I used to read the comics as a kid... by now, I only vaguely remember them, and those of the animated attempts that were produced that I watched, but a lot of things do seem to fit with what I remember. And hey, at least it's produced by the French, featuring the French, France being where the comic is actually from. There are many details that ring true as far as the source material goes... the first few moments contain a well-known image from the comics, reproduced in live action. This also has an interpretation of the singing of the village musician(I can't claim to know the original French names). Also seen is a recreation of the village leader on his shield. Whether or not you particularly care for seeing this, and whether or not you agree with this envisioning of it, it's there to take in. The small dog is there, as well, and he gets used some for comedy(if in fairly morbid and grotesque ways). The production values are of high quality. The acting is pretty good, if some is overacted, more or less intentionally. Depardieu isn't bad in his native language, either(and he is a fairly logical choice, as far as physical type goes, for Obélix, and Roberto Benigni(who, I guess, speaks French...?) is one of the best additions(although one could argue that he wasn't up against much), and gets several laughs. Ceasar was done well, the actor looks and performs as he should. The humor isn't bad, if at times childish, much of it derived from the comics(more or less well-integrated in the film) and some of it is run right into the ground. I did laugh at this film, if not terribly often. I watched this in the original, French language(not a fan of dubbing... actually, that's a powerful understatement), but some of the material still worked. The pacing is reasonable, well, it runs fine, at least. The plot isn't too bad, and works, if some more or less minor points don't make sense once you think about them(and one sub-plot is never fully resolved, characters not seen in the film anymore once they've done what they were there to do). Some things are lifted from the comics, though perhaps too much material from there was used, leaving too little time for development of what there is, as others have pointed out. This is a cartoon brought to life, obvious in the action(which I'm honestly not sure I've ever found particularly intense... entertaining, occasionally, maybe, but not intense). One particular character shows that the French, too, know of, and stoop to, the lowest common denominator(though I suppose it could have been more gratuitous, but this is at least partially a children's film... torture sequences and such notwithstanding). Most of the characters from the comics seem to be there(again, whether or not they're properly done or well-integrated can be debated). The effects are quite good, and help with the cartoon-y action that we know from the original stories by Goscinny(R.I.P.). Some ideas could have been explored in what the plot does, in particular something near the very end, but are not. There is one reference that could be considered clever... but by the second time it's made... yeah. The music isn't bad. The casting and costumes aren't bad. I guess fans might enjoy it, if they aren't too attached to the original. Making live action productions of drawn source material is seldom a good idea. I recommend this to those who want a live-action version of Astérix and Obélix, but not those looking for a good one. Whether or not the second one would fulfill that need, I can't say. 6/10
