Underplayed Gems

Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within (2001)

Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within poster
Directed by
Hironobu Sakaguchi
Genre
fantasy film, action film, science fiction film, post-apocalyptic film, Action, Drama
Country
United States, Japan
Runtime
1h 42m
Rated
PG-13
Rating
6.2 of 10 from 1,616 voters
Elsewhere
IMDb
The 3D catalogue: film cases on wooden shelves, with the cat sitting at the counter next to its greeting.

The catalogue in 3D

The film shelves have a room of their own that you can walk around in. The cat behind the counter is the AI Catbot, and they pick real films from the same catalogue when you tell them what you feel like watching. Nothing is for sale, here or in there. Go in from here and this film is already out on the counter, with more like it waiting on the shelf next to it.

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How it feels

In a post-apocalyptic Earth overrun by deadly alien Phantoms, scientist Aki Ross and Doctor Sid race to find a peaceful solution to save humanity. They must contend with General Hein who advocates for a violent military response instead.

melancholicvisually polishedsuspensefulcontemplativebleakstructureddeterminedfuturistic

What happens

Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within (Japanese: ファイナルファンタジー, Hepburn: Fainarufantajī) is a 2001 animated science fiction film directed by Hironobu Sakaguchi, creator of the Final Fantasy franchise. A co-production between Japan and the United States, it was the first photorealistic computer-animated feature film and the most expensive video game-inspired film until the release of Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time in 2010. The film stars the voices of Ming-Na Wen, Alec Baldwin, Donald Sutherland, James Woods, Ving Rhames, Peri Gilpin, and Steve Buscemi, and follows scientists Aki Ross and Doctor Sid in their efforts to free a post-apocalyptic Earth from the Phantoms, a mysterious, deadly alien race who has driven the remnants of humanity into "barrier cities". Aki and Sid must fight against General Hein, who wants to use more violent means to end the conflict. Square Pictures rendered the film using some of the most advanced processing capabilities available at the time. A render farm of 960 workstations was tasked with rendering each of the film's 141,964 frames. It took a staff of 200 about four years to complete The Spirits Within. Square intended to make the character of Aki Ross into the world's first photorealistic computer-animated actress, with plans for appearances in multiple films in different roles. The Spirits Within premiered in Los Angeles on July 2, 2001, and was theatrically released in the United States on July 11. It received mixed reviews, but was widely praised for its characters' realism. Due to rising costs, the film greatly exceeded its original budget toward the end of production, reaching a final cost of $137 million (equivalent to $226 million in 2025); it grossed only $85.1 million at the box office. The film has been called a box-office bomb and is blamed for the demise of Square Pictures. (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)

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