a babylon candle and a glowing heart

[ironymaiden]

joyful_storm and i went to a SIFF preview of Stardust last night. it's been so long since i read the book that i can't say much about the adaptation. (obviously the book did not make a profound impression.) as i watched, it struck me that this is a family film, in the sense that parents could go with kids of mixed ages (probably not under 10 or so) and everyone would have a nice time. there are jokes kids would get, jokes that would fly over youngsters' heads, plenty of action, some jeopardy, and a romance. it lacks blatant sex, bloody violence, and scatological humor. it retains the earthiness and casual brutality of its fairytale inspiration.

(someday, people will get over the LotR films and we can stop having helicopter shots of people rushing across beautiful lonely landscapes. i hope it's someday soon. at least that Matrix freeze-n-rotate thing is dying out. i'm not saying it's all evil, it's just a new cliche.)

you may recognize most cast members from British TV. the Americans are mostly good (i didn't hate Claire Danes, who is usually as annoying as Gwyneth Paltrow) but my jury is still out on the scenery-chewing Michelle Pfeiffer and Robert DeNiro - who is unable or unwilling to do dialect to match the rest of the cast. DeNiro's performance is full of energy and charm, and he's on screen for just the right amount of time. other stars are brief appearances or narrative only. (i leave their names out to allow others the pleasure of recognition. i think the only opening credit was the title.)

the film was sweet, and i think it may attract a cult audience similar to Labyrinth or The Princess Bride. it's an alternative to the action epics of the summer while still containing both action and epicness. (take your romcom fan sweetie, still get to see swordfights and chases.) there's nothing special about the credits, so if you don't want to listen to the lame Take That song, just skip out.

Comments

[raevnos.livejournal.com]

I recently heard about the Stardust movie, and went to re-read the book. I still haven't seen a trailer or know anything about the movie... but lacking bloody violence is a pretty major deviation (There's a ton of explicit poisoning, throat cutting, stabbing, and more going on...)

[ironymaiden]

oh, it happens. but (for example) the royal with the cut throat bleeds blue. the deaths are all there and the ghosts are ludicrously maimed.

[steve98052.livejournal.com]

There was a SIFF preview? They must have the mailing list screwed up again; I didn't get a note about it, and we have a "Benefactor Partner" membership (one level up from the base), which is supposed to mean getting screening e-mails a few hours ahead of the base level. Time to write Tara, I suppose.

Oh, thanks for the review. I never heard of the book before mention of it in reviews, but I'm curious about the movie. From the ads, it reminded me of Ella Enchanted.

[ironymaiden]

Tara said they were doing at least two more showings, so i'm very surprised you haven't seen an invite.

[steve98052.livejournal.com]

I'm still not receiving the usual volume of SIFF mail. It's possible that my entry in their mailing list is messed up. I'll have to call them again.