I watched this Asterix Home Entertainment DVD on a tube and the interlacing was not the biggest issue, nor the scattered speckles of damage - but the flickering contrast that infested the first 20 minutes and much of the rest of the film was most distracting. Otherwise it seemed fairly sharp and detailed (see images below). The end color portion scenes looked bright and impressive. English subtitles are offered in an awful yellow font. The original Japanese audio is present as well as an optional English DUB.

But what kind of 'makes' this DVD package is an included audio commentary by Luke Y. Thompson & Jess Hlubik. They introduce themselves as 'world famous critics' but I can only guess it was said 'tongue-in-cheek'. Anyway, in their own crude manner the two share some interesting information about the film including some salient points of interpretation of the Japanese version. Unfortunately though, it quickly spirals into a kind of 'Mystery Theater 3000' sarcasm-fest with the two of them mocking the film at every turn (continuity errors, incongruous music interludes etc.) - not that it doesn't deserve mocking!  I think it might have faired better had it been kept at a more professional level, but I don't discount this attempt at some decent fun. They make various references about other exploitation genre films and some very intelligent comparisons to mainstream works. I had never heard of these two before but they definitely had some extended knowledge and worked well together. Still a gigantic leap from Tony Rayns or Eddie Muller.

I can only recommend this to those keen on exploitation / sexploitation / 'pink' films. Now, personally I'm not a fan but I still got something out of it - so take that for what it is worth. The price is sure right for a DVD with a commentary, even a non-standard one like this.   

Gary W. Tooze