Wizards

This film was Bakshi's test-run, of sorts, for his upcoming version of 'Lord of the Rings'. Supposedly he originally wanted to make a fantasy based on the Holocaust, but settled for a more traditional fantasy. The story deals with wizards and elves in the distant future who dig up long-forgotten Nazi propaganda films and old war machinery, which are used by evil creatures to try and conquer the good creatures. The demons and evil creatures are obviously symbols of Nazis while the elves (with one being the voice of a young Mark Hamill) representing the Jews. It's almost disturbing at times watching old WWII war movie footage with German soldiers fighting alongside animated demons against psychedelic-colored backgrounds. The film is worth viewing for the still-drawings alone that appear throughout the film, with excellent artwork by Michael Ploog. The animation doesn't strive for realism (why bother, since Rotoscoping is so heavily used) but captures the dynamic motion depicted in comic book art. Very good. Highly recommended.

This cartoon was one of those in the seventies when animation was almost dead. A few folks revived it with movies like Fritz the Cat, Lord of the Rings, Fire and Ice and Wizards. Although Wizards didn't do well during the prime time, it rocked as a midnight movie.

But, even with the simple plot, engaging characters and sporadic humor, one gets the impression that this movie was not well-planned. There is conventional animation, rotoscoping and overexposed film sometimes being used on the same screen. It also seems that they ran out of money and had to resort to stills with a narrator (nice voice)...

You'd think that this would make the movie worse; however, it gives the movie a charm that a slicker production wouldn't have...

This is one of the most brilliant movies ever made. Though the film alters in tone quite often from dark and moody to light and whimsical, it's one of my all time favorite movies. It's Ralph Bakshi's first film aimed at children, but it's actually very intense, violent battle sequences, some mild adult language, suggestive material, and some dark themes that are more suited for older audiences. It's a story of Avatar and Blackwolf, two wizard brothers. Avatar rules the peaceful kingdom of Montagar with wisdom and magic, while the evil Blackwolf rules the dark land of Scortch with technology and war.

It's a great combination of science fiction and fantasy set years into a strange post apocalyptic future where broken tanks, guns, and Nazi propaganda are regarded as ancient artifacts. Wonderful supporting characters include Weehawk, a courageous and cynical elf, Elinore, a young fairy princess whom Avatar is in love with, and Necron 99, a robotic assassin who is turned into a good robot named Peace. This movie has a great deal of symbolism and is very thought provoking, it deals with the power of propaganda and the dangers of the over reliance on technology.

I was impressed by the surreal and creative animation, and I was mesmerized by the mystical and otherworldly music score. The film's climax is brilliant and fits the overall tone of the film. Treat yourself to a symbolic retro-future style film loaded with psychedelic animation, memorable characters, and a truly wonderful adventure that will transport you to a whole new world set ten million years into the distant future.

I found this movie as a teen and used to show it to friends the morning after parties. It's sort of a Saturday morning cartoon gone horribly awry. I've never seen animation like it before, though I understand Bakshi has other stuff out there. I like it better than Heavy Metal and American Pop. I found it while looking for Rock and Rule, which I didn't find very memorable. This, however, I saw once and had to see again! Everyone I've shown it to has liked it- it's a sci-fi fantasy cartoon with a moral message and enough plot and humor to keep things interesting. Again, great morning after type stuff, though perhaps a bit intense and/or slow at times.

When one imagines wizards, usually knights, mounts, damsels, and dragons come to mind almost exclusively. But would one think of the haunting memories of the holocaust, or any actions Hitler's Nazi Regime took whenever magic-wielding wizards are mentioned? Not likely.

Bakshi's able to pit the essence of fantasy against the monstrosity of an ever-growing being we call "technology." The animation is simple (albeit complex and interesting at times) yet unique, the characters are conflicted and well-developed, and the twisted, somewhat random humor adds a twist of reality in a seemingly hopeless world. Definitely a movie to watch and a movie to criticize in its own rite.