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Stardust (2007)


Stardust (2007)



7/10




Starring
Claire Danes
Charlie Cox
Sienna Miller
Michelle Pfeiffer

Directed by Matthew Vaughn

I truly love the book Stardust for many reasons, and the BBC audio drama version is something special to listen to and enjoy. When I was younger, I saw this movie but didn’t think much of it at the time. After reading the book and experiencing the amazing audio drama, I can say the movie is fun but not spectacular. It makes significant changes to the book’s ending and the portrayal of Victoria. As often happens in movies, there needs to be a leading lady and someone who contrasts her temperament. Also, Tristan (named Tristran in the book) doesn’t have a rival like Humphrey, who competes for Victoria’s heart in the film.

Here’s the movie’s plot: There’s a wall that separates a small English town from a magical land. A young man named Dunstan is curious about what lies beyond the wall and tricks the guard to explore. On the other side, he visits a market and meets a woman named Una (who is a prisoner of a witch). She sells him a glass flower in exchange for a kiss. Later, she invites him into her caravan, and they make love. Nine months later, after Dunstan has forgotten about his trip, a baby boy named Tristan is delivered to him, claiming to be his son.


Eighteen years later, Tristan (Charlie Cox) is madly in love with Victoria, the most popular girl in town. His rival is Humphrey, who Victoria actually likes. Meanwhile, in the magical land of Stormhold, the king is dying. Of his seven sons, only three remain alive, as the others have killed each other in a bid for the throne. The king throws his ruby into the sky, declaring that the first son to recover it will be his successor. The ruby hits a star, and both fall to earth. At that moment, Tristan is confessing his love to Victoria, who promises to marry him if he retrieves the fallen star for her.

The king’s surviving sons, Primus and Septimus, set out to find the ruby. At the same time, a trio of witches sees the fallen star and wants to capture it to restore their youth. Tristan begins his search for the star, only to discover a woman named Yvaine, who reveals she is the star and was knocked out of the sky by the ruby. Tristan decides to take Yvaine prisoner to bring her back to Victoria and win her heart. However, the king’s sons are after the star to claim the ruby, and the witches want to cut out Yvaine’s heart to regain their youth.

I enjoyed the cast and their performances in this movie, and the visual effects and world-building are strong. I also appreciated how the movie balanced comedy, drama, and fantasy. However, some of the characters come across more cartoonish than menacing.

The movie is directed by Matthew Vaughn, who also wrote, directed, and produced Kingsman: The Secret Service (2014), Kingsman: The Golden Circle (2017), and the upcoming prequel The King’s Man (2020).

While the movie is a nice journey and adventure, it’s not the best adaptation of Neil Gaiman’s story, which originally began as a graphic novel published by DC Comics. The film is undeniably fun to watch, but it lacks the full depth and dramatic power of the novel.



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