I adored Neil Gaiman's book, Stardust, so was immoderately excited when I heard it was being filmed.
Better still was the news that it was being partially shot on the beautiful Isle of Skye, and that the talented Claire Danes, Robert De Niro and Michelle Pfeiffer were all on board. 'How can it fail?', I thought, with uncharacteristic optimism...
Joyously, it didn't.
With lots of british comedy actors - including Julian Rhind-Tutt, Mark Heap, David Walliams, Mark Williams, Ricky Gervais, and Sarah Alexander - playing 'spot the actor' was almost as much fun as the action.
Charlie Cox, a relative unknown, played Tristan Thorn. He has a softly handsome, 'everyman' kind of face, that is perfect for the boy-turns-to-man adventure story.
Robert De Niro does a fantastic comedic turn as a camp sky pirate and Michelle Pfeiffer is every bit as good as I expected as the witch intent on cutting out the heart of the fallen star (Claire Danes).
Jane Goldman's screenplay is good, but loving the book as much as I do, I was bound to find fault... It's a little more schmaltzy and 'Hollywood' than Gaiman's original work, but this is a minor criticism. It really is super fun and one I'd recommend even if you're not usually a fantasy fan.
Related posts: Friday Flick archives