A pair of warriors and a princess travel a land of sword & sorcery in Ralph Bakshi & Frank Frazetta’s 1982 animated team-up Fire and Ice, now on an updated 4k UHD & Blu-ray from Blue Underground and MVD.
I’m sad to say I’ve not seen nearly enough of Ralph Bakshi’s work. Until popping Fire and Ice into my 4k player, I’d only seen his Lord of the Rings. For Bakshi, it’s more of being aware of Wizards, Fritz the Cat, Cool World, and the others. I should fix that. It’s too bad I hadn’t seen it before, as Fire and Ice hit that right spot. Is it particularly great or groundbreaking, outside the talent of Ralph Bakshi and Frank Frazetta working together? Nah, but it works. It has beasts, boobs, and barbarians. The story may be incredibly simple, as is the world-building, but it returns to the same kid Masters of the Universe just tapped into a few days ago, except he’s fourteen instead of eight. I’m reminded of what Heavy Metal is for sci-fi young teenagers, but for those discovering Conan and his worlds (as famously drawn by Frazetta).
The story, from the pair and turned into a screenplay by Roy Thomas and Gerry Conway, finds a land in turmoil. An evil sorceress has raised her son, Nekron (with that name, it’s a requirement), for evil, and they are sending their subhuman hordes across the sand, from their land of ice to the fire world of a king and his kids. The daughter, Teegra, is kidnapped, and the son hunts them with two warriors, the experienced and masked Darkwolff and the newer Larn. From there, it’s filled with fights, swords, sorry, flying beasts, wide landscapes, and all sorts of semi-prehistoric fantasy fun.
Bakshi and Frazetta mix well, finding a balance in their worlds. Bakshi’s otherworldly art and cynical storytelling prevail, and Frazetti’s hyper-stylised fantasy art and the worldbuilding form it. The art stylings across the film are an interesting range, from the just enough addition to the rotoscoping of people to impressive backgrounds (that really strike to Franzetti’s specific style). This shifting art is both a detriment and an asset, astounding yet unpolished. The lack of overall cohesion in the art level, shifting from shot to shot and object to object, has an unfinished feel, especially when art lines are still visible at points, or the animation slows down, going choppy when it was just smooth. Frazetta shines most in backgrounds, the sweeping vistas that feel straight from Howard and other pulp artists, and when a character is given time to work the details of the body. Frazetta is excellent at finding ways of working the body, detailing its eccentricities and muscle movements.
The images have a power and impressiveness, even when the quality shifts and the story driving them isn’t the best. We’re here for how it looks and the lizard brain of it all. For that, it works. Bashki and Franzetta filmed stunt men and women in just about full costume over plates and worked the details into the animated world, giving a bit more energy and life than a straightforward version of either live action or standard animation. The method gives an uncanny valley to the film, increasing the level of fantasy. It’s quite impressive through the use, with very well-choreographed sword fights, and almost animalistic movements with the stunt folk. The voice work above the stunt people has a big B-movie energy that works, especially with Cult Film Goddess Susan Tyrell of Forbidden Zone, Cry Baby, and so many others as the evil sorceress.
Fire and Ice, while entertaining and doing its job well, has the feel of something that could be better with just a little more. They had funding issues, which necessitated cutting the script down; essentially, taking out what made it bigger than the tropes. But as it is, it’s a throwback to our baser senses of fire and fantasy. Even with any issues overlooked, the sheer enjoyment factor of Fire and Ice is enough. Bakshi, Frazetta, and their teams went hard, and it shows. It’s an impressive piece of special animation and will strike anyone who goes “oooh” at thinking of it.
The Package
Blue Underground offers Fire and Ice on a three-disc 4K UHD, Blu-ray, and soundtrack CD combo. The two film discs overlap on the right side of the case with the tile and scenery imprinted. The soundtrack CD is embedded on the left side, with a slip with an ad for Frazetti Girls and a track listing. The case is a thick steelbook, clean of writing, with the poster on the front and artwork of the young warrior and princess on the back. A plastic sleeve contains the title and disc information. The interior of the steelbook features some Frazetta sketches, quite the look.
The Presentation
The 4kUHD restoration from the original negative and, as would be expected, looks fantastic. Animated films transfer well, and Fire and Ice is no exception. The colors shine, the lines stay steady with no bleed or blur, and it looks visually impressive. The sound is solid as well. It offers Atmos, 5.1, and 2.0 Audio is English only, but subtitles are available in English, French, and Spanish.
The Features
Both film discs are identical, containing the film and features. This is the 3rd disc edition of Fire and Ice from Blue Underground. This repeats all from the 2009 Blu-ray but does not contain the 2005 edition’s Frazetta documentary.
Commentary (archival)
Ralph Bakshi is joined by moderator Lance Laspina. Bakshi is notoriously a grouch, but as much as he grumbles at Laspina’s asking him questions about the film and his career, he gives insightful and lengthy answers, getting into the details. Once he gets past the annoyance of answering, he’ll go on a bit, as he’s back in his element. A good commentary if willing to put up with one member who would rather be somewhere else but does the job anyway.
The Art of Fire and Ice (new)
Frank Frazetta’s granddaughter, Sara, talks about Frank and his career, along with her memories of him (he died in 2010). Even removed from the film by a few generations, she digs in and talks about the film and how it worked or didn’t. I really loved her talk about body positivity in his work, and seeing him as a person, not just the fantasy artist we see. 14m
Frank Frazetta’s Fire and Ice
Filmmaker Robert Rodriquez shows the art of Frazetta he owns, talks about working with him both in film projects that never happened and working on the From Dusk ‘til Dawn art, and more. 15m
The Making of Fire and Ice (archival)
Sourced from Bakshi himself, this contemporary making-of is in bad shape but does its job. Really awesome to see how the filming worked before moving to the animators. We also hear from them about the process to take that filmed footage and transform it into the finished product. I could watch so much more of this (7m)
Bakshi on Frazetta (archival)
Much more into it than the commentary, Bakshi talks about his friendship and collaboration with Frazetta. Nice (8m)
Sean Hannon’s Diary Notes (archival)
The body performer for Nekron, the evil prince, remembers from his diary of filmmaking and photos from the set. A nice reminder of filming from a different point of view.
Trailer
Image Galleries
Promotion and behind-the-scenes images, ranging from 15 to 45 on the half-dozen topics.
CD Soundtrack
21 tracks, 70min.
Final thoughts
Fire & Ice is an animated epic, while a little lacking in some parts, is overall an impressive feature and meeting of two legendary minds. It looks wonderful in 4k, and the set is great, including the full soundtrack. This particular edition is available only through MVDSHop.com, Oldies.com, and RoninFlix.com.