IMHO, Yasumi Matsuno's in-game cutscene direction in Vagrant Story is rivaled only by Hideo Kojima's in Metal Gear Solid. In fact, the two are friends and respect each others' artistry very much, and it is said that after Matsuno saw the cutscenes of MGS and experienced "Metal Gear shock" (like many developers of the time), he scrapped a lot of what he'd done for Vagrant Story and re-did it. I think that was a wise choice.
The potential game Matsuno and Kojima could have made together will forever keep me up at night...