Final fantasy: the spirits within

Based on the Final Fantasy video games, this computer animated feature presents an apocalyptic vision of earth in the not too distant future. The year is 2069; planet earth has now been rendered uninhabitable due to an invasion by a race of phantom like extraterrestrials. What’s left of the human race has now retreated into outer space as they wait and plan a counter-attack against the vicious aliens. Brilliant young scientist Dr. Aki Ross (Ming-Na), is plagued with prophetic dreams about earth’s future. In an attempt to combat the aliens and to find the cure to the deadly ‘alien spirits’ that have infected her body, she joins forces with a prestigious military squad called Deep Eyes. Working with a team of international animators, the filmmakers have managed to create a spectacular if not bleak vision of the future. This is also the first time that animators have attempted to create photo-realistic human characters, meticulously animating every small detail, right down to the movement of each strand of hair on a characters head. Cast voices include Alec Baldwin, James Woods, Donald Sutherland, Ving Rhames and Steve Buscemi.