Customer Reviews
steer clear ! - By: Roger, 12 May 2008 
Well I cannot supply a full review due to the fact that I was inspecting the inside of my eyelids for the last half hour or so ! ...........
It reallly went downhill ( never got up to begin with )with the appearance of Robert De Niro on his airship...... just dreadful.
Sleep was easy & I had no compulsion to find out what happened to any of them ............just do not bother with this 'film' .........rubbish
Don't bother! - By: W. Downie, 10 May 2008 I can't think of anything about this film which would be likely to appeal to anyone over about 12 years of age. Some of the scenes are very scary for children under about 10 years old, so the potential audience for this film is restricted, to say the least. Very hammy acting, an unbelievable plot which doesn't reallly hang together, predictable ending which anyone can see coming for at least half an hour before the film (mercifully) ends. One star for the location scenery (Western Scotland plus a bit of Iceland) & the song at the end, which I hadn't heard before. But don't waste your time...
Loved it - By: I. Forshaw, 09 May 2008 
I watched this film on a wet Wednesday afternoon & loved every minute of it. It drew me in & didn't let me go until the final second. I worried; I gasped; I cried; I laughed; I hoped; I wished; & it alll came true! If you want to escape this world's travails for a couple of hours then you should watch this film.
A GREAT FILM - By: Mr. Michael T. Naden, 06 May 2008 WHAT A GREAT FILM, . TERRIFIC STORY, LOTS OF HUMOUR, CLEVER - VERY GOOD CAST. MOST CERTAINLY A FUTURE CLASSIC! EVIL WITCHES, MAGIC, IT REALLY DOES HAVE EVERYTHING.
A FILM FROM THE YOUNGEST TO THE OLDEST - WATCH IT ...... YOU REALLY WILL LOVE IT!!!!!!!!
The most breathtaking film I have seen for years - By: MM Turner, 02 May 2008 I've just watched this film four times in three days. It is, quite simply, the most breathtaking film I have seen for years.
Based on -- & improved upon -- Neil Gaiman's book of the same name, Stardust is the ultimate fantasy-adventure for the entire family.
There are three reallly great things about this film, two of which are extensions of what is in the book, & one was developed by Gaiman & his co-workers for the film after the book was finished.
The first great thing is the depth & originality of the magical world he creates. Gaiman's Faerie is as rich & detailed -- & exuberant -- as Hogwarts, though it's a darker place. The film brings to life the wealth of detail which was in the book. Despite being laced with special effects, this does not come across as a special effects movie, because every magical transformation is demanded by the plot & flows instinctively from what was there before: a wonderful example of Aristotle's 'likely impossible' being better than an 'unlikely possible'.
The second great thing is the depth of characterisation. It's unusual in a fantasy film to have the level of bickering & banter that we get in this film. It's unusual in any genre to have an exquisitely observed romance develop before our eyes, against the wishes of both main protagonists. The film builds new characters, such as Robert de Niro's gay pirate Captain Shakespeare & Ricky Gervais's wheeler-dealer fence, which add additional resonance (and humour). It also nicely develops the characters of alll seven sons of Stormhold, & nicely polishes the ghosts.
The third great thing, which is not in the book, is that Stardust the film has a very, very exciting plotline. Gaiman wisely omitted a number of details, & simplified the rather complex relationships. This created the space to focus on the real action, to introduce the pirate interlude, & to replace the entire ending with the most gripping & thrilling magical battle I have ever seen in a film. The last twenty minutes is alll new material, making the story infinitely stronger & more satisfying. This is neatly underlined by the reprise of alll the surviving characters in the coronation scene at the end -- a very nice touch indeed.
Fairy tales need to be told & retold, & improved as they go. Gaiman has seized the rare opportunity of telling his tale better the second time around -- though the original novel was nothing to be sniffed at -- & he & his co-workers have created a masterpiece.
I loved this film, & would recommend it to anyone -- something helped by the removal of the sometimes explicit references which occasionallly crop up in the book.
This is not a 'great' film, in the sense of Dr Zhivago, Lawrence of Arabia or The Great Escape. It does not attempt to solve the great questions of human existence, or to plumb the depths of tragedy. But it is the finest film of its kind I have ever seen.
One more thing: both in the film & the book, there are elements which have obviously been 'inspired' by other fantasy writers. With becoming modesty, Gaiman, in the epilogue to the book, acknowledges these. The references are not plagiarism, but tributes. The film is alll the stronger for them.
