In present day Hollywood, fantasy films are generally an easy sell. With the extreme popularity of projects such as Peter Jackson's Lord Of The Rings trilogy and the numerous Harry Potter installments, a genre that once seemed on the verge of extinction is now back in full force - dominating the marketplace almost every year with another whimiscal story to tell. It seems like every fantasy novel that was even minorly popular is being adapted for the big screen, and because of this many people feel as if they know what to expect. But this year's Stardust, a truly wonderful and captivating motion picture, is unlike anything you have ever seen before.

Based on a novella by the famed Neil Gaiman, Stardust tells the story of young Tristran Thorn (Charlie Cox), a mild-mannered young man who lives with his father in the English countryside. Unlike some of the other town residents, Tristran has dreams of travel and adventure - and can't wait to see what the world has in store for him. But more than anything, he covets the affection of the beautiful but vain Victoria (Sienna Miller) - a local girl who does not seem to share his feelings. Tristran is willing to do anything to get Victoria to love him, so when he spots a shooting star flying across the sky, he makes her a promise. For her hand in marriage, he will go on a journey to find the star and bring it back to her.

Tristran's quest leads him to a magical land that borders his town, with the two realms separated by a simple brick wall. But when he finds the star he is looking for, it is far from what he expected. It turns out the star is alive, taking the form of a woman named Yvaine (Claire Danes), and wants nothing more than to be returned to the sky. Tristran promises to get her back home as long as she comes with him to meet Victoria. But there are others who are also seeking out the fallen star. A wicked witch named Lamia (Michelle Pfeiffer) is after the star's heart, which will restore her fading youth. And a determined prince (Jason Flemyng) is determined to obtain the star in order to reign over the land forever. As Tristran and Yvaine's mission becomes clear, they cannot help but deny the growing attraction for each other - and Tristran must re-examine what he values most in his life.

Told in a lovely storybook-like tone with narration from Ian McKellen, Stardust is truly a fairy tale come to life in the best possible way. Everything about it can only be described as enchanting, since it really brings out the childlike wonder in every viewer who watches it. It's fun and often hilarious, and not afraid to poke a bit of fun at itself. But it also boasts many spectacular and intense action sequences, and a truly touching and sweet love story destined to warm even the coldest of hearts. It is reminiscent of a classic Grimm Brothers fairy tale, and never loses its spirit or sense of originality. It's just impossible to resist.

The performances are unanimously great, with both veterans and newcomers in the cast standing out. Best is Michelle Pfieffer, who has a great time relishing in her role as the villanous witch. She is sassy and often funny, but can also be quite creepy and dementing as well. This really is a comeback year for her, with this and her winning performance in last month's Hairspray. Robert DeNiro is also hilarious as a flamboyant pirate of the skies who helps Tristrain and Yvaine along the way. His performance has to be seen to be believed, and it is so campy that it actually works. His character is likable, charming and funny, and despite the offbeat nature of the role he still manages to be a dashing action hero as well. Sienna Miller's character is fairly one-dimensional, but she pulls it off well and does exactly what is required of her. Claire Danes is wonderful as Yvaine and is really adorable and charming, winning over the audience instantly with her charismatic performance. Charlie Cox delivers one of the year's breakout performances as Tristran, making his character's transitions believable and creating a lead character that the audience can really root for. Supporting players such as Peter O'Toole, Rupert Everett and Ricky Gervais have several memorable moments as some of the film's comic relief.

The direction by Matthew Vaughn is excellent here. Known throughout the industry for his work on the crime thriller Layer Cake (starring a pre-Bond Daniel Craig) and his brief flirtation with directing X-Men: The Last Stand, he really proves here that he is a talent to be reckoned with. As stated before, he gives the entire project a storybook-like feel that is unique and sets it apart from most fantasy films. The special effects are great but not completely photo-realistic, for that wouldn't fit the tone of this project at all. He makes great use of his locations, for the cinematography on display here is simply breathtaking. Vaughn also succeeds when it comes to staging the action sequences, which are equally intense and emotional thanks to our investment in the characters. The screenplay, written by Vaughn and Jane Goldman, also deserves mention for hitting all the right notes and keeping things moving at a fast, entertaining pace.

There are so many winning aspects of Stardust that it would be impossible to list them all. It seems that the best way to describe it is as a beautiful fairy tale, one that transports you back to your childhood and makes you believe in magic, wicked witches, unicorns and faraway lands once again. It is a breathtaking, hilarious, thrilling, touching, sweet and all-out phenomenal film that can be described as an instant classic. Do yourself a favor and do not miss out on the magic that is Stardust.

A+

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This is currently my #2 of 2007.

A hugely pleasant surprise. I went in expecting to be mildly entertained (I got to see it for free, so I wasn't going to pass a chance on a potentially fun evening). I was glad to see that I was proven wrong in a good way. The movie works on most levels. It proved to have lots of adventure, and the action, while sparse, was unique and enjoyable. It started off a bit slow, and I think the started to build Yvaine's character all wrong but they eventually corrected it. It was a problem because the first scene with the Witch and the inn, there wasn't much suspense to it because I got the impression that Yvaine wasn't a very good character.

Overall, the main problem with the movie is that the side characters seem to be better built than the two main characters. That's fine enough, I suppose. The setting is oddly quirky and endearing, so the side character's quirkiness compared to the English Tristan and the estranged Yvaine. The began to show a bit more of themselves as the movie progressed, which was fitting given their arc in the overall story.

The ending was really corny and sappy, and I loved it.

I liked it overall. Much more than I expected. It isn't remarkable or a classic, but it is a solid addition to the modern fantasy film library, and I'd recommend it to everybody. B+

P.S. Kudos points for De Niro o have the hutzpa to dress up like that.

I pretty much agree with you.

The two main characters aren't really well developed and yet the movie still works. I really enjoyed it, a B+ as well.

More people need to see this

Seeing it tomorrow! I'm kinda excited.

First off, I must say that I have sad, sad news to report...

But before I get to that, let me tell you that Stardust is based on a fantastic idea, it made me laugh aloud several times, and it's heart is definitely in the right place!

Now, on to the tragedy, and I'll tell ya straight - - it's story is a jumbled mess.

Frankly, I blame the director. [I'm looking his name up on IMDb right now.] Matthew Vaughn screwed up. Big time.

3 out of 5.

A delightful fairy tail for adults!
Basically, it's Lord of the Rings meets Shrek.
Michelle Pfeiffer steals the movie...she's incredible, and fucking beautfiul.
Claire Daines wasn't given much to do, but she manages, and the male lead, Charlie Cox, is very good, and very attractive.
Robert DeNiro is hilarious! His moment with Humphrey at the end was the best part of the movie.

B+
Probably the best wide-release movie of the summer, which ironically turns out to be the one no one sees....but it's a crowd pleaser, and got a wonderful reaction. Plus, Bradley didn't love it, which is always a good sign.

Oh I loved Stardust alright. It was Stardust that went and broke my heart...

A great, entertaining fantasy flick with good performances all around. A-

Saw this again tonight

It's enormously entertaining but hardly perfect - too often the film confuses randomness for quirkiness, and although I can go with shoddy effects and out there realism, the kingdom the people in Stardust exists in seems to be about three soundstages big. The sheer amount of times people meet over and over again just stank of lazy screen writing. Still, it's one of the most satisfying big movies of the summer, and there are some pretty wonderful moments throughout.

A fun whimsical fairy tale of a movie. I enjoyed the performances by michelle pfieffer and robert deniro. The Trailer did not do it justice.

A-

It was... okay. Entertaining, generally fun. Michelle Pfeiffer's really fun to watch.

But it's pretty low on laughs and wit. The DeNiro schtick didn't do anything for me. Seemed like they were in need of a gimmick and out came "let's make him cross-dress and DANCE!"

And other than Pfeiffer, no one in the cast really shines. I thought the lead was bland, as was Claire Danes, of whom I'm usually a pretty big fan. Peter O'Toole is wasted, as are Rupert Everett and Ricky Gervais.

Has some fun moments, but I didn't love it.

B-/C+

Yeah, this is now my #2 of 2007. I just love it so much. It's a shame that it's doing so poorly at the box office

Amazingly better than I expected; a true delight. I predict it will become a classic in the same way Princess Bride did. I wish it was doing better at the box office.

Who gave this an F and why?

Yeah thats pretty lame, if you are going to grade it a F, at least say why.

A+

I can't believe how good this movie was.

One of the most delightful and joyous movies of like, ever. Everything a great fairy tale needs - The hero, the princess in question, the unknown backstory, the amazing and quirky side characters all over the place, the princes, to the evil witches, to the climax, to the happy ending. It's one of the best live-action fairy tales or fantasy stories ever.

The cast is simply awesome - Charlie Cox is so the next Ewan McGregor, Claire Danes was practically made to be the gal of a movie like this, De Niro, Pfiefer, what can I say about those two, masters of the class and oh what fun they were having, O'Toole did his role (The entire prince storyline had me in gags the entire time by the way, the balcony Secondus thing, the cups, the drowning and dead body being voodooed, and the ghosts the whole time, perfect)

Omfg, I loved this movie so much. Everyone needs to see this. Amazing.

The 26% of critics who gave this a thumb down are also going on my shit list... Heartless bastards. HEARTLESS. How could you do this to me Ebert!!! You gave a tomato to Garfield II... come on!

I'm inclined to think that bradley is going to be right on this one. When everyone goes all gah-gah over a film, he's the voice of reason (minus Children of Men).

This was good, though a tad disappointing when considering the hype around it about how great it was. All the performances were good (especially from Claire Danes, Charlie Cox and Michelle Pfeiffer). It just for me, took forever for it to really get going. I wasn't interested until about the forty-five minute mark. Still, after that it was funny, entertaining and nice to watch. I definitely recommend it.

8/10 (B+)

Please, people, see this movie before it's gone from theaters

It already left my theater. I had to see it at the theater in the city.

That sucks

This is seriously one of my favorite movies ever now. I can't stop thinking about how great it was.