Stardust

In any given year I see a great deal of movies. I have averaged about 75 movies in the theater for several years now. In addition I rent many movies, watch dvds I own and even when cable is made available to me watch movies on tv. Now as you can imagine that means I see a lot of crap. Nothing can explain why in good conscience I paid to see Hot Rod as a recent example. And once there was the horrendous night I watched Mission to Mars and Reindeer Games, one after the other. Gary Sinise, if you are reading I expect compensation for that slow torture.

Oh, I've had my fair share of rewards as well. Children of Men and Brick were both fantastic to watch. Bourne Ultimatum recently had me smiling from ear to ear. But rarer than that is a movie that I am truly and genuinely floored by. Now these movies don't come every year (sad to say). These are also movies that are not necessarily the most proficient films out there. At times they are even disappointing to me on a second viewing. I can't explain it, maybe its something about the atmosphere of a darkened auditorium and the general joy I get from movies that combine for a truly heart pleasing experience.

Now the reason I am ranting in such a way is because I had such an experience last night, made all the more memorable by the fact that I watched Becoming Jane afterwards. But the second movie actually didn't have any influence on what I thought of the first because I was already thinking about what I wanted to say about Stardust as I drove to the next theater which was on the other side of town (I even got stuck in construction traffic which gave me lots of time to think). Stardust is a movie that caused a rare reaction in me. Where I walk out of the theater and seriously consider purchasing another ticket to watch it again. I'm even considering going back to the theater tonight.

Critics have called Stardust genre defying which I think is just daft. Its a fairy tale. That is its genre. As such the things you would expect, it has. Wicked witch? Check. Evil nemesis? Check. Dashing pirate? Check (sort of, we will get back to that). Beautiful damsel in distress? Check. Dashing hero? Check. What to me makes fairytale subjects such great movies is that you can endlessly tell variations on the same theme. Kind of like jazz (or at least as I understand jazz, apologies to jazz lovers who think I have horribly misrepresented that genre of music).

Synopsis, short and sweet. Tristran (Charlie Cox) is a boy who works in a shop and who pines for the shallow Victoria (Sienna Miller) who thinks he is a shop boy (yes there is a difference between a shop boy and a boy who works in a shop). Tristran promises her he will bring her a fallen star for her love and off he sets to a magical kingdom. There he meets Yvaine (Claire Danes), the star and they journey back to his village. But an evil witch, Lamia (Michelle Pfeiffer) and nefarious prince Septimus (Mark Strong) each want Yvaine for their own purposes. Along the way Tristran and Yvaine run across Shakespeare (DeNiro) as a gruff and tough pirate who happens to be secretly a gay cross dresser.

Now there isn't any question as to how this film will turn out and in truth if you have slightly more than a passing knowledge of fairy tales you can pretty much plot out the major things that have to be accomplished in this film. But all that is irrelevant because what makes a fairy tale good is not its unique storyline but rather how it plays on those age old themes. Maybe another reason fairy tales are so good is because they are black and white and good always triumphs (and especially love). Of course we live in world where very little is black and white (despite what the president says). I could list off tens of reasons why fairy tales are great almost all no doubt would sound like sappy half answers to some. So lets get back to Stardust.

The performances are all proficient if not spectacular. DeNiro seems to be having a field day with his character and you can't help but have a good time when he is on screen. Danes is beautiful and quick witted (having that beauty with a bite that I love so well in my screen actresses (the very reason no one will ever be able to tell me Julia Stiles in 10 Things I Hate About You wasn't brilliant)). Ricky Gervais' role is hysterical as a slimy salesman. Pfeiffer revels in her wicked witch as you would expect. Of course none of that would matter if the leads didn't shine (no pun intended there since at times Danes does actually shine in the film). Cox and Danes have great chemistry.

Even knowing deep down how it would end, the film pulled me in. Thus I was anxious when the leads were in danger and happy when the pair are reunited. To sum up this film in a word, I would say 'charming'. It turned what was an average day into a truly pleasant day. Which is why Stardust may not be the best movie of the year, but it is my favorite movie of the year.