While Gaiman tends to be more interested in archeypes, themes and prose, the film - perhaps by necessity, as a product of Hollywood - has much more interest in making these characters three-dimensional and relatable. That is in no small part to the impressiveness of this cast, but it also has something to do with the screenplay. Read more: Why The Princess Bride is a Perfect Fantasy Movieįor me, one of the chief strengths of the film over the book lies with the realness and development of the characters. And have I mentioned that it is all narrated by Ian McKellen? Yeah, the extras are basically all played by Oscar-winners in this movie. Past that, we get some fun, memorable performances from Rupert Evertt as Prince Secundus, Peter O’Toole as the King of Stormhold, Henry Cavill as the prissy Humphrey, Ricky Gervais as the comedic Ferdy the Fence, and Sienna Miller as the haughty Victoria. (Strong would also go on to star in Vaughn’s Kingsmanas Merlin.)

Past that, highlights include Michelle Pheiffer’s Lamia, Robert De Niro as Captain Shakespeare, and Mark Strong’s Prince Septimus. In the central love story, we have Charlie Cox and Claire Danes as Tristan and Yvaine. Seriously, everyone is in this movie and they are giving it their all, making the script come to life with complexity, humor, and heart. Many of Stardust‘saforementioned charms come in the quality of its expansive cast. Subscribe A great cast, led by Claire Danes & Charlie Cox. The kingdom’s royalty - a gaggle of cutthrout princes - are also on the hunt, as their dying father made a proclamation that whoever retrieved the stone around the star’s neck would ascend to the throne. Michelle Pheiffer’s witch Lamia wants to cut out the star’s heart and eat it so she and her sisters can continue to enjoy immortal life.

Things get complicated, however, when he discovers the star is not a piece of celestial rock, as he assumed, but rather a living, breathing woman in the form of Claire Danes’ Yvaine.Įlsewhere in Stormhold, others are searching for the star. Tristan is on the search for a star that has fallen from the sky, a gift for his lady crush Victoria. The heart of the story comes in the quest of young Tristan Thorn (Charlie Cox), who ventures out of his small town of Wall into the magical kingdom of Stormhold that lies just next door, on the otherside of a wall. Stardustis a surprisingly complex story for a fairy tale adventure film that was also marketing as a family-friendly movie.

Stardust by neil gaiman