FF7 Advent Children Complete

[tenshinoakuma]

Cloud: ...Mother?
Aeris: Again? Why does everyone keep calling Mother? [...] I don't want such a big kid!

I've actually watched the original Japanese Advent Children (with subtitles that weren't dodgy, unlike some of my friends), but watching ACC was like, a completely different experience. Maybe it's a combination of me being older, or me watching it by myself rather than with my brother (I recall spending a lot of time making fun of the things that happened in it) or just the fact that the additional scenes in ACC make the movie make a lot more understandable.

I am 100% sure I spent most of the movie being impressed and going, "Wow, these graphics are crazy." Things like any scene with a big crowd was guaranteed to impress me, though Vincent's cloak and Nanaki's fur (and occasionally how glassy peoples' eyes got) were still a little weird to me. I think the ending credits where Cloud is zooming along on his motorbike really exemplified why I was so impressed. I'm pretty sure the scenery there are real places, and the problem with combining real with animated is that often the animated objects tend to look out of place, but Cloud and his motorbike really looked like they belonged in that scenery. And... well, if it turns out the scenery was computer generated, that's also really damn impressive because I would not be able to tell at all that that was computer generated. Sure, you can still tell ACC is computer animated (especially with fabrics that are, like, not worn by Cloud, Tifa, the remnants or Sephiroth), but damn Square's come a long way.

Movement for the most part looked very natural, though there are some times where it doesn't look quite right. If I'm remembering correctly, these are mostly when the motion is coming from other civilians and occasionally during fight scenes. I think what I mentioned in that snippet I posted earlier about Joshua and Mr. H talking about art and Advent Children touches on my feelings about ACC aesthetically; I know it's not real, but it's real enough. There are some moments -- the time where Cloud is fighting Sephiroth and is badly injured, and spaces out to talk to Zack. The moment when Cloud gives a small smile and shakes his head, standing, comes most readily to mind -- where it seems real, and I think those moments are the most beautiful of all. I think those kinds of soft/slight expressions worked out best in ACC. The more dramatic expressions like anger, or anything that shifts the face more, really, aren't quite captured because of how little everyone's face generally moves in ACC. IIRC, the Reunion Files artbook mentioned that they spent a lot of time trying to get those subtle expressions right, and it shows. But I also think that because they spent so much time on subtlety, the more overt expressions may have suffered a little. ACC's definitely done a lot better than a lot of other CG works, though.

TANGENT but every time I see Cloud's sword harness I'm like A;SDFLKHGH;JAS I DON'T WANT TO TRY DRAWING THAT.

Although speaking of spacing out, ACC has made me think about the times I read stories with fight scenes where some writers like to put small flashbacks (I'm talking maybe 2-3 paragraph flashbacks) while in the middle of an intense battle. And I can't help but have my suspension of belief killed just a little by something like that. But I might make an exception for Cloud because he keeps spacing out at inappropriate times. I DON'T THINK SPACING OUT WHILE RIDING A MOTORBIKE AT HIGH SPEEDS THROUGH A FOREST IS A GOOD IDEA, CLOUD. JUST SAYING. But then again he took a bullet to the face (and later to the heart/lung, among other wounds that would seriously kill his mobility, if not kill him outright) and was okay, so maybe he really doesn't have anything to worry about.

FORGIVE THE CLOUD GOGGLES I'M WEARING; I do tend to narrow my attention to specific characters (usually main characters) when I consume media, and most of my focus happened to end up on Cloud.

Story wise, I'm amazed at how much I don't remember, to the point that many of the scenes that were in the original movie, I don't actually recall. Was the original just that incomprehensible to me back then? Because I still remember bits and pieces of the game as I replay it, and that was almost ten years ago. Anyway, plot wise, I don't think the main story did as much for me as I was hoping it would (I think some of it could be attributed to the fact I don't actually remember most of the details about JENOVA and Sephiroth), but I did find a lot of my attention going to the human side of things. I really liked looking into all the numerous hints about what kind of home life Tifa, Cloud, Marlene and Denzel have were probably the most fascinating. The little hand drawn pictures of Cloud and Tifa framed on the wall of the bedroom are simultaneously hilarious and adorable.

I think having read the tie in novel, On the Way to a Smile, helped a lot with understanding the characters who had less screen time than Cloud; the actions and expressions I might not have found to be particularly meaningful suddenly became more so. The fact ACC explained Denzel was good, too. (p.s. I think near the end, where Cloud lifted Denzel into the water was the cutest thing ever asdf;lkj) I think that was one of the major questions I had when watching the original. "Who is this kid and why is he significant to Cloud, Tifa and Marlene for some reason?"

I'm not sure how I feel about Reno and Rude in ACC though; I'm pretty sure my brain immediately categorised them as Those Two Guys after their first appearance together.

I think I'll rewatch ACC again after I finish replaying the original game anyway. And maybe not get distracted by how pretty everything is. Because damn that lion earring and lion WOLF I AM GOOD AT BRAIN on Cloud's shoulder guard are distracting.