The 1977 animated film Wizards was one of the first movies to rival Disney back in the day. The futuristic adventure sends a strong message to future generations about nuclear war and Earth domination. Although it has a rating of PG, this is no child’s cartoon, but a mesmerizing and whimsical fantasy that will engross all that watch it.
Set I the future, the world has exploded with nuclear war ending most humanity on Earth. Those that have survived have been exposed to the deadly radiation and have turned into grotesque monsters over years of the new evolution. The fairies and elves have been able to exist and the queen Delia has been ruling the land for hundreds of years.
One day she sees a storm brewing and goes into a trance. Later she is visited by elves that see that she has sired twins, Avatar and Blackwolf. After sometime goes by Black Wolf has become intent on ruling the word, but first he must defeat his brother Avatar. So begins the challenge of a war that changes the remaining inhabitants of Earth.
The early 2D art of the film still has it’s attraction, especially in the evil characters who dominate the action in the movie. If you have seen the film in a theater or on DVD in the past, you are probably a follower of this style of art. Much like the comic book flair that most teens thrive in Director/Writer Ralph Bakshi keeps his animation crisp and dark. The only flowering colors are emitted during visits to Avatar’s castle while most others are warlike and sinister animated vistas.
The meaning of the film gets spelled out in the introduction: Wizards, an illuminating history bearing on the everlasting struggle for world supremacy fought between the posters of technology and magic. In fact when the forces of Avatar and Blackwolf attack war footage of World War II showing Hitler and the German Army wrecking havoc with ‘modern’ war armaments. The evil in which Hitler dealt his blows on unsuspecting countries are witness to this never-ending struggle to make peace.
If you are a fan of Wizards or Tolkien (Lord of the Rings) for that matter, then this special 35th anniversary blu-ray that comes in a special book is a perfect collector’s item or gift. The book features an introduction by Writer/Director Ralph Bakshi that has a few comments on how he came to write the story. The rest of the book breaks out each of the main characters. It shows special drawings from the film including poster concepts they worked on for the film release. Inside the back cover is the Blu-ray disc to be played over and over again. Nicely sized, the book fits in any DVD/Blu-ray case or display. In addition, the blu-ray HD enhancement really shows nicely with minimal grain on my big screen TV.
This is not a kids cartoon with a lot of clowning and elementary storyline. The film is rated PG by the MPAA but does contain a lot of violence, evil threatening images, risqué drawings of fairies and adult story content. Wizards may not be a good fit for the immature.
The special features include:
- The 24-page Collectible Book
- Commentary by Director Ralph Bakshi
- Ralph Bakshi: The Wizard of Animation – feature
- Still Gallery – with some awesome art
- The original TV spot and Theatrical Trailers
FINAL ANALYSIS: A treat for anime lovers.[rating=5]
Specifications and additional film information:
- Voices: Mark Hamill, Susan Tyrrell, Bob Holt, Jesse Welles, Richard Romanus, David Proval, and Steve Gravers
- Written and Directed by: Ralph Bakshi
- MPAA Rating: PG
- Genre: Animation, Action/Adventure, Fantasy
- Special Packaging: 35th Anniversary hard cover book 24 pages, Blu-ray slot.
- Running Time: 1 hr 21 min
- Street Date: March 13, 2012
- Original Theatrical Release Date: 1977
- Language: English, Spanish
- Audio: English 5.1 DTS HD Master Audio
- Video: Color, 16:9, Widescreen 1:85:1
- Disc Capacity: 50GB Duel Layer
- Subtitles: English SDH, French, and Spanish
- Distributed by: Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment
Writer, critic, film editor John Delia, Sr. has been on all sides of the movie business from publications to film making. He has worked as a film critic with ACED Magazine for more than 20 years and other publications for a total of 40 years. He earned a Bachelor’s degree in communications from the University of Florida. John is a member of the Southeastern Film Critics Association and Critics Association of Central Florida Send John a message at jdelia@acedmagazine.com
