Kingsglaive: Final Fantasy XV - Final Fantasy
Kingsglaive: Final Fantasy XV is a full-length, 3D computer-animated film that was released in Japan on July 9, 2016 and is based on the popular Japanese fantasy role-playing game Final Fantasy XV, which was developed by Square Enix. The film is based on a story written by Kazushige Nojima and Saori Itamuro. The film follows the protagonist of Final Fantasy XV Noctis’ father, Regis Lucis Caelum CXII and the Kingsglaive as they attempt to protect the Kingdom of Lucis and its magical Crystal from the invading empire of Niflheim. The film received mixed reviews, with some praising the voice acting and visuals while the others criticizing the complexity of the plot.
Prologue
“The magical kingdom of Lucis is home to the hallowed Crystal, but the menacing empire of Niflheim will stop at nothing to make it theirs. War has raged between the two for as long as most can remember.
King Regis of Lucis commands an elite force of soldiers dubbed the Kingsglaive. Wielding their king's magic, Nyx Ulric and his fellow glaives stand before the crown city of Insomnia, fighting to stay the inexorable advance of Niflheim's imperial army.
Before the overwhelming military might of the empire, King Regis can only salvage his kingdom by accepting an ultimatum—he must cede all lands outside the crown city, and see his son, Prince Noctis is to be wed to Lady Lunafreya, the former princess of Tenebrae now captive of Niflheim.
As the war of wills rages, the machinations of Niflheim transform Insomnia into an awe-inspiring battleground, pulling Nyx into a struggle for the very survival of the kingdom.”
--Official synopsis
Plot
Kingsglaive takes place in the world of Eos, where the kingdom of Lucis carries a magical artifact known as Crystal that was endowed to humanity by the world’s deities. It is used by the Caelum dynasty to defend Lucis from invaders via a magical barrier known as the Wall. For many years, Lucis has been in a constant state of war with the empire of Niflheim. Lucis’ capital city, Insomnia, is protected from Niflheim by what is called the Kingsglaive--- an elite group built up of immigrants from beyond the city walls that share the power of the crystal with Regis Lucis Caelum CXIII. At the outset of the film, Regis accepts a peace treaty with Niflheim where he must cede lands to Niflheim and marry his son, Prince Noctis, to Lunafreya Nox Fleuret.
On a visit to Tenebrae, Regis and Noctis are targeted for murder by the Niflheim Empire. Tenebrae is attacked and Queen Sylva is killed by Niflheim's General Glauca. Regis tries to escape with Lunafreya but she opts to stay with her brother Ravus, and both fall under the control of the Niflheim Empire. Twelve years later, the Kingsglaive continues working to protect Lucis from Niflheim’s Magitek army and Daemons. During a battle, Nyx Ulric attempts to rescue his friend Libertus from a Daemon. Since the Wall and the power of Regis’s power is declining, Regis accepts an offer of peace from chancellor Ardyn Izunia. Later on, Regis deploys the Kingsglaive, and Nyx Ulric is caught up with Regis and Lunafreya in a battle to secure the future of Lucis.
Production Cast
The film was directed by Takeshi Nozue and produced by Larry Sparks, Kosei Ito, Shinji Hashimoto, and Hajime Tabata. The screenplay was written by Takashi Hasegawa, while the story was created by Kazushige Nojima and Saori Itamuro. Major voice roles are performed by Go Ayano, Shiori Kutsuna, Tsutomu Isobe, Aaron Paul, Lena Headey, and Sean Bean. The music for Kingsglaive was composed by John R. Graham, while the main theme of the film was written by Yoko Shimomura. Keiichi Kojima is credited as the editor.
Reception
Kingsglaive: Final Fantasy XV came out in Japan with a 10th place debut rank, selling 22,818 tickets and grossing 35,516,460 yen (US $345,507) in just two days at the box office. By July 20th that year, over 70,000 tickets had been sold, grossing over 105,000,000 yen in Japan (US $0.9 million). High box office sales were attributed to good word of mouth after the initial release. After the openings of a limited run in the United States, the film received a further $190,000. It eventually grossed a total of $269,980 in the entire region.
After its release in China in March 2017, the film made it to #4 in the top-grossing films of that week, the highest-grossing new release with $3.90 million. The film later went on gross $4.2 million in China. Its worldwide gross reached approximately $6.4 million as of April 2017. The home video releases of Kingsglaive made it to the top 20 best-selling DVD and Blu-ray releases for October 2016. While many viewers agree that Kingsglaive is incredibly visually appealing, it’s intricate plot and world make the story fairly hard to follow. Critics especially agree with the latter point, giving it only an average rating of only 12% on the review site Rotten Tomatoes.