The Kiss (The Spirits Within)

Aki and Gray share a kiss.

I just...I wish I could believe they were in a better place.

Gray Edwards

The Kiss scene in Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within is a notable event in the movie as an important turning point in the plot as well as its provision as an ample demonstration of the then new computer graphics. The movie's protagonists, Aki Ross and Gray Edwards, share their grief and loneliness through physical comfort, convening after escaping the New York Barrier City and remembering the noble sacrifices made by Gray’s Deep Eyes crew.

The music playing in the background of the scene is appropriately called "The Kiss." Its central melody is the leitmotif of Aki and Gray; it is also featured in the film's ending theme song, "The Dream Within."

Story

Spoiler warning: Plot and/or ending details follow. (Skip section)

The Black Boa rests in the safety of space where moments before it and her crew, Aki Ross, Gray Edwards, and Dr. Sid, had barely escaped from the Fall of the New York Barrier City with their lives. Gray's Deep Eyes comrades were not so lucky, with Neil Fleming killed by Phantoms while freeing the Black Boa for launch and Jane Proudfoot having died while defending him. Ryan Whittaker had also been killed. Previously wounded on the way to the airport, he had provided the distraction that allowed the Black Boa to safely launch while under the attention of a Meta-Phantom.

Now safe from the danger of the Phantoms, Gray silently mourns his friends' passing and Aki, tiring of being strong and solitary, breaks down while attempting to console him. The pair give in to their feelings towards each other and kiss, seeking comfort in each other's intimacy.

Spoilers end here.

Trivia

• According to the DVD, the artists watched seven different big movie kisses, including Gone with the Wind, to nail down the perfect feeling for the kiss scene.
• According to the DVD, the kiss shot contains the most frames in the movie; 1,899 shots exactly.
• The conception of the eighth and final spirit, Aki's child, begins in this scene although its presence is not revealed until later on while the pair are trapped beneath the Leonid Meteor.

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