- A scientist makes a last stand on Earth with the help of a ragtag team of soldiers against an invasion of alien phantoms.
- In the year 2065, the next great assault against an invading race of phantom-like aliens is about to be launched. Dr. Aki Ross, a brilliant young scientist, races to find the invaders' secrets, not only to save the planet, but herself as well after her body is infected by alien particles. She teams up with the prestigious Deep Eyes military squadron, led by her old friend Grey Edwards. But as Aki, her mentor Dr. Sid, and Grey work toward a peaceful end, the scheming General Hein devises a plot to eradicate the aliens in one swift, destructive blow...even if it destroys the Earth right along with them.—H2F
- In the year 2065, a meteor has crashed onto Earth unleashing an invading race of millions of strange phantom-like alien creatures who roam the earth, decimating field and city alike, threatening to extinguish life itself. But when a brilliant young female scientist, Dr. Aki Ross makes a last stand on Earth with the help of a ragtag team of soldiers against an invasion of alien phantoms. She seeks information about their purpose and physiology, assisted by her mentor Dr. Sid and the Deep Eyes military squad of courageous Captain Gray Edwards Aki's old friend. Tension develops between Aki's quest to stop the alien onslaught through study and the more extreme solution favored by the vengeful, saber-rattling General Hein, who would destroy both the aliens and the Earth itself!—Anthony Pereyra {hypersonic91@yahoo.com}
- Loosely based on the highly acclaimed video game series "Final Fantasy". Set in 2065, the world is a barren wasteland invaded by alien life-forms known as Phantoms. Determined to stop them for good, a beautiful woman named Dr. Aki Ross must find the seven spirits to destroy the Phantoms once and for all, unfortunately she is dying from a fatal Phantom-related sickness. She is accompanied by her mentor Dr. Sid (the movie's version of "Cid") and the Deep Eyes Squadron.—Emphinix
- In the year 2031, 34 years prior to the start of the film, a meteorite produced by the annual Leonid Meteor Shower strikes Earth near the Caspian Mountains. Over the next eight years, all forms of life begin mysteriously dying. After losing his wife to the suspected virus, a biochemist named Dr. Sid (Donald Sutherland) discovers through his studies in Bio-Etherics, which is based on the theory that every living thing has a life force or Spirit, that the deaths are caused by alien creatures called Phantoms, invisible to the naked eye and lethal to the touch. Dr. Sid develops Wave Theory technology which implements counteractive energy wavelengths given off by Spirits and Phantoms to invent visual scanners, weapons, and shields to combat the alien threat and protect the surviving human population. This technology is also used to create the Zeus Cannon, an assault space station designed to obliterate the Phantom's place of origin within the Leonid Crater. Extended testing, delays in the construction of Shield Cities, and Dr. Sid's opposition to drastic measures prevent the cannon from being used.
The film opens in the year 2065. Dr. Aki Ross (Ming-Na Wen), protégé to Dr. Sid and fellow bio-etheric scientist, wakes from a dream aboard her ship, the Black Boa. After recording the dream, her ship lands in Old New York just outside the shield city that comprises of lower Manhattan. She disembarks into the wasteland with sensors and begins searching. Aki is soon surrounded by Phantoms in the ruins of Times Square, but she is rescued by a squadron known as 'Deep Eyes', a branch of the United States Military Force tasked with patrolling the wastelands. The team is comprised of Sgt. Ryan Whittaker (Ving Rhames), Cpl. Neil Fleming (Steve Buscemi), Cpl. Jane Proudfoot (Peri Gilpin), and Cpt. Gray Edwards (Alec Baldwin). Though Aki and Gray share a romantic history, he attempts to place her under arrest for being in the wastelands without authorization. However, Aki stubbornly goes on until she finds a small, green plant; the object of her search. When they return to New York Barrier City they must pass through a decontamination process which Aki avoids by saving Gray from a Phantom infection he sustained during the operation.
Aki reunites with her mentor, Dr. Sid, and they confirm the plant Aki retrieved is the sixth of eight Spirits she is collecting. Dr. Sid is concerned that Aki's exposition to the wastelands could shut down their lab and shows her an old diary of his. It explains that all Spirits are born of Gaia, the Spirit of the Earth, and inhabit physical bodies. When the physical body dies, the Spirit returns to Gaia and brings with it all its experiences, enabling Gaia to mature and grow. Dr. Sid then burns his diary, telling Aki that not everyone shares their ideas and they should not be permitted to be used against them. They are later summoned to a United Nations Security Council meeting where world leaders and members of the USMF, led by General Douglas Hein (James Woods), discuss how to further deal with the Phantom threat. General Hein, driven by personal tragedy, is insistent on using the Zeus Cannon to destroy the Leonid Crater and the Phantom threat once and for all. Dr. Sid argues to continue pursuing non-violent methods, saying that a blast from the Zeus Cannon could harm the Earth. When Hein angrily asks for proof that Dr. Sid's strategies hold water, Aki reveals that she carries an active infection due to exposure to Phantom particles from a few months ago. She is alive because the particles in her body are contained and monitored by a chest plate which creates a shield of spiritual wavelengths that counter the particles' growth. However, her condition is temporary. In order to cure her, and provide a permanent solution to defeating the Phantoms, Aki needs to collect the signatures of eight Spirits. These Spirits must possess specific wave patterns which, when combined and used against the Phantom Spirits' similar patterns, could neutralize them forever. The Council sides with Dr. Sid, but General Hein is suspicious that Aki could be corrupted and manipulated by her infection and orders Gray to keep an eye on her.
Gray, however, suddenly realizes that Aki's infection is the reason she ended their relationship and seeks her out for more answers. They enter an elevator as Aki is scanning for the seventh Spirit but become stranded momentarily thanks to Neil, Jane, and Ryan who apparently wish to give their Captain some time alone to reconcile with his former lover. Aki traces the seventh Spirit to the wastes outside of Tuscon. This time, she is escorted by the Deep Eyes and soldiers commanded by Major Elliot (Matt McKenzie), a subordinate of General Hein. They find the seventh Spirit: the energy used to power the ovo-pack of a dead soldier. Suddenly, Aki's infection worsens and she falls into a dream as Phantoms surround them. One of Major Elliot's men is killed by a Phantom, his Spirit violently pulled from his body and consumed. The team barely manages to escape to their ship and Elliot's men, believing Aki's condition sabotaged the operation, announce she is to be arrested. When Aki abruptly wakes up, a soldier shoots her before a Phantom passes through the ship and consumes his Spirit. Back in New York, Dr. Sid reveals that Aki is alive; her chest plate stopped the bullet, but it needs to be repaired and her infection needs to be stabilized. To do this, he must combine the waves of the seven Spirits collected thus far into Aki. To keep her Spirit from wandering, Dr. Sid sends Gray into a shared-dream state where he sees what Aki has been dreaming about. They watch as alien creatures wage war on each other before their very world is destroyed, fragments of their planet launched into space. Aki and Gray wake up together and Aki realizes what the Phantoms really are: the meteor that fell to Earth was a piece of their planet and the Phantoms are the restless Spirits of the dead aliens.
General Hein's men then appear and take everyone into custody. Convinced that Aki presents a threat to humanity due to her infection, General Hein conducts a plan to convince the Council to use the Zeus Cannon. He intentionally allows some Phantoms to pass through the New York barrier, thinking a controlled number could be easily quelled. However, the Phantoms begin moving through bio-etheric pipes used to power the shields of the city, something General Hein did not anticipate since he assumes the Phantoms are living creatures, and the power grid soon fails. Aki, Dr. Sid, and the Deep Eyes are able to escape from prison only to find that the entire city is under siege by Phantoms, now visible to the naked eye from having traversed through the bio-etheric pipes. They make their way to the military hangar to get to Aki's ship, but Ryan, Neil, and Jane are all killed during the endeavor. Dr. Sid, Aki, and Gray fly into space away from the dying city. In orbit, Gray and Aki comfort each other over the deaths of their companions and become intimate.
General Hein, meanwhile, manages to escape New York and seeks refuge aboard the Zeus Space Station. Guilty over his actions, he contemplates suicide. However, he then receives permission from the UNSC (Keith David) to use the Zeus Cannon against the Phantoms. Dr. Sid locates the eighth Spirit at the Leonid Crater and identifies it as a Phantom. Gray and Aki are lowered toward the crater in a shielded vehicle, but, before they reach the bottom, the Zeus Cannon fires on the crater, destroying the eighth Spirit. Aki pleads with General Hein to stop, but he ignores her. A quick secondary blast then awakens a massive Phantom; essentially the Phantom's form of Gaia, and Gray and Aki are knocked into the crater. Inside, they find themselves between the Phantom Gaia above and an ethereal blue sea below. Aki exclaims that it's an opening to the Gaia of Earth. Another blast from the Zeus Cannon appears to destroy Gaia, however, and Gray and Aki are surrounded by Phantoms. Aki falls into another dream. This time, she sees a vision of the eighth Spirit within her as a voice says, "With the hope of new life, has Gaia changed the Phantom within". Aki and Dr. Sid confirm that the wave pattern is now complete with the collection of all eight Spirits, and Aki is cured of her infection. They attempt to use Gray's ovo-pack to help transmit the wave, but yet another blast from the Zeus Cannon destroys their vehicle and causes the Phantom Gaia to mutate into an amorphous blob, absorbing all the Phantoms in the area and threatening to corrupt the very Earth. General Hein desperately attempts to fire again despite persistent warnings of systemic overheating. His stubbornness results in the destruction of the station, killing everyone inside, including him.
With no other option to stop the Phantoms, Gray places Aki on a ledge and uses himself to transmit the Spirit Wave from Aki into the Phantom Gaia. As his Spirit is absorbed by the Gaia, it becomes neutralized and shoots into space; the Phantom Spirits finally at rest. Aki is lifted back to the Black Boa by Dr. Sid, cradling Gray's body in her arms. She looks out to the horizon as the sun rises and a passing eagle gives hope for life on the new world.
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What is the Japanese language plot outline for Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within (2001)?
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