Stardust

FLICK Twinkle, twinkle, everyone’s looking for a little star in this fun romantic fantasy. Narrated by Ian McKellen, Stardust centers on the charming Tristan (Charlie Cox), who comes from a small village called Wall, because a stone wall separates it from the magical kingdom of Stormhold. When he promises to bring a fallen star within a week to Victoria (Sienna Miller) the girl of his dreams, it sets off an adventure escaping the clutches of evil witches, comical ghostly princes and a boatful of bandits.
You never know what you’re going to get when you wish upon a star. In this story, that would be Yvaine (Claire Danes), who is the star that falls to earth and inhabits a human body. Becoming Tristan’s new love interest, and looking curiously like Gwyneth Paltrow, Danes doesn’t emit much emotion except when she’s confused and turns her face into a scrunchy.
Michelle Pfeiffer plays Lamia, the hideous hag who turns herself into a beautiful enchantress hoping to trap the young couple and cut out Yvaine’s heart. Pfeiffer is so dazzling (and Danes is so bland) that you almost wish she would succeed.
Always on the run, Tristan and Yvaine meet up with Captain Shakespeare (Robert De Niro) who navigates a flying pirate ship. It is here that Tristan transforms into an adult and gets a complete makeover from the cross-dressing skipper. Gay or not, or just feeling pretty, DeNiro seems delighted to be camping it up while applying makeup and wearing a boa over a sundress in the captain’s quarters.
Despite a few missteps and getting a little bogged down in the middle, this fabulous fairy tale has some marvelous special effects and is told with lots of humor. Except for Danes, the acting is generally spot on. Impressive supporting performances include Ricky Gervais, Jason Flemyng, Rupert Everett, and Peter O’ Toole.
When I screened the film, a couple brought a baby into the theater that occasionally cried and made other sorts of distracting noises. It only stressed how much this movie would appeal more to adults than children. My Score: 8 out of 10.