| The Twelve Tasks of Asterix | |
| Native Name: | French: italics=default|Les Douze travaux d'Astérix |
| Director: | René Goscinny Albert Uderzo Pierre Watrin Henri Gruel |
| Narrator: | Pierre Tchernia |
| Music: | Gérard Calvi |
| Editing: |
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| Distributor: | Gaumont Distribution |
| Runtime: | 82 minutes |
| Gross: | 9.4 million tickets[1] |
The Twelve Tasks of Asterix (fr|Les Douze travaux d'Astérix) is a French animated feature film, written and directed by René Goscinny and Albert Uderzo, produced by Dargaud Films and Studios Idéfix, and distributed by Gaumont. It is the third animated film based on the Asterix comic book series, while the first to feature an original story by Goscinny and Uderzo, the series' creators, and is the only Asterix film to be produced using xerography animation techniques.
The film's plot revolves around Asterix and Obelix attempting to complete a series of tough challenges set by Julius Caesar, who seeks to prove they and their fellow villagers are not god. The film starred Roger Carel, and Jacques Morel; while the English cast included Sean Barrett, and Geoffrey Russell.
The Twelve Tasks of Asterix received mixed review regarding the tone of the story and frequent breaks in the fourth wall, but gained popularity over the years to later be considered one of the best Asterix films, achieving the status of a cult classic.[2] [3] The story was later adapted into a comic book by Marcel Uderzo, Albert Uderzo's brother,[4] though was not widely distributed and was not incoporated into the Asterix series; an illustrated book of the film was more widely published in multiple languages than the comic adaptation.
Following constant defeats by the rebel Gauls in Armorica, the Roman Senate slowly begin to believe they may be gods, due to their apparent invincibility. Julius Caesar, openly disdainful of the suggestion, decides to test the village and meets with their chieftain, Vitalstatistix. Caesar declares that the Gauls must undertake a challenge, inspired by the Twelve Labours of Hercules - in which their best warrior must complete a set of twelve new tasks that only gods could succeed in. Caesar states that is all the tasks are completed, he will hand over the Roman Empire to them; if they fail just one task, the Gauls must surrender to Rome. Agreeing to the terms, the village assigns Asterix and Obelix to perform the tasks, with Caesar assigning Caius Tiddlus, a Roman man renowned for his honesty, to act as both their guide to the tasks and the challenges' referee.
In their first set of challenges, Asterix defeats the Greek Asbestos, champion of the ancient Olympic Games, in a race, and Cilindric the German in a judo match, by outsmarting his opponent, while Obelix defeats Verses the Persian, by managing to throw a javelin further than him. In their next challenge, the pair find themselves crossing a lake to an island known as the "Isle of Pleasure", home to beautiful Sirens, who they must resist. Although the Gauls nearly succumb to the women, Obelix comes to his senses when he learns that there are no wild boars for him to hunt and eat, allowing the pair to accomplish the challenge. The pair continue to have further success, with Asterix defeating Iris the Egyptian, by surviving turning his powerful hypnotic power against him, while Obelix defeats Belgian cook Mannekenpix by consuming all of the meals he prepares - under the assumption they were hors d'oeuvres.
Following their success in enduring the "Cave of the Beast" in the next challenge, the pair find themselves told by Caius to acquire a permit document from "The Place that Sends you Mad", a multi-storey bureaucratic building. After finding it impossible because of the clinically unhelpful people who direct them elsewhere, Asterix beats them at their own game by requesting an imaginary permit and turning their behaviour against them, resulting in the building's Prefect to unwittingly hand over what the Gauls came for. The pair continue to complete further challenges: crossing a ravine filled with crocodiles by beating them up rather than using an invisible tightrope; answering a riddle by the Old Man of the Mountain, conducted in the form of a washing detergent advertisemen; and enduring a night on a plain haunted by ghostly legionnaires, who Asterix scares away through furious complaints.
Asterix and Obelix eventually find themselves in Rome, alongside their fellow villagers, for their final task. Brought to the Circus Maximus, the Gauls fight against gladiators, whom they beat, and defeat various animals sent against them by turning the arena into a modern-day circus. Having succeeded in every task, Caesar agrees that they are gods, giving the Gauls control of the Roman Empire. Caesar retires to live a quiet and peaceful life with Cleopatra, while Caius is rewarded for his service and retires to the Isle of Pleasure. As the village celebrates their success, Asterix answers Obelix's question of them really conquering Rome by pointing out that everything that happened to them was a mere cartoon, in which anything is possible. Obelix takes advantage of this and teleports himself and his wild boar meat to the Isle of Pleasure to enjoy himself.
| Character | Original Dub | English Dub[5] [6] |
|---|---|---|
| Asterix | Roger Carel | Sean Barrett |
| Caius Tiddlius | ||
| Cacofonix | Geoffrey Russell | |
| Getafix | Henri Virlojeux | |
| Iris the Hypnotizer | Paul Bacon | |
| Vitalstatistix | Pierre Tornade | |
| Old Man of the Mountains | Gérard Hernandez | |
| Obelix | Jacques Morel | Michael Kilgarriff |
| Julius Caesar | Jean Martinelli | Alexander John |
| Chief Priestess of the Isle of Pleasure | Micheline Dax | Christina Greatrex |
In the United Kingdom, it was watched by 400,000 viewers on television during the first half of 2005, making it the fifth most-watched foreign-language film on UK television during that period.[8]