Iznogoud (2005)

Iznogoud is a hard comic book to be made into a movie. The stories are about 8 pages and they more or less fallow the same formula - Iznogoud the great vizier gets idea how to kill the good Caliph (usually involving some magical objects or gimmick) and after few faild atemps the plot turns against him and he end-up turn into a frog or nail, or something.The movie starts pretty interesting with a pseudo-bollywood musical number that explains Iznogoud goals and creates the Arabian night setting. Sadly the next 40 minutes or so, are a mess of different Iznogoud plots, sadly all handle poorly. The plot to turn Caliph into a frogs turns out to be a dream, the plot with two Genies was pointless, and the plot to turn Caliph invisible was so forced. The only good part was when Izngoud thinks that Caliph actually dies. The second half when the main plot finally kicks in is a little bit better and there are some funny jokes now and then, but overall predictable. There are some jokes I don't get. For example - at one point the magic frog escape from Izngoud. During the movie they keep showing the shots of the frog when they cut to the palace, and while I was thinking it is building up to something at the end... nope, it was pretty pointless. As a whole this movie is not bad - Visuals are fantastic, few jokes made ma laugh out-loud, musical numbers are OK and you can tell that the cast had fun with it, but at the same time the plot is either predicable or makes little sense, there are plenty of pointless moments and overall they could done a much better job.

Today I watched this movie on TV. I read the stories years ago and so I was curious to see what they had made of it. I remember them being quite witty and Iznogoud was a rather nasty person. Unfortunately I have to say, that what I saw, was not what I expected to see. It had some (very few) good moments. I saw some nice F/X but they alone don't make a good movie. As a resume I think it was not worth wasting 95 minutes of my time. Iznogoud was too young and too good looking and the caliph was too old. In my eyes the cast could have been way better. This is a good example of a bad result you get when trying to convert a cartoon into a live-action movie.

This movie is based on an old (mid 70's) french graphic novel once famous for its humour, based both on situations and on strange and funny characters name (as the main character, Vizir Iznogoud). The adaptation to cinema is a total failure. Braoudé, the writer, totally lacks of imagination. Based on the graphic novel, a continuous flow of gags, hilarious situations, references to classical movies and/or political situation are waited for. But nothing, or quite, happens. A few bad jokes, often predictable (such as the gate in the middle of the desert), a bad copy of "Asterix - Mission Cleopatra" ancient/modern conversations (the flying carpet described as a brand new car), some poor references to the movie "Pretty woman", and that's all folks! 10 (bad) jokes in a 1h30-long movie, it's poor, especially when this movie is supposed to be a comedy. I watched it in a movie-theater in a small town in France. Except, sometimes, a six-year old boy, nobody laughed! Maybe Braoudé should try another job, something which doesn't involved imagination and creative skills...

This movie is based on a lesser known comic by the authors of Asterix. The first half of the movie feels rather messy, as we go through Grand Vizier Iznogoud's various schemes and dreams for assassinating the dumb but lovable caliph. These scenes feel rushed and poorly presented. It gets better towards the end, though. The acting is a tad too over-the-top at times.Whilst the movie as a whole is uneven, there are many good moments. The genie twins are hilarious and steal every scene they're in. There are plenty of the enjoyable modern references we see in Asterix (e.g. Iznogoud's take on "running water"). It's cartoonish humor with adult savvy.