Fire and Ice (1983 film)

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Fire and Ice
Image:Fire and Ice 1983 poster.png Theatrical release poster.
Directed by	Ralph Bakshi
Produced by	Ralph Bakshi & Frank Frazetta
Written by	Gerry Conway Roy Thomas
Starring	Susan Tyrrell Maggie Roswell William Ostrander Stephen Mendel Clare Nono
Music by	William Kraft
Cinematography	Francis Grumman
Distributed by	20th Century Fox
Release date(s)	August 27, 1983
Running time	81 min.
Country	USA
Language	English
Budget	$1,200,000
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Fire and Ice, released in 1983, was a collaboration between Ralph Bakshi and Frank Frazetta, distributed by 20th Century Fox, which also distributed 1977's Wizards. The animated feature, based on characters Bakshi and Frazetta co-created, was made using the process of rotoscoping, in which scenes were shot in live action and then traced onto animation cels.

The screenplay was written by Gerry Conway and Roy Thomas, both of whom had written Conan stories for Marvel Comics. Background painter was James Gurney, the author and artist of the famous Dinotopia illustrated novels. Thomas Kinkade also worked on the backgrounds to various scenes.

The film was neither financially nor critically successful, but later became a cult classic among fans of the film's two creators. In 2003, the Online Film Critics Society ranked the film as the 99th greatest animated film of all time.^[1] In 2005, it was released on DVD by Blue Underground Entertainment on a limited edition two-disc set, paired with the documentary Frazetta: Painting With Fire, about the film's co-creator and producer, Frank Frazetta.^[2]

[edit] Plot

From their stronghold in Icepeak, the evil Queen Juliana and her son Nekron send forth a wave of glaciers, forcing humanity to retreat south. Nekron sends a delegation to King Jarol in Firekeep to request his surrender, but this is a really ruse for Nekron’s sub-humans to kidnap Jarol’s daughter, the Princess Teegra. But Teegra makes an escape and comes upon the farmboy Larn, the only survivor of a village razed by glaciers, who offers to escort her back to Firekeep. As Teegra is recaptured, Larn teams with the mysterious Darkwolf to save Teegra and then travel to Icepeak to stop Juliana.