FRANK FRAZETTA PAINTED WITH FIRE (AND ICE)

[defrog]

Meanwhile, many of you already know that Frank Frazetta is gone as well.

And of course, there’s any number of pop-culture touchpoints I could raise here – Conan, John Carter Of Mars, Vampirella, Meat Loaf, anti-smoking ads, Battlestar Galactica, etc.

But for me, when I think of Frazetta, the first thing I think of (besides Molly Hatchet) is this:

Watch on YouTube

I had this on CED videodisc a hundred years ago, and I watched it constantly. And I’d be lying if I said part of the attraction wasn’t watching Teegra run around in a thong (and really, isn’t that 60% of the secret of barbarian fantasy’s popularity right there?), but I was also a fan of both Frazetta and Ralph Bakshi, and I was fascinated by the process of rotoscoping and its potential.

Nowadays, of course, we have digital motion-capture, and Bakshi’s rotoscope films look clunky in comparison. At the time, though, I was pretty knocked out by it. (And hey, if rotoscoping is good enough for Tom Waits, it's good enough for me.)

As for the film itself, well, it depends on how silly you find the barbarian fantasy genre, I suppose. I wasn’t that much into it even then (sorry, but Conan never did much for me), and I haven’t seen it in 20 years. But as I remember it, the story is cliched but okay as barbarian fantasies go, and at least works as a vehicle for the animation and the artwork.

Anyway, it’s no disgrace on Frazetta, though I’m curious to know if it gets a mention in the documentary on him a few years ago.

So long Frank, and thanks for all the art.

Putting the “broad” in “broad brush”,

This is dF

Comments

[gvdub.livejournal.com]

There's a relatively lengthy interview with both Bakshi and Frazetta in "Frank Frazetta: Painting with Fire", as well as some clips. I highly recommend the documentary if you're a Frazetta fan.

[def-fr0g-42.livejournal.com]

I do want to see it, and it's good that they got Bakshi in it. I asked because I just remember so many people writing the movie off as great in theory but wretched and best forgotten in reality.

[jasonfranks.livejournal.com]

I can't begin to tell you how excited I was when, as a kid, I saw the preview for this in the cinema. The ultimate movie for 8-year-old Jason.

I never got to see it on the big screen, and in fact spent the better part of a decade looking for it. when I did see it, I was in my twenties, aaaanddd...

And it's 100% cheese. The badguy is awesome. The rest of the story I've pretty much forgotten.

[def-fr0g-42.livejournal.com]

I remember liking Necron (the bad guy) a lot – sarcastic, resentful mama's boy with a thirst for power as much to show her up as anything else.

The story I remember through sheer repetition, but it's as formulaic as the genre gets (and it was written by Roy Thomas and Gerry Conway, who wrote some Conan comics for Marvel, so I guess they knew the formula as well as anyone): ruthless tyrant destroys village, sole survivor vows revenge, inadvertently rescues hot princess, assisted by cynical bad-ass mercenary, war ensues, hero single-handedly wins the war for the good guys, a new beginning, roll credits.