Asterix and Cleopatra (1968)

Provoked, Cleopatra bets Caesar, that she can build a big palace in 3 months. An architect is given 3 months or else.. Fortunately, Getafix/Panoramix, Asterix and Obelix come to Alexandria to help.

Directors:

René Goscinny, Albert Uderzo

Writers:

René Goscinny (comic book), Albert Uderzo (comic book)

Stars:

Roger Carel, Jacques Morel, Micheline Dax

1 win.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Roger Carel	...	Astérix (voice)
Jacques Morel	...	Obélix (voice)
Micheline Dax	...	Cléopâtre (voice)
Jacques Balutin	...	Tournevis (voice)
Jacques Bodoin	...	(voice)
Maurice Chevit	...	(voice)
Pierre Tornade	...	Numérobis / Abraracourcix (voice)
Claude Dasset	...	(voice)
Pierre Garin	...	(voice)
Olivier Hussenot	...	(voice)
Bernard Lavalette	...	Le narrateur / Amonbofis (voice)
Rodolphe Marcilly	...	(voice)
Joel Noel	...	(voice)
Jean Parédès	...	Jules César (voice)
Fred Personne	...	(voice) (as Alfred Personne)

Storyline

Popular animated hero Asterix and his faithful sidekick Obelix travel to ancient Egypt to help Cleopatra build a new summer home. Cleopatra and Julius Caesar have made a bet, with Caesar wagering the project cannot be completed in a few weeks time. With the help of a magic potion, Asterix comes to the rescue of the Queen of the Nile as Caesar and an angry architect plot against them.

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Plot Keywords:

based on comic book | sequel | julius caesar | antidote | crocodile | 

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Taglines:

Astérix meets the Queen of the Nile!

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Genres:

Animation | Adventure | Comedy | Family | History

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Did You Know?

Trivia

Jacques Balutin's French dubbing of character Tournevis is an obvious imitation of Louis de Funès' persona from the 1950s.

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Goofs

In the Roman Age, the body of the Great Sphinx of Giza was buried in sand.

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Alternate Versions

Re-edited from it's original aspect ratio 1.66:1 to 1.78:1 in some DVD/Blu-ray editions.

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Connections

Featured in René Goscinny: Profession humoriste (1998)

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Soundtracks

Quand l'Appétit va, Tout va
Music by Gérard Calvi
Lyrics by Pierre Tchernia
Performed by Roger Carel and Jacques Morel

User Reviews

a not dated funny Asterix movie

I know this movie form a long time, certainly for the past 18 years, and still I watch it occasionally. There are quite a lot differences in the language you watch this movie, and I have seen German, English & in Dutch.As has been mentioned the movie looks very fresh, and it is 40 years old. It's quite weird that France had to give up his colonies in for instance Africa in the last decade and a half before this film was made.

I like a lot of the dialogs especially of Asterix and Obelix, Asterix is much smarter than Obelix, but some of Obelix's decisions tend to have a good effect in things that happen. The use that Asterix and Obelix make of the Panoramix magic potion works quite well for me, partly I think because they do not use it for every issue or problem. The magic potion cant help for instance when they can't find the way out of the pyramid. But in this movie the only problem is a limited amount of time. And even that is not a real a problem. I think that because of this, although it has shifted from time to time for me, the lack of real conflicts / problems/ confrontations etc I like a bit more the film le douze travaux d'Asterix. In this film there is a major problem with bureaucracy, and the way Asterix and Obelix solve it is very funny. Bureaucracy is also a theme I hardly see in movies.

Because of the architecture and art, I think that some sort of Egyptological advice went into this movie. Otherwise the makers did do their homework and were much inspired bij for instance at that time quite recent discoveries ( Lake Nasser, from Montet & Carter f.i. ). Although a lot of art is not really accurate, because cartouches don't appear in the homes of citizens and not even in rich peoples houses. But I like to see the attention there is paid to it. Some animations have some puzzling objects. When Cleopatra takes a bath, there is a boat visible quite similar to an object that has been found in Tutankhamens grave, and the meaning of this particular boat is not clear.

But I have some things that should have been done much better, even though a lot was not known about this in 1968. .I'm not optimistic (from experience) about this, but I hope that every viewer realizes that we are given a stereotyped view on the appearance of the Egyptians for instance. I could only find some truth in the portrayal of the Egyptians in regard to the to their ages. They are often young, consistent with the fact that most ancient Egyptians died between their thirties and forties, and the (early) childhood mortality rate was very high. But despite the relative low life expectancy and the relatively isolated geographical situation, the (ancient) Egyptians have a wide range of physical characteristics. There was even a king from the New Kingdom who had red hair. I had hoped that these aspects would have been included.

Details

Official Sites:

asterix .com [France]

Country:

France Belgium

Language:

French

Release Date:

24 September 1969 (USA)

Also Known As:

Asterix and Cleopatra

Box Office

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$1,090,041

Company Credits

Production Co:

Belvision, Dargaud Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

72 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1