura: There’s a huge meaning to it.
?: Seriously?

Nomura: I can’t reveal it yet.
?: You’re making us answer the question (Laughs)
Nomura: I want everyone to think about it.
?: Ah, so you’re raising the question for us.
Nomura: That’s right. Think about what it means.
?: I see, so even you have to think about the answer yourself (Laughs)
?: No, no, no (Laughs)
?: What a brilliant answer.
?: Yeah, he’s right (Laughs)
?: That’s quite a pattern you’ve got going [with the secrets] (Laughs)


- In the scene where Tifa was saying “Dilly dally, shilly shally (Zuru Zuru)”, Cloud turned round in surprise because he never knew Rude and Reno were standing there. Tifa knew they were there, however.

- It took 4 hours to do the 5 minute English narration recording used in the E3 promotional video.

- Morikubo was doubtful about playing Kadaj’s voice because he was such a difficult character but he gave it his best anyway.

- In the scene where some black substance leaks into the water, the staff asks what it was. Nomura says it was the colour coming off Kadaj’s clothes but it was really his will spreading into the water.

- When Cloud was heading towards the Forgotten City, the staff had planned for Aerith to appear behind Cloud on his bike. The motion capture for the scene was done but since Nomura thought it would be too scary, they revised the script.

- The staff took care in making the scene of Aerith’s appearance seem like an illusion so that she didn’t seem like a ghost.

- As Cloud sped towards Kadaj and his companions towards the spray of bullets, Loz’s arm was glowing. This was added in to give viewers the impression that he too had attached the Materia into his body by this point in the movie.

- All the children became superhuman because they had drunk the water with Kadaj’s will in it, “Sephirizing” them.

- Yazoo’s bullets couldn’t hit Cloud not because of his bad marksmanship but because Cloud was simply too strong.

- It was hard adding in the voices during the fight scenes in the Forgotten City due to timing.

- During the layout of the battle scenes, Yazoo walks towards Cloud shooting at him after Loz knocks down the tree. This was later taken out during the retakes and revised with him slashing at Cloud with his gun but was then returned to the way it was again.

- Vincent’s mantle was hard to do in the scene where he rushes out to save Cloud as it was done so that it looked as if he was a phantom.

- Most of the scene where Vincent and Cloud talks with one another was done during the early stages of production. Only very minor adjustments were made but hardly any.

- Most of the scenes shown in the Venice Film Festival version of the movie were revised later and so, can’t be seen in the final version of the movie such as the one where Cait Sith isn't on top of Red XIII.

- Vincent’s voice actor, Suzuki was originally the one doing the title call for the movie’s promotional videos At the time, the voice actor for Vincent hadn’t been decided yet. His part in the PV got him the role.

- Nojima was worried that viewers wouldn’t get the idea Vincent didn’t have a phone when he spread out his mantle.

- Cloud and Vincent’s personality are similar so it was hard drawing out their differences but it went well in the end.

- Tifa’s motion capture actress Aoki done the scene where she says “Did we lose to our memories?” with so much passion that all the male staff’s heart ached. Adding in the voice later to that scene was a lot of hard work.

- During the game’s production, the point of Vincent’s shoes were rounded. It was the FFVII producer Kitase who told him to make them pointed later. The reason was that it didn’t suit his character.

- Kitase was the one who named Vincent while Nomura named all the other characters. Kitase seemed to have given Vincent a lot of thought.

- Reno acted as if he was surprised that he wasn’t told the whereabouts of Jenova’s head and was angry about it. He was actually angry that Yazoo was making a fool of him. Turns out they never knew Rufus had it all along.


# Scene with Kadaj and Rufus in a building.

?: How many secrets is that now?
?: I’ve forgotten.
?: We just can’t keep count (Laughs)
?: The first was the opening message and the second was the birds. Maybe the number of secrets is the same as the number of birds?
?: There’s that many secrets? (Laughs)
?: Way too many.


- The scenes where Kadaj and Rufus are together in a building were added later. There’s a meaning to the number 13 but they don’t say what it is.


- Just my speculation but, in Chinese (or other Sino, Chinese related languages such as Korean and Japanese I think) the number 13 is a lucky number. Just like how the number 4 sounds like “death/shi”, the number 13 sounds like “will live/san”. Since Rufus jumped off the building and survived while both Elena and Tseng who were supposed to be “half dead” is also alive, I wouldn’t be surprised took this in mind and decided to pick this number.


- Jenova was attached to the meteor that fell towards the Planet. Nomura had a hard time designing Jenova during the game’s production.


# Scene with Mako flowing through the pipes.

Nomura: Are those pipes transparent? I was wondering why they made them transparent during the game but, it’s still a mystery to me.


- Both of the scenes where Marlene saw the box of Materia and where Kadaj summons Bahamut Shin from the building, made Nomura add more content to the movie to enhance the flow. The Materia to summon Bahamut Shin was inside the box that Marlene saw.

- The name Bahamut Shin (or “Sin” if you use the Kunrei Romanization system.) came from Japanese fighter planes such as Kai, Zero, Shin.

- Instead of “We-” “Can’t beat this.” when Rude and Reno saw Bahamut Shin, they originally said, “Un-“ “Believable” as can be seen in the deleted scenes.

- It was the animator who suggested that the boy who Reno was trying to save, sticks his fingers into Reno’s nostrils.

- The staff wasn’t sure whether they were going to let Bahamut Shin fire his Mega Flare (?) or not.

- The scene where Reno and Rude were blown away by the Mega Flare’s explosion was motion captured. Due to the limited size of the studio, the motion capture actors couldn’t get blown away too far so it was hard to complete.

- It was hard doing the motion capture scenes where the characters had to run around. There were limits as to how far they could run.

- The crowds were controlled by a simulator and not motion captured.

- It was the layout staff who suggested Rude had an extra pair of sunglasses. They already put the idea in since the rough planning stage. There were many bad suggestions during the time but Nomura thought this one was interesting so he left it in.


# Midgar sign burning.

?: Wow, only the sign’s burning.
?: You can see the Midgar sign clearly.
?: Is it really burning or it on fire because it's filled with some kind of hatred? (Laughs)

Nomura: What’s Bahamut digging for?
Nozue: Kadaj thought his Mother was here.
Nomura: And Kadaj ordered it to dig there after he summoned it.

# Denzel runs towards Bahamut.

Nomura: What’s that boy going to do?


- Kadaj ordered Bahamut Shin to dig where the monument was, thinking that Jenova’s head was there.

- All the commentators laughed and said that the way Barret’s gun arm transformed was impossible. Nomura then came up with the answer, “the power of the future.”

- It was hard putting Red XIII and Cait Sith together such as keeping their movements flowing correctly.

- There’s no limit to the energy that Barret can accumulate in his gun.

- Yuffie’s clothing wasn’t designed by Nomura but by the female staff, following the Japanese taste. Even though it wasn’t his own design, he liked Yuffie’s clothing the best out of all the characters.

- Barret’s clothes were designed in accordance with art director, Yuusuke Naora. His tattoos were done by Luz (who also designed the motifs on the cap and T-shirt in the LE pack) and were only completed towards the second half of the movie.

- Mechanics, creature designer, Takayuki Takeya wondered if Bahamut Shin could be beaten when he looked at it.

- The fight with Bahamut Shin was done with the Weapon battles from the game in mind, so that viewers could get the feeling that the whole party was working together to fight it.

- Bahamut Shin’s size was about 5 stories high. Actual dimensions hadn’t been set.

- The scene where Cloud gets a boost from each of his companions was called the Relay Battle, something that was homage to the ending of the game where Cloud stretched out his hand towards the hand in the light.

- During the Relay Battle, someone says, “That’s ignoring the laws of physics, isn’t it?” and Nomura’s reply was, “They won the battle because they were doing the impossible.”

- Rufus’ fight with Kadaj, the Bahamut battle and the Turks’ fight with Yazoo and Loz all occurred simultaneously.

- Rufus’ gun was originally designed to be small enough to fit into the sleeve.

- Mechanics, creature designer Takyuki Takeya worked on the bike designs early in the production stage.

- Vincent had said that Tseng and Elena were half dead so there were talks of whether they were alive because Vincent lied or it was because of Shinra technology.

- Originally, Loz was supposed to be flung away with Cloud swinging his sword at him during the bike chase scene but, he gets repelled by the flaps on Fenrir that conceals Cloud’s swords instead.

- When the bike continued to move even though the accelerator wasn’t being used, Nomura wanted the viewer to think of the bike in auto-cruise mode. A futuristic bike.

- The scene where Loz uses his legs to throw the bike was only an idea at first but was added later.

- The gun Cloud sliced apart belonged to Yazoo and the smoke that came from its remains was barely added in time towards the end of the production.

- The explosives Reno and Rude were carrying were originally planned to look like the round bombs used in the game Bomberman but, Nomura wanted the scene to cool so they were changed. The bombs Rude made were low in explosive power and were only flashy.

- The bike Fenrir was modeled on a 1:1 scale and was designed by speaking with several bike manufacturers meaning it could have cost millions to make. It would have been a disaster if the real thing broke but, since this was a CGI movie, that wasn’t going to happen.


# Kadaj inside the church.

Nomura: You can see the machine guns attached to the front of the bikes here.
?: Ah, I see.
Nomura: It was such a waste that we couldn’t make use of them at all.
?: And Kadaj’s crying out in regret (Laughs)


- There are machine guns attached to the front of the remnant’s bikes. Not once have they been used in the movie but during the production stage, there were scenes where they were used.

- The scene where water comes gushing into the air in the church was homage to the original game’s ending where the Lifestream comes rushing out of the ground. The same camera angles were used. Visual Works just couldn't get enough of modelling water and Nomura joked about a water machine gun.

- There was a scene where Cloud and Kadaj makes their way up the ruins as they fought but it was cut to reduce the movie’s tempo.

- The staff had planned on having Cloud and his companions gather together in the scene where Kadaj was looking down at him.

- Nomura wanted to put Kadaj much higher up than where he was standing in the movie but due to the height limitations of the studio during motion capture, this was adjusted accordingly.

- The Kadaj battle scene didn’t take place during the evening originally. It was supposed to be daytime.

- Nomura was the one who suggested Cid said “Go jump off”. Those who played the game should get a laugh out of the scene.

- Art director Naora asked for Sierra’s interior to be revised after the exterior of the ship was finalized.

- It was planned for both Cid and Barret to say, “He’s got 10 minutes.” But it ended up with only Barret saying it.

- In the scene where Cloud jumps away from the Sierra, he smirks because he was imagining what his companions onboard were talking about, leaving everything to him.

- A suggestion was made to let Kadaj eat Jenova during the scene where he was going to absorb it.

- The staff wasn’t allowed to let the viewers see inside the box.

- Even though the box was too small to fit a head inside, viewers were supposed to use their imagination.

- Note that co-director Nozue said that “Jenova’s head” was just a given name and hinted that the box actually contained cells in the Prologue book interview.

- Sephiroth battle was originally supposed to start in the evening.

- The black streams that Sephiroth summoned was a negative Lifestream composed of those who died due to Geostigma. It was a good contrast with Cloud standing in the bright evening light.

- The motion capture done for the scene where Sephiroth says he thought of a present was done by Kindgom Hearts’ motion capture staff.

- Producer Kitase decided that they couldn’t make any other character stronger than Sephiroth in the world of FFVII.

- Only the places where Sephiroth cut through were burning because those points were where all his power gathered and scattered.


# Cloud lies against a wall and Sephiroth stabs him.

Nomura: Surprised you, didn’t it? I was surprised when I saw that the sword pierced through his arm. I wanted Sephiroth to pierce his chest.
?: Get the ambulance, the ambulance. (Laughs)
Nomura: I wanted it to be more shocking.


- Even though Cloud was pierced through his arm, Director Nomura had wanted Sephiroth to stab him through the chest.

- Cloud’s sword was designed to be composed of 6 swords because Nomura wanted to finish off Sephiroth with the same move that was used in the game. The finishing blow is known as Omnislash Version 5 due to many revisions during the production process.

- Originally the church scene was supposed to follow right after Sephiroth was defeated but, because of all the extra scenes they added, the movie was lengthened to 100 minutes instead of the planned 60 minutes.

- Advent Children was made with the theme of “family” in mind.


# Back on board the Sierra, the party jumps in joy.

Nomura: Pay attention to Vincent here.
(Laughs)
Nomura: Not much reaction from him, is there? Even though everyone else is so happy.


- Nomura really wanted a scene to show the link between Tifa and Aerith and so the scene where Tifa says, “Somehow I knew you were there.” inside the airship was added.

- One of the commentators didn’t know Cloud gets shot and was genuinely surprised when he saw the scene for the first time. Yazoo used Loz’s gun at this point.

- The glowing Materia on Loz and Yazoo’s arms were attached to them when they were in the Forgotten City.


# Cloud in a white background.

Nomura: Here, Cloud’s eyes stayed open until the final version of the movie was made. I want you to imagine this scene with his eyes open.
?: I can, quite a bit (Laughs)
Nomura: You know how scary that looks? (Laughs)

Nomura: So I got them to close his eyes.


- Cloud’s eyes were left open for the whole scene where Aerith touches Cloud’s forehead and he says, “Mother?” during the developing stages of the movie.

- The wolf represents where Cloud’s mind remains, appearing on the hill where Zack got shot, in the Forgotten City and the church. Once all the matters were finally settled, the wolf disappears. The wolf represents Cloud’s regrets.

- The scene where Cloud wakes up in the puddle inside the church was one that the staff had been thinking about since the early stages of the movie.

- It was difficult to cast Red XIII.

- The scene where the children jumps into the water and where Aerith, Zack appears was the scene that Nomura wanted to show the most.


?: So, we’re leaving those secrets untold? (Laughs)
Nomura: Eh? What are you talking about? You mean what's the secret behind the number of birds that were flying over the ruins? OK, I’ll tell you what it is.
?: Ah, so you didn't forget. But tell us about that message that was written at the opening first.
Nomura: Oh, that message, well- Oops, the movie’s finished.
?: Terrible (Laughs)
Nomura: What a shame.


End of DVD Commentary

-ac.net

There's nowhere I can't reach.

Just read it. It sounds nice, but Crisis Core was a given. I hope for a more major announcement (how long is SE's conference). At this point, though, it no longer matters if it's FFVII, FFXIII, or anything from FF. I just want to see what Square can do with the PS3.

This thing is sticky, and I don't like it. I don't appreciate it.