''Houba! On the Trail of the Marsupilami'' (original title: ''Sur la piste du Marsupilami'') is a 2012 Franco-Belgian

CGI animated Computer animation is the process used for digitally generating moving images. The more general term computer-generated imagery (CGI) encompasses both still images and moving images, while computer animation refers to moving images. Modern co ...

live-action Live action is a form of cinematography or videography that uses photography instead of animation. Some works combine live action with animation to create a live-action animated feature film. Live action is used to define film, video games or ...

comedy film The comedy film is a film genre that emphasizes humor. These films are designed to amuse audiences and make them laugh. Films in this genre typically have a happy ending, with dark comedy being an exception to this rule. Comedy is one of the o ...

co-written and directed by

Alain Chabat Alain Chabat (; born 24 November 1958) is a French actor, comedian, director, screenwriter, producer and television presenter. Originally known for his work in the comedy group Les Nuls, including as the co-writer and lead actor of ''La Cité de ...

. It is based on the comics series ''

Marsupilami ''Marsupilami'' is a comic book character and fictional animal species created by André Franquin. Its first appearance was in the 31 January 1952 issue of the Franco-Belgian comics magazine '' Spirou''. Since then it appeared regularly in th ...

'' created by

André Franquin André Franquin (; 3 January 1924 – 5 January 1997) was an influential Belgian comics artist, whose best-known creations are ''Gaston (comics), Gaston'' and ''Marsupilami''. He also produced the ''Spirou et Fantasio'' comic strip from 1946 to ...

Plot

Dan Geraldo, a reporter who needs a scoop, arrives in Chiquito, Palombia, but he does not think that he is going to discover anything significant, other than an interview with the Paya; the indigenous tribes of Palombia. However, accompanied by the eccentric and poor vet and tour guide, Pablito, whose children dislike him and deem him a liar, Dan is told the myth of the

, a mythical and extremely rare creature that is believed to inhabit the Palombian rainforest and to be a real species. Meanwhile, 80-year-old botanist Hermoso discovers a beautiful but rare orchid, in which the Marsupilami uses to cradle its eggs, manages to condense it into a liquid and drinks it, turning him to an early adult age. With the help of Caporal, a Palombian Army officer, he performs a coup d'état and imprisons General Pochero, the current dictator with a love for

Celine Dion Céline Marie Claudette Dion (born 30 March 1968) is a Canadian singer. Referred to as the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Queen of Power Ballads", Dion's powerful, technically skilled vocals and commercially successful works have had ...

, while he plans to capture the Marsupilami, which had earlier stolen Hermoso's samples and is planned to be trained to take more orchids for Hermoso to stay young. Dan and Pablito, after tracking in the jungle, are captured by the Paya. In their temple, they meet the beautiful Queen Paya, who gives a prophecy of the Marsupilami (seen as the Guardian of the Jungle) being threatened by "the man with two faces". They are released, but after Dan insults Pablito and reveals that he isn't paying him, the two get into an argument and separate. Pablito soon meets the Marsupilami and discovers that it had a mate and a nest of eggs. Suddenly, the nest is torn down by the Palombian soldiers and the Marsupilami is struck by a tranquilizer dart by Caporal. Hermoso, who has given himself the title General, finds more orchids, but also discovers the eggs. Pablito tries to stop them, but Dan bumps into him and they are both knocked out. He places both in an incubator at his presidential palace and gives the Marsupilami to Caporal, seeing no use for it anymore. Back in prison, the two find General Pochero, who manages to give in and escapes using a secret exit, arriving at the palace. Because Pochero enjoys hearing Celine Dion's " I'm Alive", he disguises himself as a woman, using the costumes of his mannequins, and distracts the Palombian soldiers, giving Pablito and Dan the chance to steal the orchids, eggs and a limousine before returning to Chiquito. Caporal is knocked out by the Marsupilami and it escapes after the eggs. Hermoso discovers that the orchids and eggs were stolen, and furiously takes off in a military jeep after the trio. Dan makes it to TV Palombia, and begins the show by explaining the Marsupilami's existence. Pablito comes to his aid, after his video tape is missing, but realizes that he had accidentally erased the video; the Marsupilami arrives to take its eggs, revealing itself on TV. Suddenly, Hermoso runs through the room with the jeep and nearly kills the Marsupilami for its eggs, but the potion wears off and Hermoso shifts to an infant after drinking too much serum to regain his youth. Pablito is forgiven by his children, and the Marsupilami is securely returned to its home in the jungle, with the now-hatched babies with its new parents.

Cast

Jamel Debbouze Jamel Debbouze (; ; born 18 June 1975) is a Moroccan-French actor, comedian, screenwriter, film producer and director. Best known for his stand-up comedy sketches, he also worked with director Alain Chabat in several films and other notable Fren ...

as Pablito Camaron, the eccentric vet/tour guide *

as Dan Geraldo, a reporter *

Frédéric Testot Frédéric Giacomo Testo (, ; born 20 February 1977), known as Fred Testot (), is a French actor, comedian and filmmaker. Since rising to prominence in the 2000s as he collaborated extensively with Omar Sy on the '' Service après-vente des émis ...

as young and old Hermoso, a botanist and the antagonist *

Géraldine Nakache Géraldine Nakache (born 16 February 1980) is a French actress, director and screenwriter. Life and career Nakache grew up in an Algerian Jewish family. She earned a DEUG diploma in cinema. She worked as assistant casting director in ''Groland ...

as Pétunia, Hermoso's assistant *

Lambert Wilson Lambert Nicolas Wilson (; né Willson, 3 August 1958) is a French actor and theatre director. He is a seven-time Cesar Award nominee, four for César Award for Best Actor, Best Actor and three for César Award for Best Supporting Actor, Best Sup ...

as General Pochero, president of Palombia *

Patrick Timsit Patrick Timsit () is a French comedian, writer and film director. He has been nominated for four César Awards – three times as an actor and once as a writer. He is best known for the French comedy ''Un indien dans la ville''. In 2006, he pa ...

as Caporal, the sadistic Palombian major-colonel *

Liya Kebede Liya Kebede (; born 1 March 1978) is an Ethiopian-born model (person), model, maternal health advocate, clothing designer, and actress. She has appeared on the cover of ''Vogue (magazine), Vogue'' 20 times. Kebede has served as the World Health ...

as Queen Paya *

The Great Khali Dalip Singh Rana (born 27 August 1972), better known by his ring name The Great Khali, is an Indian-born American former Professional wrestling, professional wrestler, promoter, and actor. He is best known for his tenure with WWE, where he be ...

as Bolo/"Petite Voix" *

Aïssa Maïga Aïssa Maïga (born 5 May 1975) is a Senegal-born French actress, director, writer, producer, and activist. Maïga has worked with major auteurs like Michael Haneke, Abderrahmane Sissako and Michel Gondry, and recently starred in Chiwetel Ejio ...

as Clarisse Iris, the announcer of TV Palombia *

Jacques Weber Jacques Weber is a French actor, director, and writer. Life and career Weber joined the Conservatoire national supérieur d'art dramatique at the age of 20, and won the Prix d'Excellence when he left. He joined Robert Hossein in Rheims, and ...

as Papa Dan, Dan Geraldo's father *

Chantal Lauby Chantal Lauby (born 23 March 1948) is a French actress, film director, screenwriter, humorist, comedian and television host. She is a member and founder of the group of comedians '' Les Nuls'' alongside Bruno Carette, Alain Chabat and Dominiqu ...

as The Voice *

Gerardo Taracena Gerardo Taracena (born 1970) is a Mexican film and theatre actor and dancer. He is known for his roles in '' Apocalypto'', '' Man on Fire'', ''The Mexican'' and '' Sin Nombre'' as well as the Netflix series '' Narcos: Mexico''. He was born in Me ...

as Mateo *

as Herself *

Salah Benlemqawanssa Salah Benlemqawanssa (born June 28, 1979), also known as Salah the Entertainer and Spider Salah, is a competitive hip-hop dancer from France who won the inaugural season of '' La France a un incroyable talent'' (''France has Incredible Talent''), ...

as Performer Paya

Production

Filming began on 20 September 2010 in

Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...

and in

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

Reception

The film sold 251,265 tickets during its first run in France. It eventually topped the box-office with 5,303,302 tickets.

Other countries

Results on 2 August 2012: * Belgium: 248,000 spectators * Switzerland: 115,000 spectators * Russia: 96,000 spectators

Sequel

A sequel, simply titled ''The Marsupilami'', began filming mid-2024, set for a release February 4, 2026. Jamel Debbouze is set to return for the sequel, while

Philippe Lacheau Philippe Lacheau (; born 25 June 1980) is a French actor, director and writer. Career From 2002 to 2010, Philippe Lacheau worked on French television for several TV Show like the "Casting Live" (2002), "Total Fun" (2003) and "Pour le meilleur ...

Jean Reno Juan Moreno y Herrera-Jiménez (born 30 July 1948), commonly known as Jean Reno (), is a French-Spanish actor. He established himself as a Leading actor, leading man of French cinema through his collaborations with director Luc Besson, and has w ...

Élodie Fontan Élodie Fontan (; born 9 July 1987) is a French actress. She has appeared in more than fifteen television and film productions since 1996. Life and career Élodie Fontan started very young in French commercials for Nissan, Quick (restaurant), Q ...

, and

Tarek Boudali Tarek Boudali (; born 5 November 1979) is a French actor and humorist of Moroccan origin. Life and career Tarek Boudali, of Moroccan origin, graduated with a Higher Technician Certificate (BTS) Sales Force. In 2012, he joined the cast of the ...

join the cast. Lacheau also directs the film.

References

External links

* * *
Sur la Piste du Marsupilami
' on Big Cartoon DataBase {{Marsupilami 2010s children's fantasy films Films with live action and animation 2010s fantasy comedy films 2012 films French children's films Films based on Belgian comics Live-action films based on comics 2010s adventure comedy films IMAX films Films set in South America Films directed by Alain Chabat 2012 comedy films Films scored by Bruno Coulais Marsupilami 2010s French films 2010s Belgian films