By Kim Williams
A friend recently dragged me to the movie Stardust, directed by Matthew Vaughn. While I must admit that I was initially not interested in seeing it, I was happily surprised.
The movie tells the tale of a fallen star, Yvaine (Claire Danes) who gets mixed up in a journey with a lovesick man, Tristan (Charlie Cox), who promised the girl of his dreams a piece of the fallen star in order to win her hand in marriage. Along the way Tristan is forced to protect Yvaine from evil witches, in particular Lamia (Michelle Pfeiffer), who wants to cut out her heart and eat it in order to retain youth. Intertwined with Tristan’s story is the struggle over the crown in the magical kingdom of Stormhold.
With a fresh fantasy story that I personally have not seen before and an engaging cast of characters, Stardust is definitely something I would recommend spending eight dollars on. Robert De Niro’s character is a highlight of the film. He plays a quirky and gut wrenchingly funny pirate captain slash transvestite that almost makes the movie.
I was glad to see De Niro in this role after his last film, The Good Shepherd, which was a downright bore. Michelle Pfeiffer is also a joy to watch as she struggles to get her hands on the star, losing her hair and her good looks along the way. Some other lovable characters include a gang of dead princes and the old protector of the wall, who is surprisingly spry in a fight. Furthermore, there is an interesting love story and an abundance of special effects.
This is a movie I would actually be interested in seeing a second time. So there’s my five cents. I would suggest judging for yourself.
–FP