How do I review Stardust? It is both a good movie and a bad movie all rolled into one.
Many have compared it to the Princess Bride, but I found it to be more of an amalgamation of The Chronicles of Narnia, Shakespeare in Love, and Willy Wonka (Burton style).
On the plus side, the movie had enough of a story to keep me entertained for the overly long running time of 2 hours and 8 minutes. Acting duties were mostly good, and special effects were never laughable.
Michelle Pfeiffer is getting old, but it’d be hard to tell from this movie. The 49 year old actress manages to out-hot Claire Danes (when she’s not a grotesque witch).
Robert De Niro makes an appearance as a gay pirate captain. His part produces a lot of laughs, but it’s not all good (more below).
It’s going to sound like I hated this movie from the comments that follow, but I really didn’t. I simply found some flaws that are more fun to talk about than not.
One problem I had with the fantasy world created in the movie is the wild inconsistencies. For example, Robert De Niro’s character is able to fly in a giant airship, yet the King’s sons use carriages and horses for transportation?
Lightning can be harnessed in a canister, but daggers and swords are still the preferred weaponry? Magic abounds, yet the best way to get rid of your brother is through poison? The world just didn’t mesh well with itself.
The second complaint would be casting. In full disclosure, I do not and never have liked Claire Danes. She is about the most boring actress you can put on a screen. There is nothing unique about her look or her acting ability. It’s hard for me to fall in love with any character portrayed by her, including Yvaine in this movie.
Secondly, there are rare cases in which an ensemble cast can consist of both wildy famous and completely unknown actors. Putting legends like Pfeiffer and De Niro on the screen with the random dude named Charlie Cox just causes a strange enough paradox to be distracting.
I promised to get back to De Niro and here we are. Although his character is set up to elicit some guffaws from the audience, his performance was pretty lackluster for a man who defines his generation.
After the movie, Hemisphire predicted I would give this movie a B-. I told him I thought I might give it a bit higher. A weekend of contemplating the shortcomings of this movie, however, is actually going to cause it to sink.
This movie is not without its merit, and it should not be missed entirely, though it could stand to wait until video. Don’t expect Princess Bride, and you probably won’t be disappointed.
Verdict: C+
For example, Robert De Niro’s character is able to fly in a giant airship, yet the King’s sons use carriages and horses for transportation?
I think the princes just don’t use magic – just like a RPG where only the magic users can practice (recall that one prince used a soothsayer to predict his route).
Lightning can be harnessed in a canister, but daggers and swords are still the preferred weaponry?
Maybe it took someone outside the wall to think of using it in that manner.
The second complaint would be casting. In full disclosure, I do not and never have liked Claire Danes.
Can’t do anything about that – I think she’s hot.
Secondly, there are rare cases in which an ensemble cast can consist of both wildy famous and completely unknown actors. Putting legends like Pfeiffer and De Niro on the screen with the random dude named Charlie Cox just causes a strange enough paradox to be distracting.
I come from the other side – I don’t care about stunt casting, I just want actors who are good for the part. Sometimes they become famous and the whole movie looks different later (I don’t think Hugh Jackman was the most famous face they could have put on Wolverine). I also think a famous actor can sometimes be too distracting, when you’re focused on them more than their character. That said, I felt that the most crucial pairing was Cox/Danes, and they had a good chemistry.
I promised to get back to De Niro and here we are. Although his character is set up to elicit some guffaws from the audience, his performance was pretty lackluster for a man who defines his generation.
He was a minor character (in the book as well), and too much of him would have sent the movie off on a tangent. I’m hoping for nice DVD extras.
Your other arguments were all sound, but this:
Can’t do anything about that – I think she’s hot.
Ewww. Just ewww.