It's not very often that a movie captivates me and makes me want to run out and buy it. I've got a very small collection at home; most are my husband's or my kids'. Sometimes an amazing movie comes along, with the right touch of whimsy, music, joy and hope, and I have to have it. It's been a while since I've wanted to own a movie. The last one was Chicago.
A quick synopsis of the movie off of Amazon reads: Escape into the enchanted world of chivalry and romance in Stardust, an epic tale starring Claire Danes with Michelle Pfeiffer and Robert De Niro. In hopes of wooing a beautiful girl (Sienna Miller), Tristan (Charlie Cox) promises to bring her a falling star. But he’s in for the adventure of his life when he discovers the star is actually a celestial beauty named Yvaine (Danes) When an old witch Lamia (Pfeiffer) attempts to steal Yvaine’s youth, Tristan must protect her at all costs, in this magical family adventure that will make you fall in love over and over again.
While the characters' names may make you think of Tristan and Isolde and it is a story about lovers, it's not that story. It's got a lot of The Princess Bride's magic that crosses gender divides and has a message for kids and adults. It doesn't have the one-liners the way PB does, but I haven't watched it 20 times, yet. Still, I found myself more introspective after this movie. Perhaps it's just where I am today. But it made me think about what I am doing with my life, how I think about what others say or think or feel. And it reminded me of the great love of my life and how sometimes I take that love for granted.
I was surprised to see that the original story was written by Neil Gaiman, but I guess I shouldn't be. I have several of his books on my wishlist and I know people go nuts for his stuff, but I have yet to get my hands on one of his books. I do remember reading a few of his Sandman comics a long, long time ago, maybe early 90's. By the way, if you haven't seen a picture of Mr. Gaiman, check out the wikilink above, he's hot.
About halfway through the movie, I turned to my dad and said, this reminds me of The Adventures of Baron Munchausen, a fun, whimsical, lighthearted Terry Gilliam fest.
Michelle Pfeiffer is glorious as the evil witch, the dead brothers are hysterical as a motley, greek chorus to the inevitable tragedies of each prince, and De Niro is having fun (you can tell) with his character.
Rent it and let me know what you thought.
Amazon.com: Stardust (Widescreen Edition): DVD: Michelle Pfeiffer,Robert De Niro,Claire Danes
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