As already pointed out by my fellow WhatCulture contributor Alex Leadbeater in his article, 10 Box Office Flops that Threw Away Stupid Amounts of Money when Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within was released it was considered a total failure. Making an adult orientated cartoon for theatrical release is already a risky move. Even with an all star cast (Alec Baldwin, James Woods, and Donald Sutherland to name only a few) and impressive animation more than likely the movie will still bomb due to the stigma that all animated fare should be for kids. Never mind the film's ludicrously high production costs ($115 million), which served to seal its fate completely. It also didn't help the movie that the creators tacked the words Final Fantasy onto the title. This immediately led most fans of the video game series to believe they were getting the Final Fantasy movie they had always dreamed of, which they weren't. Although it is set in a Final Fantasy-esque universe, the movie has nothing to do with any of the games. Seriously when Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children was released it was half as good and received way more love. Spirits Within definitely has its failing moments, but I concur with Alex. It's actually pretty good overall and very under-appreciated.
aka The Thompsonator. Action movie & shooter game fanatic. Biggest weakness? Taking things over the top... The internet is the disease. Meet the cure. Find more action on my Youtube channel: www.youtube.com/ActionRation
