Astérix et la Surprise de César (1985)

Let's get this immediately out of the way: this is one of the weakest animated features involving the little Gaul.

Why? I'll explain in a short while.

It all starts when Obelix is smitten with Walhalla. He finds out she already has a lover and then is heartbroken, but when Walhalla and her fiancé Tragicomix are kidnapped by Romans, the dynamic duo sets off to find and rescue them. This will take them through Africa (after they have enlisted in the Roman army) and eventually to Rome and the Colosseum itself, where they have to compete in the gladiatorial games to honour Julius Caesar. 

There are two major issues with this one. First off, it is based on two of the best comics in the long lasting series: "Asterix and the First Legion" and "Asterix the Gladiator". These could have both made for a very entertaining film on their own, but for some incomprehensible reason, the screenwriters wanted to put both these stories in one feature. Sure, but when your feature is barely seventy minutes long, that is pushing it a bit. This also means that the whole story feels incredibly disjointed as scenes jump and skip from one thing to the next without much rhyme or reason. 

It doesn't help that the editing is atrocious. Egad, it is horrendous. You might need to slow it all down to half the pace in order to make heads or tails of this mess. It also feels like this time around, they just went for the gags from the comics but forgot that there is supposed to be a story that connects it all. It also makes the more emotionally laden moments feel flat and out of place. 

Have I mentioned the film just ends, without any real resolution? Sure, you can infer that Asterix and Obelix succeed in their mission, but the ending is so abrupt you can be forgiven for not seeing that.

Nope, this is not worth a watch, unless you really have too much time on your hands.