Movie: Stardust

[gm_wil]

It felt like it wanted to be the new Princess Bride, but fell short. Felt far too long in the middle where there were parts the music was the only thing holding it together and they knew it, blasting it over the speakers so you couldn't check your watch because you were plugging your ears...and forced, kinda like the actors were there because they owed someone a favor. Would have been a lot more enjoyable if it had been released at the start of the summer before Harry Potter and the other action movies...would have stacked up better because we would have had nothing to compare it to for summer flicks...

...and holy slew of same genre...pots & pans labrynth, last whimsy, the golden pompass, bridge of terecloth, spiderdick chronicles, etc etc...

sheesh - talk about over saturation...

-

[darthender]

Man, I remember when I went to see Harry Potter 5. There were three trailers all in a row, it was like Golden Compass, the Spiderchronicle thing, and one other. And I thought at the time "awsome, they showed me three trailers for the same movie..."

I mean, seriously. I get it. Middle School kids fall ass backwards into magic worlds on a daily basis. Can I see something else now?

[kilroyperrywinkle]

I haven't seen the movie yet but....

Have you read the book?

Its cheesy as hell, and its suppose to be.

The movie has a 72% on Rotten Tomatoes, and given the source material I believe thats a fair rating.

This isn't suppose to be life changing story telling, its a simple simple story.


But I have not seen it yet, so maybe I'll be back in here on Monday all pissy at myself for saying all this.

[gm_wil]

I haven't seen the movie yet but....

Have you read the book?

Its cheesy as hell, and its suppose to be.

Ah, I see. Maybe they just stayed too close to the line between cheesy and serious and missed their goal...too bad because there were a couple of times I almost liked it, but then I'd lose it again. I was just REALLY bored 75% of the time and felt like walking out to do something else...not because it was horrible, I was just that bored with it. Like watching a play in another language, they have good props and actors, but the story element is missing.

Maybe by seeing some bad reviews you'll go into it expecting crap but be surprised? I hope that's the case.

-

[kilroyperrywinkle]

Alright.

The movie was as good as you can expect it to be given the source material. Everything you said was true, the score is too loud, the characters are uno dimensional, and the story is cheesy. And there's one part where I even felt it was too "Princess Bride-ish"

But I loved it.

At it's heart there's a playful simple story thats at the center of it and no one gets in the way of it unraveling. There's no scene stealing acting, no high grade action gimmicks, just the simple story of a man trying to figure out what love really is.

I dug the movie, but I also really liked the book - which (besides the horribly mixed soundtrack) has all the thinness of the movie.

3 Out of 5 Stars...

Not a blockbuster, or award winning, but a decent popcorn movie.

[saqibnk]

i havent seen the movie but im excited to see what the TRS guys think of the film since the reviews in this thread seem a bit middle of the road...oh and is it just me or does anyone else wanna see the guys review a horrible movie just to hear them rip that film a new one

[falloutitchy]

While it was entirely predictable - it didn't claim to be otherwise - and the "final confrontation" scene was largely crap, I thought overall it was a strong movie. As stated above, nothing earth-shattering, but neither is Harry Potter, when you think about it.

I left the theater with a smile. That's the kind of movie it is. I think it came close to Princess Bride, actually. Not quite there, but still a valiant effort.

[c0r3file]

Having read the book recently, I went into this with high hopes. While the movie didn't outright suck, it just sort of 'drug' in a few parts. Pacing just seemed to be a real problem. The other problem I had was watching Claire Daines, De Niro, and Michelle Pfeiffer bounce around the largely unknown male lead. If you're going to do an all-star cast, go all the way, not just all star cast except for the hero. I'd say this one is worth a rent, but I dunno if its worth a movie ticket. Definitely falls short of 'Princess Bride".

[satori]

you know a film is in trouble when you hear G4 is making fun of it.

[kapusta]

All G4 can do nowadays is to make fun of the new releases it seems. Unless, of course, the film is a sponsor. Then its praises all around.

Anyway, I thought Stardust was great. DeNiro's character was so funny and the story was easy to get into. It wasn't too long or too cliched though it was written to be. Very Princess Bride, but Princess Bride was great! No complaints here.

-Jake

[techhead57]

I thought the movie was great, I actually really agreed with what dan said on the new episode (and that's surprising because I almost never agree with dan on the movies, lol). I thought the characters were really easy to relate to, especially Tristran, I mean who hasn't felt that way about someone only to have them kind of like treat you badly, I mean I don't think I've pursued anyone to quite that extent but still. Also the whole thing with the brothers was hillarious, not to mention Ricky Gervais. It was just a great story that left me feeling inspired at the end, I mean I saw it coming from the get go, but I was still totally sucked into the movie, and I loved every second of it.

[nlatimer]

I just had to say that DeNiro as Captain Shakespeare is the 3rd best swashbuckling air pirate ever.

[whitetigress357]

With The Princess Bride one of my favorite movies of all time, I loved Stardust. I liked it more than most of the movies I saw this year (minus HP 5). This one goes on my DVDs to buy list once it is released.

[dimo]

(i suppose a few SPOILERS)
For a movie that isn't too funny besides a few scenes. though many people liked Robert De Niro... i thought his character wasn't developed enough, and because of that... the whole sky pirates thing was pretty pointless to me. they helped the two get from point A to point B, and were silly on the way... Yes i said silly. It wasn't that funny and it wasn't charming. De Niro was a nice pirate... whatever.
The best part of the movie is Claire Danes. Watching a women fall in love, and glowing the whole time when she felt such ways was very beautifully done.
I was really expecting a greater journey for the both of them to face. The journey they faced was pretty dull, and the witch who finally captures them at the end was just that much more boring to watch. Oh, look... i'm gonna pretend like i'm going to let you go because i think it's realllllly funny to be so cruel... WHY do something like that, if you've worked SO hard, and you are falling apart, WHY, i ask, WHY would you let the one thing that will allow you to live for much longer just walk away and think you are being nice. i DOUBT that made her heart any more powerful, and it just seems counter productive. I was laughing when she was crying, because it was just so extremely out of place. meh, i think that could have been done better.
This movie was forgettable and seemed to be put together from the book in patches that were so general that just bothered me. I would recommend it to people who would think that watching De Niro do "unpirately" things for a couple of scenes is extremely funny and for people who would like to see a nice love story.

[siraim]

I saw the movie over the weekend and it was a fun movie. That's pretty much the highest compliment I can give to a movie these days. Ricky Gervais was really funny in this movie, even if only briefly. I was surprised to see some of the casting choices and the humility some of the more well known actors showed in the role they played.

I grew up watching Claire Danes annoy the hell out of me in "My so called life" and all of the countless movies in which she was jilted, cried and then whined until she got her way. (Romeo and Juliet, the stupid drug movie in Thailand.... and the rest are blocked out) Even Terminator 3 let her play the role she had so keenly developed over the years. With all of that. She was the best part of the movie by far. Maybe it was the long pan shot of her in the dress as she lay in the crater. Who knows? Also..when did she turn tall and blonde? I don't remember that either.

As it stands, the opening was a bit too slow. The middle didn't move things along much better and the ending seemed to move along briskly and close things off on a high note. The Princess Bride this was not, but I wasn't expecting it to be. It was a fun movie.

[homelesshacker]

Sorry to bring up a mostly dead thread... However I just got around to seeing this movie and wanted to add my two cents. Its simple, and I saw pretty much everything coming. That being said, great popcorn flick! I've always had a thing for Claire Daines so maybe that made me enjoy it a bit more then some will. Sometimes its nice when a film is simple, when its pulled off right. And this one was pulled off right. Love the way it was shot, thought the casting was dead on. It was a little longer then it needed to be, but all in all I recommend you check it out!

[deegraww]

I watched this last night for the first time. I really enjoyed it. I really wish I wouldn't have waited so long to see it but oh well. It was great and I would watch it again.

[tokenuser]

Sorry to bring up a mostly dead thread... However I just got around to seeing this movie and wanted to add my two cents. Its simple, and I saw pretty much everything coming. As you said, great popcorn flick. Do I want to own it on DVD? No - not really. Would I watch it again on TV? Absolutely.

Its a fairy tale, with simple concepts and a predictable storyline - told in a very straightforward, and enjoyable way.

[siraim]

I saw this in the theater when it came out and for some reason it was brought up over the weekend at home. Glad the thread was bumped. glad you two enjoyed the movie. It was a fun romp and I have to admit it was the first movie I've seen Claire Danes in that I didn't want to strangle her.

She has annoyed me since her "My So Called Life" days. The characters she plays always seem to be whiny and obnoxious. Usually her characters cry alot or get terribly mopey. So, in Stardust? Perfect casting. She was cast as a whiny, obnoxious, petulant pain in the rear. =)

[geekluv]

I'm glad this thread was resurrected because it reminds me that I want to purchase the DVD. I don't usually go for the movies that are heavy on the love story, but I fell head-over-heels for this one.

[masherscf]

Sorry to bring up a mostly dead thread... However I just got around to seeing this movie and wanted to add my two cents. Its simple, and I saw pretty much everything coming. That being said, great popcorn flick!

Yep, there's nothing wrong with a movie being predictable as long at it's still good.

Like food, sometimes people are a mood for surprises. Sometimes, they want just what they ordered.

[matteekay]

Yep, there's nothing wrong with a movie being predictable as long at it's still good.

Like food, sometimes people are a mood for surprises. Sometimes, they want just what they ordered.

Aaaah.... for once, Mr. Mash, you and I agree on something! I LOVED this movie; it was exactly what I hoped it would be. I'll be buying the DVD on Tuesday fo. sho'.

[deegraww]

Aaaah.... for once, Mr. Mash, you and I agree on something! I LOVED this movie; it was exactly what I hoped it would be. I'll be buying the DVD on Tuesday fo. sho'.

Speaking of buying DVD's I need to get season 3 of lost. Maybe I can catch up before season 3 starts.

[matteekay]

It seems that you "Lost" the original point of this thread! Har har har har!










....yeah, I hate me too.

[estacado]

Best movie this year. It's a fairy tale, so you should know how the story is goes. You know what you want, you know what the story is going to give you, it's a perfect match for me.

I wasn't expecting a fairy tale at first. I thought it was one of those fantasy movies that takes itself seriously. But after the first few minutes of narration from Ian McKellen, it became clear to me that this a fairy tale. So I just sit back, and enjoy the ride.

Because of it's predictable nature, it has a very high rewatchablility too. I watched it twice in the same week, and enjoyed it both times.

[digitalfirefly]

I never saw Stardust before and am debating picking this up on HD-DVD. Is this worth a purchase? Is this a movie that worthy of multiple viewings?

[chrisnaz]

I saw this thread and thought i would check it out since my torrent quene is empty, anyhow I liked it. Never paid attention to Claire Danes before, but she made it very enjoyable, ill watch it agin tonight when kids r sleeping.

[thisisdn]

After reading everyone's comments, I decided to Netflix it. I'm excited to see it. It should be coming Weds. I'll give my 2 cents when I finish watching it.

[serenity]

I never saw Stardust before and am debating picking this up on HD-DVD. Is this worth a purchase? Is this a movie that worthy of multiple viewings?

It's worth it to me but it wouldn't necessarily be my "must have right now" film to buy. I'll get around to it eventually. It's a really good film and Claire is awesome, of course.