Azure and Asmar

Movie
German title	Azure and Asmar
Original title	Azur and Asmar
Country of production	France , Belgium , Spain , Italy
original language	French , Arabic
Publishing year	2006
length	99 minutes
Age rating	FSK 0
Rod
Director	Michel Ocelot
script	Michel Ocelot
production	Christophe Rossignon
music	Gabriel Yared
cut	Michèle Péju
synchronization

Azur and Asmar is a computer animated film by Michel Ocelot from the year 2006 .

action

The blonde and blue-eyed Azure and the dark-haired and brown-eyed Asmar grow up like brothers, with Asmar's mother Janane being Azur's wet nurse, who has a rich father. She tells both children the story of the Djinn fairy who is being held captive and whose liberation has already cost many men their lives. Azur and Asmar want to free the fairy when they grow up. Over time, the two boys conflict. Azure receives a proper upbringing, learns to dance and ride, while Asmar can only secretly watch the lessons. Over and over again the two boys quarrel and Asmar begins to reject the country in which he was born. One day, Azure is sent to a school in the city. His father dismisses Janane, who moves away with Asmar. Azur is later told that they both died.

Azure became a grown man a few years later. He sets out against his father's will to free the Djinn fairy. He is shipwrecked and washed up on a country where Arabic, the language of his nurse, is spoken. There is also a superstition in the country that people with blue eyes are cursed, so anyone who speaks to Azur will flee from him. So he decides to keep his eyes closed and pretend to be blind. He meets the beggar Crapoux, who once came from Azure's homeland to free the Djinn fairy. He offers to guide him if he carries him on his shoulders. Both of them first arrive at a temple where Azure finds the warm key through his sense of touch . In the city he can later take the legendary, fragrant key ; According to the story, both are important to free the Djinn fairy. In the city, Azure suddenly hears his wet nurse's voice. Janane has now made it to wealth and lives in a magnificent palace. She is overjoyed to see Azure again, who opens his eyes before her. Asmar, on the other hand, rejects Azur, having learned to hate the country he was born in over the years. Asmar will leave the next day to look for the Djinn fairy. Janane convinces him to go the first way together with Azur.

Crapoux will also be at Azure's side, who will give Azure tips for tracking down the fairy. He also knows that Azure has to interview three people to get important clues: himself, the wise Yadoa and the princess Chamsous Sabah, who turns out to be a child. So Azur learns everything about the way to the fairy of the Djinn, which will end at a twin gate, at which everyone has failed so far. He receives from the princess Mist, which makes invisible, a pill through which he can talk to wild animals, and a feather of the bird Simurgh . Through the fog, Azur and Asmar are able to escape pursuers from the city. When the two men finally separate, Asmar is attacked by robbers. Azure rushes to his aid, whereupon the two paths part again. Azure can overcome the dangerous red lion and Asmar the bird Simurgh. Behind the black rock face, Azure meets Asmar again, who has been captured by robbers. Asmar reveals to Azur access to a secret door before he is stabbed by the robbers. Azure rescues the seriously injured Asmar and disappears with him through the secret passage. He carries it on his shoulders, overcomes obstacles and finally, with the help of his two keys, the fire gate and the gate of gases. He can pass through the iron gate because Asmar found the cutting key and has it with him. In front of the twin gate, they both decide on the left entrance and stand in blackness before the hall lights up. The Djinn fairy appears and declares that she has been saved. Asmar is healed. Azur and Asmar make it clear that the other is the fairy's savior, as both had an equal share in the rescue. The other summons - Janane, Crapoux, the wise Yadoa and Princess Chamsous Sabah - cannot clarify which of the two men is now the savior. The dark-haired fairy of the Djinn therefore brings the fairy of the fairy into her palace. She cannot solve the riddle either. Everyone begins to dance, and it becomes clear that the Djinn fairy has fallen in love with Azure and the fairy fairy with Asmar.

production

Azur and Asmar was the first computer animation film directed by Michel Ocelot. The production costs amounted to around 9,470,000 euros, and work on the film took more than three years.

Azur and Asmar had its premiere on May 21, 2006 as part of the Quinzaine des Réalisateurs at the Cannes International Film Festival . It was released in French cinemas on October 25, 2006, where it was seen by around two million viewers. In Germany, the film opened in cinemas on April 7, 2011 and was released on DVD in October 2011.

synchronization

role	Voice actor (original)	Voice actor (German version)
Azure	Cyril Mourali	Nicolás Artajo
Azure as a child	Rayan Mahjoub	Jonas Frenz
Asmar	Karim M'Riba	Alexander Döring
Asmar as a child	Abdelsselem Ben Amar	Oskar Rauker
Crapoux	Patrick Timsit	Stefan Krause
Janane	Hiam Abbass	Monica Bielenstein
Princess Chamsous Sabah	Fatma Ben Khell	Katharina Ritter
father	Jacques Father	Erich Rauker
Fairy the Djinn	Thissa d'Avila Bensalah	Giuliana Jakobeit
wise Yadoa	Olivier Claverie	Bernd Vollbrecht
Fairy of elves	Sofia Boutella

criticism

For the film-dienst , Azur and Asmar was a “visually congenial fairy tale that takes up current problems about the coexistence of different ethnic groups.” “The cartoon characters lead us into a world of fairy tales,” wrote the Süddeutsche Zeitung .

Awards

Azur and Asmar was nominated in 2007 for a César in the category of best film music . In the same year, the film received a Cristal nomination at the Festival d'Animation Annecy as best feature film and won the Children's Film Audience Award at the Munich Film Festival . In 2008, Azur and Asmar was nominated for a Goya in the Best Animated Film category.

Web links

• Azur and Asmar in the Internet Movie Database (English)

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Secrets tournage - Ocelot ose la 3D on allocine.fr.
2. ↑ ^{a b} Azur and Asmar on allocine.fr.
3. ↑ Secrets tournage - "Azur et Asmar" en chiffres on allocine.fr.
4. ↑ Information according to the DVD booklet.
5. ↑ Azure and Asmar. In: Lexicon of International Films . Film service , accessed March 2, 2017 .  
6. ↑ How "Blöde Mütze" still finds friends . In: Süddeutsche Zeitung , Munich edition, June 29, 2007, p. N2.