Stardust
“Stardust” disarms you with its cheeky energy. It’s a nearly unprecedented pleasure: a sword-and-sorcery tale that acknowledges that sometimes sex occurs between unmarried partners. The hero is born nine months after a dalliance between a dashing adventurer and a mysterious, captive woman. In other words, “Stardust” has archetypes who act like real people. Adapted from the graphic novel by Neil Gaiman, the movie imagines a parallel universe called Stormhold that’s separated from England by a simple stone wall. The hero, Tristan, conceived on one side of the wall and raised on the other, must cross the barrier to fulfill his destiny. Once in Stormhold, he discovers that when falling stars crash into the earth, they take the form of fetching young women. Soon he’s protecting one such star from evil witches and conniving princes. In one of many droll touches, the king of Stormhold encourages his seven sons to murder one another, and the ghosts of slain heirs to the throne provide a sardonic running commentary. “Stardust” is crammed with competing agendas, and thanks to director Matthew Vaughn’s bombastic style, it often feels overstuffed. The actors clash jarringly: Robert De Niro stops the movie in its tracks with an amateurish performance as a gay pirate, and Claire Danes is cloying and mannered as the fallen star. But Michelle Pfeiffer plays an imperious witch queen with delicious diva attitude. “Stardust” is no J.R.R. Tolkien saga, after all – and Pfeiffer understands its witty, ragged rhythm.
LISTEN: Stardust