Stardust

Although in terms of technical aspects I can find all sorts of issues, except for the excellent soundtrack, in terms of pure emotion, Stardust affected me like few romantic / fantasy films... I immediately found connection to the likeable heroes, I smiled at the jerky humor, the imaginative choreography and joyfully light storytelling, through which Vaughn masks a relatively forgettable artistic vision and a (lack of) feeling for strong composition. Visually, Stardust is really just a mixture of proven techniques and bad CGI effects, which reveal that 70 million was simply not enough... However, the incomplete impression of the kingdom of Stormhold literally drowns in a nice impression of the story and great characters (especially the central couple and the famous De Niro, who turn a good movie into a great spectacle)... in my opinion Matthew Vaughan managed to create a less than magnificent fairy tale with a big soul. Unfortunately, today's viewer likely prefers magnificence. (10/01/2007)

An engaging story with a pleasant esprit of British dry humour and finally, after a long time, a fairy tale that does not make a fool of the children and delights the adults with its wit and the originality of its setting. I'm sure I'll read something by the oddball Gaiman sometime. Matthew Vaughn has grown up, and the likeable De Niro hasn't had such a rewarding role in a long time (his "travesty dance" in The Wardrobe is, I'd say, a rare moment in his long acting career). I don't mind the visibly limited budget at all, because this film has a soul and that's worth it. The slightly rushed finale is a bit of a pity perhaps, but otherwise it’s a very nice film. (12/25/2007)

I only needed a pleasant mood, a head full of imagination, and a few minutes in the Wall. Thanks to the second projection of Stardust, it became the most pleasurable delight in a very long time. With this, I am paying a huge tribute to the story of Tristan, Yvaine, or Septimus, and I am slowly setting off to search for the star. This radiant enlightenment has given me a romantic mood for months to come. Vaughn, with numerous cliché violations and at the same time confirming all the necessary aspects of a great adventure spectacle, created a heartwarming film after which fairy tales will never be the same as before. Now excuse me, I'm going to dry my eyes. But it's not because of being moved, it's just some specks of dust that fell into them. Guess what kind. (07/06/2008)

Gaiman's book is just heavy hype, whose biggest weakness is the author's inability to properly develop the themes of the "other" type of fantasy that he claims to be writing, which is why the expectations for the film were zero. It was all the more surprising to me in the end that I consider Stardust the best fantasy film since The Lord of the Rings. It won't impress you with bombastic special effects (the film was very heavily underfunded) or a sophisticated plot (it couldn't have squeezed more out of the book anyway). Yet from amongst all the films that followed Jackson, only now has a film come along that doesn't ooze producer calculations, but is instead shot with refinement, confidence, and proper authorial passion. Charlie Cox is likable, Claire Danes is truly as beautiful as a star in the sky, and Michelle Pfeiffer still exudes irresistible sex appeal. But none of them can compare to Robert De Niro, who clearly sensed that this was a proper role after all these years, and he enjoys his rugged captain with the tender soul of a transvestite so phenomenally that I (with apologies) shit myself with bliss. From a filmmaker's point of view, it's not worth top marks, but I nevertheless give it full marks for the sincerity that kept me endlessly entertained for two hours...with a wink. (02/19/2008)

After the two films I've seen from Vaughn (Kick-Ass and this) I'm still not convinced he's much of a director, but he's definitely a cool wingman. Stardust is a not-so-cleverly story edited affair (enough things here could have been resolved in dialogue and didn't need to be unnecessarily shown) that has little will to mask its social budget and devotes its own shot, if not scene, to every digital special effect, no matter how bad. You even realize at the beginning of the film that you hate everything that's been there so far. And yet without it, the gradual coming of age of not just the hero, but the story, probably wouldn't work. First you're delighted with details like the hillbilly Yvaine, the envious witches, the blue blood, and the brotherly shenanigans (with, again, the unbelievably perfect Mark Strong), then the whole direction the film takes with lots of perfect digressions to round out the plot, the best of which I would consider to be the relationship between the fearsome Captain Shakespeare and his crew of cutthroats. And I still enjoy the pirate rapists' tough-guy gesture to this day. "Now remember, Captain Shakespeare has a fearsome reputation." (05/03/2012)