The Twelve Tasks of Asterix
The Twelve Tasks of Asterix | |
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![]() Original theatrical release poster | |
Les Douze travaux d'Astérix | |
Directed by |
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Screenplay by |
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Produced by |
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Edited by |
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Music by | Gérard Calvi |
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Distributed by | EMI Films (1976, U.K.) Gaumont (France) |
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Running time | 82 minutes |
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Box office | 9.4 million tickets[1] |
The Twelve Tasks of Asterix (Les Douze travaux d'Astérix) is a 1976 Belgian/French animated feature film based on the Asterix comic book series. René Goscinny and Albert Uderzo, the creators of the series, wrote the story and directed the film themselves; with co-direction by Pierre Watrin and the screenplay co-written by Pierre Tchernia, a friend of Goscinny and Uderzo. The film was directed, produced and animated at Goscinny and Uderzo's own animation studio, Studios Idéfix and is the only Asterix animated film that has used the Xerography Process.[further explanation needed] At the time of its release, the film received mixed reviews since its tone is more cartoony and frequently breaks the fourth wall. Nowadays its reception is more favorable, with it often being cited as one of the best Astérix films, even reaching the status of a cult classic.[2][3] The movie has also been translated in Dutch.
It was the only Asterix film (animated or live-action) to be based on an original screenplay rather than on material from any of the comic book stories until the release of Asterix: The Secret of the Magic Potion in 2018.[2][3] It was later adapted into a comic book as well by Albert Uderzo's brother, Marcel Uderzo,[4] as an illustrated text story book and a series of twelve books for young readers.
Plot[]
Following constant defeats by the rebel village of Gaul, the Roman Senate begins to suggest that the Gauls might 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: the village's best warriors shall perform a set of twelve new tasks, which only gods could carry out successfully. Completion of all the tasks will see Caesar hand over the Roman Empire to them, whereas failing just one task will result in the Gauls surrendering 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 their guide to the tasks and serve as the challenges' referee.
In their first set of challenges, Asterix defeats Asbestos, champion of the Ancient Olympic Games, by beating him in a race, and Cilindric the German in a judo match, by outsmarting his opponent. 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 that is home to beautiful Sirens, who reside in the centre on the "Isle of Pleasure". 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. After surviving the hypnotic gaze of Iris the Egyptian in the fifth task, with Asterix causing him to hypnotise himself, Obelix attempts the sixth task of finishing meals prepared by the Belgian cook Mannekenpix, consuming all the food (which he believes to be his starters).
Following their seventh task of enduring the "Cave of the Beast", the pair attempt the eighth task of getting a permit document from 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 asking for an imaginary permit. The staff fall victim to their own behaviour, and cause the Prefect to unwittingly hand over what the Gauls came for. The pair continue to complete further challenges. They cross a ravine filled with crocodiles by beating them up, rather than using an invisible tightrope. They answer a riddle by the Old Man of the Mountain, conducted in the form of a washing detergent advertisement. They then endure a night on a plain haunted by ghosts. Asterix gets rid of them by complaining about the noise and convincing the ghosts to shut up.
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, while retiring to live a quiet and peaceful life with Cleopatra. As a reward for his service, Caius Tiddlus 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 everything is possible. Obelix takes advantage of this and teleports himself and his wild boar meat to the Isle of Pleasure alongside with Caius Tiddlus, to enjoy himself.
Cast[]
![]() | This section does not cite any sources. (March 2020) |
Character | Original | English[5] |
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Asterix | Roger Carel | Sean Barrett[6] |
Caius Tiddlius | ||
Roman Senator #3 | Unknown | |
Dogmatix | ||
Obelix | Jacques Morel | Michael Kilgarriff[6] |
Fulliautomatix | Georges Atlas | Sean Barrett[6] |
Hermes | Unknown | |
Roman Ghost | Sean Barrett[6] | |
A senator and the centurion | Claude Bertrand | Unknown |
Bureaucrat #5 | Caroline Cler | |
Bureaucrat on Swing | Claude Dasset | |
Chief Priestess of the Isle of Pleasure | Micheline Dax | Christina Greatrex[6] |
Cleopatra | Unknown | |
Old Man of the Mountains | Gérard Hernandez | |
Soldier | Jacques Hilling | |
Bureaucrat #1 | Henri Labussière | |
Bureaucrat #4 | Odette Laure | |
Prefect | Bernard Lavalette | |
Cylindric | Roger Lumont | Sean Barrett[6] |
Julius Caesar | Jean Martinelli | John Ringham[6] |
Zeus | Unknown | |
Roman Senator #1 | Pascal Mazzotti | |
Centurion | Henri Poirier | |
Mannikinpix | Stéphane Steeman | Sean Barrett[6] |
Hera | Monique Thubert | Unknown |
Vitalstatistix | Pierre Tornade | |
Impedimenta | Nicole Vervil | |
Getafix | Henri Virlojeux | Geoffrey Russell[6] |
Iris | Unknown | |
Narrator | Pierre Tchernia | |
Gladiator Trainer | Unknown | Sean Barrett[6] |
Jailer | ||
Mrs. Geriatrix | Christina Greatrex[6] | |
Window 12 Receptionist | ||
Minerva | ||
Cacofonix | Geoffrey Russell[6] | |
Senator #4 |
Additional voices[]
- Original: Gisèle Grimm, Nicole Jonesco, Mary Mongourdin, Lawrence Riesner, Jean Stout, Alice Sapritch
- English: Paul Bacon, George Baker, Ysanne Churchman, Alexander John, Barbara Mitchell, Gennie Nevinson, John Ringham, Paddy Turner[6]
Notes[]
- In the opening scene at Caesar's senate Brutus is seen around the table playing with a knife of which Caesar says "Brutus, stop playing about with that knife you'll end up hurting somebody",[7][8] while Brutus is off screen you hear an "ouch" in the background with the next shot of Brutus with a bandage around his finger. This is a reference to Brutus being one of the men who stabbed and killed Caesar.
- The scene with the fight in the Native American village during the second task features a cameo appearance by Oumpah-pah, a character created by Goscinny and Uderzo for a separate comic series.
- Especially in France and Germany, "The Place that sends you mad" sequence has achieved a strong cult status as a parody of absurd modern-day bureaucracy. In Germany, "Passierschein A38" ("Curfew pass A38") has become a popular slang term for a fictional document to ironically describe absurd bureaucracy.[9][10][11]
Comic book and story book adaptations[]
In 1976 Albert Uderzo's brother Marcel created a comic book adaptation of the film. This rare album has been translated in various languages, but is unavailable in the regular series.[4] The English translation, only published as part of the once off comic book annual Asterix Annual 1980,[12] was based on the dialogue of the English version of the film and was titled Asterix Conquers Rome. There is also an illustrated book of the film containing the story in text. The story book is more regularly published and more widely translated than the very rare comic book.[13] In addition there are also twelve rare illustrated text story books for young readers, one for each of the twelve tasks.
References[]
- ^ "Douze travaux d'Astérix (1976)". JP's Box-Office. Retrieved 11 June 2020.
- ^ a b "René Goscinny". lambiek.net.
- ^ a b "Albert Uderzo". lambiek.net.
- ^ a b "Marcel Uderzo". lambiek.net.
- ^ "Les DOUZE TRAVAUX D'ASTÉRIX (1975)".
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m "The Twelve Tasks of Asterix". Behind The Voice Actors. Retrieved 26 March 2021.
- ^ "Animated Asterix Films: 'The Twelve Tasks of Asterix'". h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition. Retrieved 10 June 2021.
- ^ Kuykendall, Jeff. "The Twelve Tasks of Asterix (1976)". Midnight Only. Retrieved 10 June 2021.
- ^ "Warum das Coronavirus den "Passierschein A38" wiederauferstehen lässt". www.t-online.de (in German). Retrieved 20 October 2021.
- ^ "ZEIT ONLINE | Lesen Sie zeit.de mit Werbung oder im PUR-Abo. Sie haben die Wahl". www.zeit.de. Retrieved 20 October 2021.
- ^ "Apps statt Ablage - Der lange Weg zur digitalen Verwaltung". Deutschlandfunk Kultur (in German). Retrieved 20 October 2021.
- ^ "Asterix Conquers Rome (1976) - Read Asterix Comics Online". asterixonline.info.
- ^ "Chapter 1. The Twelve Tasks of Asterix". asterix.openscroll.org.
External links[]
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Wikiquote has quotations related to: The Twelve Tasks of Asterix |
- 1976 films
- Asterix films
- 1976 animated films
- 1970s ghost films
- 1970s speculative fiction films
- Animated films based on comics
- Belgian animated films
- Bureaucracy in fiction
- Films about bureaucracy
- Circus films
- French animated films
- French films
- French-language films
- French alternate history films
- French children's films
- Cultural depictions of Marcus Junius Brutus
- Depictions of Cleopatra on film
- Depictions of Julius Caesar on film
- Films about gladiatorial combat
- Films about crocodilians
- Films about Heracles
- Films adapted into comics
- Films directed by René Goscinny
- Films directed by Albert Uderzo
- Films featuring hypnosis
- Films scored by Gérard Calvi
- Films set in ancient Rome
- Self-reflexive films
- Surreal comedy
- Teleportation in films
- 1970s children's animated films
- Animated films based on classical mythology
- Halas and Batchelor films