Comic hero gears up to play Games

The makers of Asterix at the Olympic Games, the third in the franchise featuring Gaul's favourite comic-book hero, have lined up a cast list to die for: Alain Delon, Gerard Depardieu and Clovis Cornillac; and that's only the actors.

Famous names from other fields include Michael Schumacher (motor racing), Zinedine Zidane (soccer) and Tony Parker (basketball). The movie appears just as the UAE is glued to their screens thanks to the famous sporting event. Nevertheless, it has to be asked: Is it good?

Perhaps the fairest that can be said is that it's good in parts. When the young Gallic Alafolix hero (Stephane Rousseau) pledges his love for princess Irina (Vanessa Hessler), he finds himself in competition with Brutus (Poelvoorde), the son of Julius Caesar (Delon). To settle matters, though she loves Alafolix, Irina says she will marry whichever of the two wins the Olympics.

Asterix (Cornillac) and Obelix (Depardieu) lead a Gallic delegation to compete.

Meanwhile, Brutus is trying to kill his father in order to succeed him. If the plot lacks subtlety, so do the gags. The humour is hit-and-miss, and the jokey references to modern French pop songs will pass over many.