SnoReptilePlenty Memorable, crazy movie

Console best movie i've ever seen.

Plustown A lot of perfectly good film show their cards early, establish a unique premise and let the audience explore a topic at a leisurely pace, without much in terms of surprise. this film is not one of those films.

Taha Avalos The best films of this genre always show a path and provide a takeaway for being a better person.

Beli Luk I remember when I was a kid I thought that Frazetta's painting were some part of folklore-they were everywhere, and most important, they didn't seem man-made! Only later I discovered that Death Dealer and Conan are not national heroes (unfortunately) but masterpieces made by Frank Frazetta. The film is perfect blend of Frazetta's both sides of career - epic and warm. It consists of comments (better say "honest glorifications") of Frazetta's work by his colleagues, comic illustrators, with slideshows of his most famous works and his artistic biography, and simultaneously tells story about normal guy, devoted to his family, friends and passions, in such a worm way that it could easily put this film in "drama" section. It's really nice to see that such genius is not some cranky old warlock living in highest tower where he paints with virgins' blood and cat's tail, but regular funny guy, which makes him even greater.

MARIO GAUCI Overlong but generally informative feature-length documentary on celebrated artist Frank Frazetta (whose work in comic strips influenced generations of designers), which is perhaps slightly too reverential towards its subject. His distinctive three-dimensional style (with which I was familiar, if not the artist's name) is discussed at length - as is Frazetta's personal life, including his recent health problems - and, of course, even features interjections from noted film-makers such as John Milius (who directed the Frazetta-influenced CONAN THE BARBARIAN [1982]) and Ralph Bakshi (with whom Frazetta collaborated on FIRE AND ICE [1983]). Still, one would have liked some narration to smooth over, i.e. put into context, the many anecdotes and opinions - rather than have 90 uninterrupted minutes of just 'talking heads'!

Golgo-13 This is a documentary about Frank Frazetta, the great artist behind the famous Conan book covers and other such fantasy imagery. I'm sure most everyone has seen some of his work whether they've realized it or not, or at least saw some pieces that were influenced by him, of which there are many. His paintings are detailed, striking, and most importantly, alive. The film covers nearly all aspects of Frazetta's life, from his childhood where his talents were already becoming realized, to his family life, to his health problems in later years that forced him to learn to draw with his left hand. It's all pretty interesting, especially if you like his kind of artwork. Catch this documentary showing on either IFC or better yet, get the DVD, which was included with the release of Fire and Ice. The commentary (by director Laspina and producer DiFiore) gives additional insight on Frazetta and his craft. By the way, make sure to watch past the credits for a final bit of humor.

Chung Mo Frazetta is one of those artists who's forceful creativity and technique overwhelms the field he's in and everyone labors in the shadow for years. Comics and fantasy illustration will never be the same because of this man and it will probably be a long time before someone steps into his shoes. A good analogy in films would be Hitchcock in the suspense thriller genre. Nobody has surpassed his mark yet. That said, this documentary partially succeeds in explaining the man behind the work. A lot of time is spent exclaiming about how great Frazetta is. This comes from friends, fans, fellow artists and, amusingly, Frazetta himself. Unfortunately the conceit here is that Frazetta spontaneously burst into his style and that hurts the film more then anything. Anyone with a smattering of 20th century illustration art history can see the influences that Frazetta took from. N.C. Wyeth immediately comes to mind with his color Verne illustrations. Extend that history into 19th century mythological paintings and you'll see more.What is missed under all the fawning over a bunch of naked barbarian women paintings is that Frazetta was one of the best "realist" painter of the 60's and 70's. Unfortunately that style was out of style and he probably would have never made a living if it wasn't for the paperback books and magazine covers. The documentary fizzles out about an hour in when it spends a great deal of time with the opening of the Frazetta museum. The rest of the film is good for hard-core Frazetta fans but not for anyone else. The constant mixing of live-action with Frazetta's work gets tiresome and there some flimsy contextual editing. At one point, when the film discusses Frazetta's illness (strokes) and how he trained his left hand to draw and paint, the film makers cut to some very odd drawings of naked women with male munchkins who sport large genitals. Sure he did them with his left hand but I'm sure there was something else they could have shown. A film that the typical male fantasy art fan can really enjoy. Everyone else....I'm not too sure.