Les douze travaux d'Astérix (1976)

Directors:

René Goscinny
Henri Gruel

Writers:

René Goscinny (story) &
Albert Uderzo (story) ...

Release Date:

12 March 1976 (West Germany)

Genre:

Action | Adventure | Animation | Comedy | Family | Fantasy

Tagline:

Twelve mighty tasks to prove the Gauls are gods or mortals!

Plot:

The Gauls have the chance to become the new masters of the Roman empire if they can solve twelve tasks set by Julius Cesar.

Plot Keywords:

Task | Roman Empire | Gaul | Village | Asterix

Awards:

2 wins

Cast

Roger Carel	...	Astérix / Les 2 sénateurs (voice)
Pierre Tornade	...	Obélix (voice)
Jacques Morel	...	Abraracourcix (voice)
Henri Labussière	...	Le réceptionniste (voice)
Jean Martinelli	...	César (voice)
Pascal Mazzotti	...	(voice)
Lawrence Riesner	...	(voice)
Claude Dasset	...	(voice)
Roger Lumont	...	Cylindrique le Germain, prof de karaté allemand (voice)
Gérard Hernandez	...	(voice)
Henri Virlojeux	...	(voice)
Nicole Vervil	...	(voice)
Jacques Hilling	...	(voice)
Henri Poirier	...	(voice)
Mary Mongourdin	...	(voice)

Also Known As:

Asterix's Twelve Tasks (Australia) (DVD title)
The Adventures of Asterix (Australia)
The Twelve Tasks of Asterix

Runtime:

82 min | Australia:85 min

Country:

France

Language:

French

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Canada:G (Manitoba/Quebec) | Argentina:Atp | Australia:G | Finland:K-8 | Iceland:L | Sweden:Btl | UK:U | West Germany:6

Company:

Dargaud Films

Quotes:

Julius Caesar: Brutus, stop playing with that knife. You'll end up hurting someone.

Movie Connections:

Featured in René Goscinny: Profession humoriste (1998) (TV)

It puts the 1999 live-action movie to shame!

This is Asterix the way I like him to be! I have always been a big fan of the comic books, and also liked the animated movies. This one has the particularity of not being based on any of the books, but having a new storyline - a fun and original one, not the incongruent rehash of pieces from the books that was the 1999 live-action movie.

In this adventure, due to the super-human strength of the Gauls, the Romans had came to think that they can be actual gods instead of medium human beings. To try them, Caesar decides to send the most powerful Gaulish warriors (Asterix and Obelix, of course) to 12 dangerous tasks, imitating the "Works of Hercules". If the Gauls succeed, they'll be considered Gods, and Caesar will stop trying to conquer them. But if they fail, they and their village will become property of the Roman Empire.

The movie is a lot of fun for kids and grown-ups. It has even moments that are almost scary (the ghosts of the dead legionaries coming to life), and others that are hilarious by describing situations that, after all, are not so dissimilar to reality (I'm talking about the House that Makes People Crazy, of course).

So, if you want the opinion of a serious Asterix fan, avoid the 1999 waste (actually the 13th Task of Asterix, as it's really hard to endure ;) and see this or any other of the first four animated movies (I haven't seen the other two). You don't need magic potion to enjoy them.