Archive for the ‘Asterix’ Category
Bonjour class! Today we’re taking a look at a French film filled with action, adventure, romance, magic, and a lot of Roman-bashing. The film, Astérix et Obélix contre César (or Asterix & Obelix vs. Caesar) is the first in a string of adaptations based on the classic graphic novels by René Goscinny, and is also one of the most expensive live-action films to come out of France. As an added challenge, we’re going to take a look at it in its original language, partially to broaden our outlook on foreign films, and partially because the only copy I could find was an old VHS that did not include English dubs or subtitles. Make sure you take notes, because there may be a pop quiz afterwards.
(I’m totally kidding about the pop quiz.)
October is a big month for celebrations, and one big one is the 50th Anniversary of Asterix by Albert Uderzo and Rene Goscinny. Asterix: The Golden Book will be a hardcover book released on October 22, 2009, and considering the popularity of the character, I expect this to be the biggest selling book in the world for October/November.
For those in the United States who have no clue as to who or what an Asterix is, I suggest you “Head To The Wiki!”
The series follows the exploits of a village of ancient Gauls as they resist Roman occupation. They do so by means of a magic potion, brewed by their druid, which gives the recipient superhuman strength. The protagonist, the titular character, Asterix, along with his friend Obelix have various adventures. In many cases, this leads them to travel to various countries around the world, though other books are set in and around their village.
Last Thanksgiving, we ran our Retro Review of Asterix and Cleopatra, one of my personal favorites, and if I can get my hands on a copy (it isn’t available in the U.S. – or at least not at Amazon - for some reason), we’ll cover it this year. If we can’t, I’m open for suggestions on the next Asterix book that needs to be reviewed.
40 years and still fresh
Way back in the day, my grandparents traveled to Europe and when they returned, they had a treasure chest full of gifts to hand out to the good grandkids. While I dug my own nutcracker, the family coo-coo clock, and enough foreign sweets to set me down the path to a future cavity, the one gift that amazed me the most was a German language version of Asterix and Cleopatra. For years, I poured over those pages taking in every lavish panel, and sadly, not understanding a word of it. It wasn’t until just a few months ago, that I had the chance to get an English adaptation of the classic work. Did the translation live up to the 20 years of what I had built up to be a great comic story?
Asterix Jeux Aux. Olympiques Qui n’aime pas Asterix ? Ces Français fous avaient mis en marche hors de quelques films regardants vraiment grands d’Asterix, celui simplement roche… Si je pourrais seulement parler la langue de l’amour… le sigh…
J’ai vu un und intitulé Cleopatra d’Asterix, et il a suivi le comique presque exactement, et a basculé mes chaussettes au loin, ainsi je suis sûr qu’asterix Jeux aux. Olympiques basculera juste comme dur. Voici un bas de page rapide – si vous êtes dans celui aimable à la chose.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eneMU40IaGc[/youtube]
English translation needed? Take the jump
The third live action movie began shooting in Spain this past June. Shooting is scheduled to continue until the end of December. Based on the book by the same name, the duo head to Greece to compete against the Roman’s champion Gluteus Maximus. If you haven’t seen Asterix and Cleopatra, then you are missing out on an awesome film. It is too bad these films have only been released in Europe in the native language and have not made a decent translation stateside.
Gerard Depardieu returns as Obelix for the third time, but the role of Asterix is being played this time around by Clovis Cornillac, replacing Christian Clavier. Clavier did a great job in the last two films, so here’s hoping Cornillac can fill those shoes.
The film is set to release in January or February 2008 to coincide with the Beijing Olympics.
via Asterix NZ (link)
Loading ...