Plot
In this animated tale, a tiny village is destroyed by a surging glacier, which serves as the deadly domain for the evil Ice Lord...
Release Year: 1983
Rating: 6.5/10 (3,029 voted)
Director:
Ralph Bakshi
Stars: Randy Norton, Cynthia Leake, Steve Sandor
Storyline In this animated tale, a tiny village is destroyed by a surging glacier, which serves as the deadly domain for the evil Ice Lord, Nekron. The only survivor is a young warrior, Larn, who vows to avenge this act of destruction. The evil continues, however, as Nekron's palace of ice heads straight towards Fire Keep, the great fortress ruled by the good King Jarol. When Jarol's beautiful daughter, Teegra, is abducted by Nekron's sub-human ape-like creatures, Larn begins a daring search for her. What results is a tense battle between good and evil, surrounded by the mystical elements of the ancient past.
Writers: Ralph Bakshi, Frank Frazetta
Cast: Randy Norton
-
Larn
Cynthia Leake
-
Teegra
Steve Sandor
-
Darkwolf
Sean Hannon
-
Nekron
Leo Gordon
-
Jarol
William Ostrander
-
Taro
/
Larn
(voice)
Eileen O'Neill
-
Juliana
Elizabeth Lloyd Shaw
-
Roleil
Micky Morton
-
Otwa
Tamarah Park
-
Tutor
Big Yank
-
Monga
Greg Wayne Elam
-
Pako
(as Greg Elam)
Jimmy Bridges
-
Subhuman
(as James Bridges)
Shane Callan
-
Subhuman
Archie Hamilton
-
Subhuman
Taglines:
Heroic, Fantasy Adventure! [Video Australia]
Opening Weekend: $263,238
(USA)
(28 August 1983)
(89 Screens)
Gross: $879,422
(Germany)
Technical Specs
Runtime:
Did You Know?
Trivia:
In a cut scene from the script, Darkwolf was revealed to be Nekron's father.
Quotes: Larn:
Well if you want it, take it. Teegra:
I am not... a thief
User Review
Worth a spin in the DVD player
Rating: 6/10
When I was a lot younger and 'traditional hand-drawn animation,' to
quote Mr. Eisner, wasn't dead, I was a fan of Ralph Bakshi. Sort of the
anti-Disney, Bakshi did counter-culture movies like Fritz the Cat
(which Robert Crumb hated so much he subsequently killed off the
character), Wizards (a midnight movie staple for years), and the
unfortunately named Coonskin, which was nearly incomprehensible. Bakshi
was a sort of cultural renegade, offering up in animation what no one
else could – basically, he made animated films for adults – and
following his own warped vision of how things should be. Probably his
highest profile work was his 1978 version of Lord of the Rings, a movie
I still enjoy to this day. Problem is, aside from Rings, none of
Bakshi's films ever made any money, and an attempt to go commercial
with 1981's American Pop fizzled (granted, it was an uneven film).
Bakshi returned to the genre that he'd done the best with – swords and
sorcery – for 1983's Fire and Ice. 70s megastar artist Frank Frazetta
designed most of the characters and did a fair amount of pre-production
art (some of which, in true Bakshi fashion, shows up in montages in the
film). It was a teaming up of the greatest fantasy artist if the day
and the only animator who could have brought his stuff to life with any
accuracy. The film was scripted by Roy Thomas, famous for working on
Marvel Comics' Conan series, and Gerry Conway, another comics writer.
That's a lot of genre talent for a small animated film.
Fire and Ice is no classic. It probably marks the pinnacle of
rotoscoping and is a beautifully rendered film. There's a scant excuse
for a plot and the characters are wafer thin, but the joy of the film
is in the design and animation. This one really is eye candy, and I
don't know if any of those involved with its creation ever aimed higher
than making an animated Frazetta painting. Certainly they achieved that
in spades.
Fire and Ice is achingly simple in its set up. Evil Ice Lord Nekron (a
Bakshi staple name, used previously in Wizards) uses his magic powers
to crush his enemies with a rapidly moving glacier. He also has a bunch
of orcs (call them what they are) at his command who wipe out anyone
who dodges the ice. Next up on his deep freeze: Fire Keep, run by King
Jerol, who controls the lava, etc. The story centers mostly around a
young man named Larn, the stereotypical hottie boy with long hair who
runs around in a loincloth. After his village is iced, Larn encounters
Jerol's ample daughter, Teegra, a Frazetta gal if ever there were one;
body by Pamela Anderson, wardrobe by Frederick's of Hollywood. Aside
from the pretty pictures, this would have been a forgettable flick if
not for the presence of Dark Wolf, a mysterious warrior who's part
Batman, part Superman, and all bad-ass. Dark Wolf's fun to watch, and
he elevates the movie into the realm of the watchable.
The dialogue is pretty bad and the story is cliché-ridden, but Fire and
Ice is still fun in a dopey kind of way. Some of the elements could
have made a decent fantasy pulp novel, and a lot of the designs are
pretty neat. Bakshi made better films than this (Wizards, Rings) but he
made worse, too (most of the rest of his stuff). I wouldn't recommend
this for anyone other than Bakshi fans or animation die-hards, or
someone who really likes the fantasy genre. But it's light, brainless
fun, and in my mind deserves not to be forgotten to the dustbin of
obscurity.
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