'Asterix and The Mansion of the Gods' review: A nostalgic romp with the Gauls!

Director: Louis Clichy, Alexandre Astier
Cast: Roger Carel, Guillaume Briat, Lionnel Astier, Serge Papagalli, Florence Foresti
Rating: ***

What it's about: A village of magic-potion swilling Gauls attempt to thwart Caesar's grand ambitions yet again. But not before they take down scores of legionnaires, some wild boar, several Romans, an entire apartment complex and some modern living down before they do. Based on one of the comic books in the series by Rene Goscinny and Albert Uderzo, this one comes to screen in full-blown 3-D animation and in a well-dubbed avatar. 

What's hot: Growing up, owning books from the Asterix series was a big deal. A full-colour magazine-size spectacle, it told of the exploits of a Gaul village's best warrior, his super-strong friend, their trusty dog, a shrewd druid and their constantly bickering fellow villagers as they went up against the full might of Caesar's armies, armed with nothing but magic potion, in episode after episode. As someone who read this particular book in print, watching it on screen was something I found quite appealing at first sight. It looks everything like you remembered of the  events that unfolded in the book and it does justice in most parts to the subject matter.

What's not: You have to ask yourself if a period animation flick is your idea of a weekend film. It doesn't help at all that the film released internationally as early as November 2014 (in France) and is easily available on DVD if you go looking. The story is something kids (but not audiences of all ages) might enjoy, but it leaves a little to be desired, considering it could have taken a few risks story-telling-wise. Adapting it to modern times rather than stick to universal themes? The topic itself is more local than global, and not many might find it worthy of a feature-length outing.

What to do: Technically and visually, there's nothing one can complain about one would imagine. But there's so much more to animation effort for it to go the long run. More could have been done here, one feels, heavy nostalgia notwithstanding.