Stardust

Day 203 - 7/22/09 - Movie #203

BEFORE: The last De Niro film (for now) - I've got just enough time to watch this film before heading to the airport - for my annual trip to Comic-Con, of course. I didn't have time for every single De Niro film, just the ones in my collection - I'd like to track down and watch "Heat" and maybe "Ronin" someday...

THE PLOT: In a countryside town bordering on a magical land, a young man makes a promise to his beloved that he'll retrieve a fallen star by venturing into the magical realm.

AFTER: I did read the book by Neil Gaiman that this was based on, though it was a while back and I didn't remember all the elements of the complex plot. The movie seemed to leave some big gaps and didn't do the best job of explaining everything - like where exactly is the fantasy realm, in relation to England? What powers exactly do the witches have, what are the rules of succession for the princes to become king, and where does the unicorn come from? It just seems like the story is being written on the fly...

It's got elements seen in a lot of other fantasy stories, thrown into a blender, to complicate the story of Tristan (who might be half magical himself) who crosses over into the magic realm to find a star, which looks an awful lot like Claire Danes (not that that's such a bad thing). But damn, Michelle Pfeiffer looks good, even as an old(er) witch. Also a good cameo by Ricky Gervais as a talkative mythical shopkeeper, with Peter O'Toole as the King and Rupert Everett as one of the 7 princes who hope to be heirs to the throne of Stormhold.

RATING: 7 out of 10 lightning bolts - even with a couple plotholes, it's still a very thrilling fantasy quest.

DENIR-O-METER: 8 - though he doesn't show up until halfway into the film, De Niro's Capt. Shakespeare - a ruthless sky pirate who's also light in the loafers - is the most interesting character in the film. But seeing the former Travis Bickle dancing in a dress? Some things you just can't un-see.

That's it, pack up the DeNir-O-Meter, I've worn it out. I'll try to post reports from San Diego if I can figure out how to get a laptop to access wi-fi inside the convention center.