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| Asterix and Obelix vs. Caesar | |
|---|---|
 French theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Claude Zidi |
| Written by | Gérard Lauzier |
| Based on | |
| Produced by | |
| Starring | |
| Cinematography | Tony Pierce-Roberts |
| Edited by |
|
| Music by | |
Production companies | Katharina Renn Productions TF1 Fims Production Bavaria Film Bavaria Entertainment Melampo Cinematografica |
| Distributed by | AMLF |
Release dates |
|
Running time | 109 minutes |
| Countries | France Italy Germany |
| Languages | French German |
| Budget | FFR 275 million ($48.5 million)[1] |
| Box office | $101.6 million[2] |
Asterix and Obelix vs. Caesar (French:Astérix & Obélix contre César) is a 1999 comedy fantasy adventure film directed byClaude Zidi, the first installment in theAsterix film series based on Goscinny and Uderzo'sAstérix comics. The film combines plots of several Astérix stories, mostlyAsterix the Gaul (Getafix's abduction),Asterix and the Soothsayer,Asterix and the Goths (the Druid conference),Asterix the Legionary (Obelix becoming smitten with Panacea) andAsterix the Gladiator (the characters fighting in the circus) but jokes and references from many other albums abound, including a humorous exchange betweenCaesar andBrutus taken fromAsterix and Cleopatra, and the villain Lucius Detritus is based on Tullius Detritus, the main antagonist ofAsterix and the Roman Agent (known as Tortuous Convolvulus in the English translation of the comic).
At the time of its release, the film was the most expensive production inFrench cinema of all time, making it the most expensive production in France for the twentieth century. It was a box-office success and would be followed by a sequel,Asterix & Obelix: Mission Cleopatra, released in 2002.
Julius Caesar is celebrating his victory over all of Gaul, but Lucius Detritus has kept from him that one village has managed to resist them. Detritus travels to the garrison near the village where Caius Bonus (Crismus Bonus), the garrison's commandingCenturion, explains that the Gauls have a magic potion, which makes them invincible. Detritus decides to capture the potion for himself, and hearing that the clever Asterix and permanently invincible Obelix are the backbone of the Gaulish forces, attempts and fails to eliminate them.
A false soothsayer arrives at the village and predicts the arrival of Romans and treasure; despite Asterix's protests, the village believe him, wherefore when a Roman tax collector arrives, they drive off his forces and take the gold. The "soothsayer" later drugs and hypnotises Asterix to create a diversion while he recaptures the tax money; but news of the theft reaches Caesar, who comes to the garrison himself, demanding the legion attack. Upon witnessing the defeat of his army, he demands Detritus subdue the village or be fed to the lions.
Detritus disguises himself and some men as Druids and kidnaps Panoramix (Getafix) at a Druid conference. Asterix disguises Obelix as a legionary, and they enter the garrison to rescue the Druid, but are separated. Asterix joins Getafix in the dungeon, where the pair resist Detritus' demands to make the magic potion, until he tortures Idefix (Dogmatix). Detritus uses the potion to throw Caesar into a cell (locked in aniron mask), and takes command with an oblivious Obelix as his bodyguard. Obelix later helps Asterix, Getafix, Dogmatix, and Caesar escape.
Caesar co-operates with the Gauls to defeat Detritus, who mounts an attack on the villagers using his own magic potion. To defeat him, Panoramix brews a special version of the potion which creates dozens of duplicates of Asterix and Obelix. Caesar is returned to power, and grants the village its freedom.
| Character | Original actor | English voice | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Original name | English name | ||
| Astérix | Asterix | Christian Clavier | Olaf Wijnants |
| Obélix | Obelix | Gérard Depardieu | Terry Jones |
| Lucius Detritus | Roberto Benigni | John Pirkis | |
| Abraracourcix | Vitalstatistix | Michel Galabru | Douglas Blackwell |
| Panoramix | Getafix | Claude Piéplu | John Baddeley |
| Prolix | Daniel Prévost | Harry Barrowclough | |
| Assurancetourix | Cacofonix | Pierre Palmade | Unknown |
| Falbala | Panacea | Laetitia Casta | Denise Rivera |
| Mme Agecanonix | Mrs. Geriatrix | Arielle Dombasle | Unknown |
| Agecanonix | Geriatrix | Sim | |
| Bonemine | Impedimenta | Marianne Sägebrecht | |
| Jules César | Julius Caesar | Gottfried John | Peter Marinker |
| Caius Bonus | Crismus Bonus | Jean-Pierre Castaldi | Rodney Beddal |
| Cétautomatix | Fulliautomatix | Jean-Roger Milo | Unknown |
| Ordralfabétix | Unhygienix | Jean-Jacques Devaux | |
| Tragicomix | Hardy Krüger Jr. | ||
Soundtrack byJean-Jacques Goldman andRoland Romanelli
The film had the widest opening in France, being released on 780 screens. It had a record number of admissions on its opening day with 446,724, surpassing the 427,291 who attendedThe Visitors II: The Corridors of Time. After five days, it had sold 2.2 million tickets for a box office gross of $13.2 million.[1]
An action video game based on the film, developed by Tek 5 and published byCryo Interactive, was released for thePlayStation and thePC.
