Cannes 2009: LUCKY LUKE

A film we've been tracking with great interest in these pages for a good long time now is the upcoming live action adaptation of the popular books by Morris and Goscinny, the latter of whom - of course - is also the creator of Asterix and Obelix. It's coming from director James Huth, who also helmed the woefully under-seen Hellphone, with French comedian Jean Dujardin in the lead and with an October release planned for France an extended promo is available for the first time from production outfit UGC. The verdict? Very kid friendly and very much in keeping with the spirit of the original creation. Dujardin looks like an inspired casting choice and the rest of the cast - which also includes Sylvie Testud - looks equally strong. And the production values on this look amazing, the film having been shot on location in Argentina with the natural landscapes there put to stellar use. Given the general failure of the Asterix films to make a dent in North America I don't expect this will travel widely, either - though it already has a home in French speaking Canada, at least - and that's a shame.