Customer Reviews

Wizards

5 star:		(54)
4 star:		(24)
3 star:		(10)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(7)

 

 

you know i pretty much know wut to expect from a bakshi now before i get into it and for some reason there is something very appealing about his films. its the subject content and the animation, i only wish they would make more sense and progress more smoothly. fortunatly wizards is the only movie where bakshi actually explains himself in a special features interview and like every one of his movies they are easyier to appreciate with a little background information. even alone you cant help but drawn in by his origonal style.

This is one of those rare movies that doesn't try to hide its flaws, and actually benefits from them giving the entire movie a campy feel to it. The accents are mixed up, the animation crude and often using recycled sequences, the movement is jerky, scenes are often using war footage that was animated over, and the jokes are often crude and dark natured. But the film in a whole works.

Though it is a bit preachy in its ways, this movie makes you interested in the characters. It also brings up some intersting and satirical ideas.

the world was destroyed in war, humans are few and most have mutated and live in badlands. Elves, faeries and dwarves, have returned and taken over the good lands, but nothing seems different. The factions are divided and uncooperative with each other. When the badlands mutants gets a powerful leader, they ignore it until it is too late. When the push is made for the mutants to take over the goodlands the enemy seemingly has too much up his sleeve.

The cartoon has a definite seventies feel to it. The humor is dark, twisted, and often times has a distinct feel of juxtoposition. It is a fantasy futuristic world that has the attitude and feeling of New York. There are fairy hookers, dirty streets with bums lying around, and bitter old men with brooklyn accents. The evil army has a strong Nazi theme to it, as well as their secret weapons.

It is also very violent, showing elves and fairies being killed by the hundreds, pow's being executed, and prisoners being forced to entertain soldiers any way they want.

This is a very warped movie that shouldn't work, but does. A classic from the 70's that had enough of a cult following to bring it to dvd today. watch it for the spectacle and you will either love it or hate it.

I remember seeing this film as young kid though I really wasn't supposed too. I saw it with the film LIGHT YEARS another film that I hope will come to dvd in the very near future. This film is basically about a centuries old battle between two brothers. One on the side of magic, the other on the side of Technology. It's basic good versus evil with a bit of social commentary in between. The animation may not be what people are used to now, but it serves it's purpose. I personally like the rendition of the elves. They look more like elves from say ELF QUEST and not the overly tall elves of D&D fame. Pretty good film. Check it out for nostalgia if anything else.

This 1977 Ralph Bakshi made animated sci-fi fantasy is set in the post-apocalyptic future where mutants, monsters, fairies, elves, dwarves, and magical creatures roam. An evil wizard named "Blackwolf" plans on taking over the world with his mutant army using old Nazi propaganda films while a kind and powerful wizard named "Avatar" with a hot fairy chick named " Ellinor" and a brave elf named "Weehawk" including a robot named "Peace" join forces together to go to a place called "Scorch" then stop Blackwolf, the war and prevent the end of the world.

A unique, kadeldoscopic and entertaining animated fantasy from the director of "Fritz The Cat", " Animated Lord of the Rings" and "American Pop". The animation is quite good, it does have Mark Hamil's voice debut before he was in "Star Wars" of the same year this movie was released, a superhot fairy chick guaranteed to make guys smile and it's a good fun flick for the whole family even though it's rated PG due to some graphic animated violence, battle scenes, some language and some mild nudity.

The DVD is excellent, the extras include TV Spot, Trailers, a documentary on how Ralph Bakshi created this movie, still gallery and a audio commentary by Ralph Bakshi. So if you love fun fantasy, sci-fi and animated flicks then pick this up for your animation DVD collection.

Also recommended: " Terminator 2: Judgment Day", " Fist of the North Star" ( Anime version), " Braveheart", " Gladiator", " Mad Max", " The Last Unicorn", " The Secret of NIMH", " Rock & Rule", " The Dark Crystal", " The Princess Bride", " Star Wars", " Gettysburg", " Starship Troopers", " Total Recall", " Heavy Metal", " The Fifth Element", " Mulan", "Antz".

Ralph Bakshi has his admirers and his detractors, as any good filmmaker should. Wizards is an important film for many reasons, but mostly, in my opinion, because it really began the experimentation of melding of rotoscope, traditional animation and live action. Bakshi masterfully mixes the three techniques in ways never before done, and seldom since. His powerful use of Nazi propaganda films melds perfectly with high contrast rotoscoping of Eisenstein's Alexander Nevski to give birth to a new and disturbing world. His use of traditional animation techniques then colors the fairy lands in another light and we see the contrast between these two worlds brought together in a terrifying realization. The melding of various methods of filmmaking might be too much for some who have become accustomed to Disney animation, Saturday morning cartoons and anime, but it gives us a rare glimpse into what might have been in an artform which never fully developed into its own right.

Finally, we have DVD which treats master filmmaker, Ralph Bakshi, with the respect he deserves. After the atrociously inadequate release of Bakshi's Lord of the Rings Part One a few years ago, with it's incredible lack of special features and horrific overdub in the middle of the closing score (though thankfully finally released in widescreen format), I couldn't be happier with the treatment Fox has given to this film. The transfer is gorgeous and the colors are far more vivid than I have ever seen before - an element that is critical to the film.

The real treat, however, is the feature length commentary by Mr. Bakshi as well as the "documentary" on him and his work. I would have liked to have him chat a bit more about Lord of the Rings since we were robbed of a commentary in that DVD release, but he does give a bit of insight into the film, which was welcome.

All in all, a fantastic DVD release of a groundbreaking film. Bravo Fox and Mr. Bakshi! I hope Fire and Ice, Hey Good Lookin', Coonskin and someday a re-release of Lord of the Rings, will receive a similar treatment.

David

Alan E. Rapp has his opinion, and we all know about them, don't we Mr. Alan E. Rapp? they are like *****les, everyone has one!

What the "critic" and reviewer did not see was the eternal battle between good and evil, that is played out in the fine work, which was way ahead of its time. Buy this movie, and love the story as the epic tale unfolds before you.

for evil to succeed, all good has to do is nothing. I am glad avatar had some common sense in addition to magic.

Ralph Bakshi's Tolkien-esque animated film WIZARDS (1977) is a surreal depiction of life on Earth hundreds of thousands of years following a devastating nuclear holocaust. Humanoids are now divided into two groups, one a vast race of multifarious mutants who embrace the remnants of science and technology, the other a loose society of peaceable elves, dwarfs, and fairies who abhor pre-holocaust technology and instead practice a lifestyle based on magic and wizardry. The mutants are governed by the depraved, warmongering mutant Blackwolf; the elves and fairies look to the wizard Avatar, Blackwolf's dwarfish fraternal twin brother, for leadership. Hatred and resentment towards his happy-go-lucky brother spurs Blackwolf to amass his mutant subjects into a great army, and he invades Avatar's kingdom with a Nazi-like fury. The fate of the Earth and its inhabitants, then, will ultimately be decided in a violent bout of sibling rivalry.

Writer/director Bakshi started his career in animated films at the age of 18, at which time he was hired by the Terrytoons Studio to paint or opaque animation cels. He quickly worked his way up through the ranks, ultimately helming episodes of made-for-TV kiddie cartoon series like DEPUTY DAWG (1959-1972) and SPIDER-MAN (1967-1970). But Bakshi longed to create films with more substance, films for a more mature audience. So in 1972, he and producer Steve Krantz put together the low-budget film FRITZ THE CAT, a semi-pornographic feature-length cartoon--the first to earn an "X" rating--based on Robert Crumb's popular "underground" comic. After another X-rated counter-culture feature, 1973's HEAVY TRAFFIC, Bakshi created a controversial racial satire called COONSKIN (1975) that Paramount immediately pulled from theaters after initial showings stirred up public outrage and protest. Bakshi then decided it was better to play it safe and try for something more mainstream, and the result was 1977's sci-fi/fantasy flick WIZARDS.

Bakshi was apparently not too familiar with the two genres that he grafted together for WIZARDS, as the storyline is often confusing and the characterizations uneven. But in spite of the weak narrative and such, the film has become a cult classic since its initial release because of its stunning and groundbreaking visuals. Bakshi and his crew intermix traditional animation with multiple styles of static comic-book art, tinted live-action backgrounds, augmented rotoscoped animation, and even Nazi propaganda footage from WWII. Stirred into this mix is a myriad of subtle and not-so-subtle anti-war and other socio-political symbols and visual cues, and the result is a breathtaking aesthetic tour de force that can best be described as a sort of kinetic collage.

The DVD edition of WIZARDS from FOX is simply wonderful. Though some minor wear and filmic artifacts are noticeable at times, the digital transfer is fairly clean and offers the rich colors and detail that the film deserves. The disc presents WIZARDS in its original 1.85:1 aspect ratio and has been enhanced for 16x9 televisions, and some great bonus material is offered, too. There is a feature commentary in which Ralph Bakshi himself offers many insights into his motivation for creating the film and also talks about some of the folks who assisted in its creation. Also included is an interesting featurette entitled RALPH BAKSHI: THE WIZARD OF ANIMATION--basically a 30-minute interview with Bakshi in which he discusses everything from his beginnings at Terrytoons Studious to his work on WIZARDS and beyond--two theatrical trailers, a TV spot, and a cool gallery of production art.

This DVD is well worth the cost of admission. A must-own for any lover of animation that many SF and Fantasy fans will want to add to their film collections, too.

Finally, my favorite Ralph Bakshi movie puts in an appearance on DVD. It's surprising that it took this long considering that most of his other films are already out on DVD. I can't count the number of times I've see it as a midnight show at the old Greenbelt Mall theatres or as half of a double feature at the late Key Theater in College Park. Of course, I snapped up the VHS version when it first came out in that format and logged even more hours visiting Montagar and Scortch with Avatar, Elinore, Peace (Necron 99), Weehawk, and Blackwolf. And now, another format that finally includes some extras. The highlight here (apart from the movie itself) is the 34 minute featurette in which Bakshi talks about his other films, Disney, the Lucas/Hamill connection, and, of course, Wizards. An essential addition for any Ralph Bakshi or animation fan. Rotoscoping at it's best.

Wizards captivated me when I first saw it in theaters years ago. It is well put together and a work of artistic achievement, wonderful in its day. The story is entertaining and still has a degree of appeal. On that basis I would give it 5 stars. I just finished watching the DVD, however, and I was horrified. It is still an achievment but the message it conveys, that science and technology are intrisically evil, is an evil message in and of itself. On that basis I would give it only a single star. Splitting the difference, I arrived at 3 stars. The film is well worth seeing. It is entertaining, promotes peace, justice and worthy goals. It rightfully condemns real evils. In doing so, however, it also wrongfully condems many laudable aspects of life. I for one, am glad that to not be yoked to a plow in order to scratch out a meager existence.

Wizards (1977) aka War Wizards (the name was changed at the behest of George Lucas as he thought two movies released at the same time by the same studio with war in the title, his being Star Wars, would have been off-putting to movie goers) written and directed by Ralph Bakshi, was certainly a departure from some of his previous adult animation works, Fritz the Cat (1972) and Heavy Traffic (1973), but provided Bakshi the opportunity to show he could create a animated feature for all viewers, young and old, that spoke to the viewer on intelligent terms. Were all viewers ready to hear what he had to say? No, and given the subsequent release of Star Wars (like two weeks later) Wizards, which had been enjoying a great amount of success, got pushed out of theaters to allow for space for George Lucas' epic space opera. With this release of Wizards on DVD, maybe now his film will garner the recognition it deserved so long ago.

The story goes that the Earth gets consumed in apocalyptic fire as man unleashes his most terrible achievement upon himself, and many years after his destruction, various forms of life begin to come forth, including fairies, elves, pixies along with mutants, beings once humans but changed over thousands of years of exposure to radiation. Almost all technology is gone, wiped from the face of the Earth, and, in its' place, magic has prospered. Born of the same mother are two brothers who become powerful wizards, one good, Avatar, and the other evil, Blackwolf. After a tremendous battle, Avatar vanquishes Blackwolf, but not before Blackwolf issues a statement that indicates he will not go quietly into that good night.

Blackwolf, now residing in the poisoned lands with the mutants and nasty things, puts together a massive army, but one lacking proper motivation, and, subsequently, they are easily defeated any time they are sent forth into battle. Tired of his inability to advance proper on his enemies and gain ground, Blackwolf commands that his followers dig up once forgotten technology, hoping to find aid within the scattered remnants of the powerful technology of old. His salvation comes in the form of propaganda films created by the Germans during WWII. Likening himself to the leader of the German forces during this past conflict, Blackwolf uses the films to not only motivate his troops, but to instill fear and dread among his enemies, showing the films in the sky during the battles.

This prompts Avatar, his female fairy charge Elinore, the leader of the Elves named Weehawk, and Blackwolf's captured/converted assassin robot re-named peace, to embark on an adventure to discover the source of Blackwolf's new power, and destroy it. Can this heroic group effectively end Blackwolf's reign of terror and end his powerful war machine before all is lost? There's a nice bit of irony at the end, one that really suited the feature.

So, is the film any good? I have read many opinions that will tell you it's not, and I can understand why this film would put some off, but I really enjoyed the movie. Bakshi's goal, as I understood it, was to create an animated feature with heart, one that didn't talk down to its' audience, as do other animated features released by other companies, i.e. Disney, do at times. His animation style definitely unconventional, is certainly distinctive, and swims with realism, despite the surface superficialities. I really loved how he incorporated live action footage into the film, enveloping it with animation, creating an eerie superimposed background to various scenes within the movie. The film was rated PG at the time of it's release, so I would be wary of showing it to younger viewers, but I think it's a really wonderful alternative full of heart to the shiny, happy, uber-clean, product tie-in animation put out by the larger profit-driven studios. There's nothing wrong with wanting to make a profit, certainly, but sometimes it seems like these films tend to cater to the lowest common denominator, and be more contrived to make money rather than entertain. The animation may seem crude, disturbing, and misogynistic at times, but this is animation with the sugar coating peeled away, mirroring elements within our society. Do people want to see this in an animated feature? Maybe not, but I enjoyed it, but may find myself hard presses to recommend it to all but the more discriminating viewer.

The picture looks really good here in wide screen anamorphic, and there are some wonderful special features including a commentary track by writer/director Ralph Bakshi, theatrical trailers and TV spots for the film, a still gallery with conceptual drawings, and a featurette titled 'Ralph Bakshi: The Wizard of Animation'. This provides a wonderful look into the making of Wizards, and Bakshi also provides tons of background on himself, how he got started, his difficulties and successes within the animation business, his motivations for his films, his contempt for animation that talks down to audiences, and his experiences with various individuals during his career. This is the only featuette he's doing for any of his releases, mainly due to his affinity for the project. Some of his comments, especially the ones hinting towards various conspiracies leveled at him, make him sound a little nutty, but make for entertaining viewing. All in all, an excellent release of a great little animated film that went against the conventional grain. Also, keep an ear out for a voice appearance by Mark Hamill as Sean, king of the fairies.

Cookieman108