Stardust

The 1980s were a great film for lovers of fantasy films. Today, films like THE PRINCESS BRIDE, THE NEVERENDING STORY, LEGEND and the Jim Henson films stand up as classics in many people’s eyes. These people are the target audience for the Neil Gaiman adaptation STARDUST, a throwback to the golden age of fantasy films from the story and characters, right down to the unbearably cheesy rock song during the end credits (courtesy of Take That.) While injected with some creative visuals and off-kilter storytelling, thanks to Gaiman’s source novel, the entire film is so reminiscent of others that it has a “been there, done that” feel. It’s enjoyable, but every plot twist can be telegraphed from a mile away, and there’s never any real doubt about what will happen.

Young Tristran (Charlie Cox) is a charmingly befuddled man who finds himself hopelessly in love with his village’s beauty, Victoria (Sienna Miller). Unfortunately, the vain and shallow girl only has eyes for Humphrey, one of the foppiest fops you’ll ever see. After spotting a falling star, Tristran declares he will prove his love for Victoria by fetching the star and bringing it to her. Much to his surprise, when he meets the star, he finds not a smoldering rock but an ethereal (and grumpy) woman calling herself Yvaine (Claire Danes). But before he is able to whisk the star away, the plot thickens. A centuries-old trio of witches (led by Michelle Pfeiffer) seek to cut out the star’s heart to restore their youth and beauty. And after the death of the king, a determined prince (Mark Strong) sets off to take the star’s ruby necklace to prove his right to the throne. And as if this weren’t enough, there is also time to squeeze in subplots featuring captured princesses, missing mothers and pirates (played disturbing by Robert de Niro, continuing on his recent rampage of, “Hey, I’m Robert de Niro! Isn’t that funny?”)

The film is almost entirely story, with recognizable faces stuck into the smallest of parts. It’s a pity, as the likes of Rupert Everett, Peter O’Toole and Ricky Gervais are limited to a handful of scenes or less. Each gives their miniscule part a biting sense of humor, making the viewer wish their time wasn’t so constrained. As the film’s hero, Cox aims directly for the passively innocent, “who, me?” type of unlikely hero, and largely succeeds; instead of heroically jumping onto a moving carriage, he crashes into the side and falls to the ground. Yet his boyish nature and charming smile keep his fish-out-of-water act from becoming tiring. While he makes quite an impression, it is Michelle Pfeiffer who walks away with the movie. Relishing her role as the aged witch, she plays the entire range of fairy tale female villains; she moves from the sexy seductress to the ragged hag in mere moments. It is often said that the villain is the most interesting character in a fairy tale, and Pfeiffer fully realizes it and plays it for all it’s worth.

Yet the film cannot shake the feeling of being something familiar. It’s a clear throwback to the films of the 80s, and though it offers moments of twisted humor, it follows the standard book of plot devices directly. The film’s narration (voiced by Ian McKellen) makes this even more obvious; there is no need for it in the first place, and its presence only serves as a reminder that the film is really just like any other. The design of the film is adequately sumptuous, especially the camerawork; director Matthew Vaughn lets the camera travel from place to place, often picking up details from a bird’s eye view and focusing on them. The CGI work is a bit spotty, but the filmmakers were wise enough not to make their limited resources painfully obvious.

While it is an enjoyable ride and a fond trip to memories past, STARDUST offers nothing revolutionary or new. Throwbacks are nice, but when it makes no attempt to alter or improve the original template, it becomes a tribute and nothing more. Is it more successful in its goals than other throwbacks? Sure, but it still is unlikely to achieve the shelf life of the films it inspired. Still, the craft of Neil Gaiman shows through, and for two hours, we are entertained.

**