Stardust: Magical, but not Memorable Posted by: Joe Tracy, Publisher

Back in 1987 there was a funny medieval comedy released called The Princess Bride. This campy and fun film instantly became a classic, winning the hearts of critics and fans alike. Fast-forward 30 years later to 2007 and the release of a new fantasy movie with campy humor called Stardust.

Stardust is the story of an 18-year old boy, Tristan (played by Charlie Cox) who sets out to find a fallen star in order to impress a girl he is trying to court. Going into a forbidden fantasyland (found on the other side of a long wall), Tristan encounters a universe full of magic, mayhem, and villains on a quest to find the same star he seeks.

Because Stardust and The Princess Bride are similar in their unique genre and campy humor, many mainstream critics are comparing the movies to each other. The problem is that outside of campy humor, there are virtually no similarities. The Princess Bride is a classic movie with great characters, witty humor that enhances the story, and a storyline that doesn’t overcomplicate the ability to tell a quest of “true love”. Stardust, while rich in visual effects and magic, fails to create that same enjoyment and creates many questions for the viewer, losing a lot of the story’s impact.

Stardust has campy humor, but doesn’t possess the same wit.

Stardust has magic, but not enchantment.

In the end, comparing the two movies does a disservice to The Princess Bride. The Princess Bride is magical, memorable, enchanting, and complete. Stardust, on the other hand, has some definite magic, but will be forgotten soon after its release. But that’s in the future. Let’s get back to the present…

In Stardust, the falling star that everyone is looking for comes in the form of a beautiful woman that glows brighter when she is content and happy. Hunting for her are witches that seek to cut out her heart and eat it in order to obtain youthful immortality, and a group of princes seeking to find the necklace around the Star’s neck in order to become the next king. Tristan only wants the Star to impress the vain girl that he desires; yet in the quest he finds himself falling in love with the Star and working to save her from the evil lords and witches.

The movie’s quest, while choppy, is still enjoyable as are the visual effects that pull you into the rich fantasy environment. But this quest suffers from several problems. Chief among the problems is that the movie comes off more as a series of little adventures versus one big well-established quest. Part of this is due to the number of characters and character stories the film keeps switching between. For example, the quest of the princes have nothing to do directly with the quest of Tristan or even that of the witches. And sometimes you are pulled out of the movie completely...

The witch turns a goat into a man, but during a battle, the man transforms back into a goat and slams against the inn wall. It’s clear that the goat thrown against the inn wall is a stuffed animal. In a movie that has been rich in the reality of its visual effects, you’re pulled out long enough to disrupt your enjoyment of the film. It’s like a movie where you get a glimpse of the boom microphone recording the actors dialogue.

But problems aside, Stardust has its moments where it really shines. For example, every time a prince dies, he becomes a ghost then sits around watching the other lords seek the necklace of power. The comments they make as ghosts and way they act brings out some of the strongest humor elements in the film. Also enjoyable are the antics of Robert De Niro as Captain Shakespeare, who presents a tough burly pirate exterior, while secretly being a closet woman. Fans of the Final Fantasy series will love the ship he flies.

When all is said and done, Stardust is a good popcorn movie, much more worthy of your money than other films currently out there like Daddy Day Camp, Rush Hour 3, Underdog, and Skinwalkers. So feel free to take to the skies with Stardust, but remember that you are in coach, not first class.