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Stardust is a 2007 (3 years ago) fantasy movie from Paramount Pictures, directed by Matthew Vaughn. The movie is based on Neil Gaiman's novel of the same name, illustrated by Charles Vess, originally published by Avon Books, and stars an ensemble cast including Charlie Cox, Ben Barnes, Michelle Pfeiffer, Claire Danes, Sienna Miller (28 walls), Rupert Everett, Ricky Gervais, David Walliams, Nathaniel Parker, Peter O'Toole, David Kelly, Robert De Niro (6 walls), and Mark Heap. Narration is by Ian McKellen.

In 2008 (2 years ago) it won the Hugo Award for Best Dramatic Presentation, Long Form.

Plot

On Apr. 17, 1839 (171 years ago), in the village of Wall (so called because of the stone wall that is a border with another world), Dunstan Thorn (Ben Barnes) sneaks past the guard at a hole in the wall. On the other side he meets a witch's slave (Kate Magowan) for one night. Nine months later the wall guard arrives at Dunstan's door with a baby named Tristan.

Eighteen years later, Tristan (Charlie Cox) is infatuated with Victoria (Sienna Miller (28 walls)). He invites her to a night time picnic.

On the other side of the wall in Stormhold, the king (Peter O'Toole) is on his deathbed, in the company of his sons. The king throws the Power of Stormhold, a large ruby, into the night sky, declaring that "he of royal blood" who finds the ruby will succeed him. The stone collides with a star, which falls to Earth.

Tristan vows to bring Victoria the fallen star by her birthday, in exchange for her marrying him. After Tristan fails to slip past the guard at the wall, his father gives him a Babylon Candle his mother left him. Tristan lights the Babylon Candle to go to her, but accidentally thinks about the star and teleports to the star's impact area in Stormhold. Tristan learns that the star is a beautiful woman named Yvaine (Claire Danes).

Determined to win Victoria's heart, Tristan uses the enchanted silver chain his father obtained trying to free the slave girl to link Yvaine to himself. He promises to use the Babylon candle to return her to the sky after taking her to Victoria. However, three witches — Mormo, Empusa and Lamia (Michelle Pfeiffer) — want Yvaine so they can recover their beauty and youth by devouring her heart. Additionally, the sons of the king are looking for the Power of Stormhold, which Yvaine is wearing.

The witches select Lamia to seek the star. Lamia meets Ditchwater Sal, the witch who is keeping Tristan's mother tied to a Romany style wagon. After Sal drugs Lamia's food, causing her to reveal the story of the fallen star, Lamia curses her to never perceive the star.


Yvaine rides a unicorn to safetyYvaine is weary from her injured leg and unaccustomed to daytime travel. Tristan ties her to a tree and promises to return with food. A unicorn frees Yvaine, taking her to an inn. Tristan discovers Yvaine gone and lies down to rest. The stars warn Tristan of Yvaine's danger, begging him to save her. Tristan awakes as Prince Primus passes in his stagecoach, and they travel to the inn, which is actually a trap created by Lamia. Lamia kills Primus, but Tristan and Yvaine escape using the Babylon candle.

Prince Septimus arrives, determining he is the last surviving son of the king, but needs the stone to become king. Septimus learns that it is in the possession of the fallen star and that the heart of a star grants immortality.

Because Tristan and Yvaine thought of their respective homes, the candle takes Tristan and Yvaine into the storm clouds. They are captured by pirates in a flying ship who collect lightning. Captain Shakespeare (Robert De Niro (6 walls)) interrogates them, and grants them safe passage. Tristan and Yvaine begin to fall in love.

Captain Shakespeare sets them down by the road to Wall, with one day left until Victoria's birthday. They encounter Ditchwater Sal driving her caravan to Wall, the same caravan at which Tristan's father purchased a glass flower. Tristan trades the flower for safe passage to Wall, but Sal spitefully transforms him into a dormouse. Sal can't perceive Yvaine because of the curse Lamia placed upon her. Yvaine passes the journey to Wall in the witch's caravan. She reveals her love to Tristan, not realizing he can understand her.

Arriving at a village near the wall, Sal restores Tristan. Tristan and Yvaine spend the night at an inn, and Tristan tells Yvaine that he returns her love. The next morning while Yvaine is asleep, Tristan cuts off a piece of her hair and crosses the wall to tell Victoria he no longer wishes to marry her. Yvaine wakes up, but the innkeeper garbles Tristan's message to her so she believes Tristan is leaving her for Victoria. When Tristan tries giving Victoria the lock of Yvaine's hair, he finds it has turned into stardust. He realizes that if Yvaine crosses the wall she will die, and hurries back to find her.

The slave girl, seeing Yvaine heading towards the wall, takes over Ditchwater Sal's caravan and races to prevent her from crossing. She stops Yvaine, but Lamia arrives, kills Sal, and takes Yvaine and the slave girl to the witches' castle: Yvaine to be killed and the girl to be a servant.

Septimus and Tristan pursue Lamia, agreeing to attack the witches together. Septimus confronts the slave girl, but recognizes her as his sister Una, daughter of the King of Stormhold. Septimus impales Empusa with a sword. Tristan confronts Una, and she convinces him that she is his mother. Septimus attacks Lamia, who uses a voodoo doll to drown him.

Tristan defeats Mormo by releasing caged animals in the castle that maul her to death. Lamia reanimates Septimus' corpse to attack Tristan, but Tristan traps it under a chandelier. Lamia disarms Tristan, and is about to kill him when she has a change of heart and releases both him and Yvaine. It is a ruse intended to restore Yvaine's heart, making it more powerful for Lamia's purposes. Lamia attacks them again, but Yvaine, knowing that Tristan loves her, unleashes a wave of starlight that disintegrates Lamia.

Tristan retrieves the jewel that Yvaine was wearing. Una explains that Tristan is the last male heir of Stormhold. Tristan becomes the new king with Yvaine as his queen. After eighty years of ruling Stormhold, they use a Babylon candle to ascend to the sky, where they become twin stars. Since Yvaine "gave her heart" to Tristan, the two will live forever in the sky.

Cast

• Charlie Cox as Tristan Thorn
• Claire Danes as Yvaine
• Michelle Pfeiffer as Lamia
• Robert DeNiro as Captain Shakespeare of the Caspartine
• Mark Strong as Septimus
• Nathaniel Parker as Dunstan Thorn
• Ben Barnes as Young Dunstan Thorn
• Kate Magowan as Una
• Sienna Miller (28 walls) as Victoria Foresster
• Peter O'Toole as King of Stormhold
• Jason Flemyng as Primus
• Joanna Scanlan as Mormo
• Sarah Alexander as Empusa
• Rupert Everett as Secundus
• Ricky Gervais as Ferdy the Fence
• Mark Heap as Tertius
• Adam Buxton as Quintus
• Julian Rhind-Tutt as Quartus
• David Walliams as Sextus
• Melanie Hill as Ditchwater Sal
• David Kelly as Guard
• Mark Williams as Billy
• Dexter Fletcher as Skinny Pirate
• Henry Cavill as Humphrey
• Ian McKellen as Narrator
• Jake Curran as Bernard

Production

Optioning
The 1998 (12 years ago) fantasy novel Stardust by Neil Gaiman was first optioned for the movies by Miramax in 1998-9. According to Gaiman, the movie went "through an unsatisfactory development period", and he recovered the rights after they expired. Eventually, discussions about a movie version of Stardust began taking place between Gaiman, director Terry Gilliam and Matthew Vaughn. After Gilliam dropped out following his involvement with The Brothers Grimm, Vaughn left the talks to direct Layer Cake. Gaiman and Vaughn resumed talks after the director walked away from helming the movie X-Men: The Last Stand (22 walls) and in Jan. 2005 (5 years ago), Vaughn acquired the option to develop the movie adaptation. In Oct. 2005 (5 years ago), the director entered final negotiations with Paramount Pictures to direct and produce Stardust with a budget estimated at $70 million (US).

Writing
The adapted screenplay was written by Vaughn and screenwriter Jane Goldman. When asked how the book inspired his vision for the movie, he said that he wanted "to do Princess Bride with a Midnight Run overtone." One of the difficulties with adapting the novel was its earnest and dark nature: an adult fairy tale in which sex and violence are presented unflinchingly. As a result of changes, the movie version has a greater element of whimsy and humor, with Gaiman's blessing given to the screenwriters. Gaiman did not want people to go to the theater to see a movie that attempted to be completely loyal to Stardust the book and failed. After creating the audiobook version of the novel, Gaiman realized that there was 10 1/2 hours of material in the book. This led him to acknowledge that the movie would have to compress the novel, leaving out portions of the work. Budgetary concerns also factored into the adaptation, even with the level of 2006 (4 years ago) technology.

Vaughn and Goldman decided that the witches needed names (as in the book they were collectively Lilim); their Classical decisions included a reference to The Books of Magic (Empusa) and Neverwhere (Lamia).

Casting
In Mar. 2006 (4 years ago), the studio cast Robert De Niro (6 walls), Michelle Pfeiffer, Claire Danes, Charlie Cox, and Sienna Miller. Production began in the UK and Iceland in Apr. 2006 (4 years ago), with the majority of filming taking place in the UK. Vaughn himself picked Danes, Cox and Pfeiffer for their roles. He intended Captain Shakespeare to be played by either De Niro or Jack Nicholson. Stephen Fry was pitched as a possible Shakespeare, but Vaughn eventually picked De Niro. Sarah Michelle Gellar (28 walls) was offered the role of Yvaine but turned it down to spend more time with her husband, Freddie Prinze, Jr.

The role of Quintus was originally given to comedian Noel Fielding, but due to health issues he had to drop out, and was replaced by fellow comedian Adam Buxton.

Locations

Locations used in Scotland included the area surrounding the Quiraing, on the Isle of Skye.In mid-April 2006 (4 years ago), principal started on Stardust. The production was filmed at Pinewood Studios in London. Location filming started in Wester Ross, in the Scottish Highlands followed immediately by filming on the Isle of Skye. Some parts of the movie were also shot in Iceland.

Several nights and days of location filming also took place in the woods near Ashridge Business school, Hertfordshire in June. In summer 2006 (4 years ago), there was some filming at Stowe School in Buckinghamshire and in the village of Castle Combe, Wiltshire. Some of the scenes requiring wide open spaces for riding and coach scenes were filmed at Bicester Airfield in Oxfordshire. Filming was finished by Jul. 13, 2006 (4 years ago).

One movie location was on Elm Hill in Norwich. The area, with a mixture of Tudor and medieval buildings dating as far back as the 11th century, was transformed into the streets of Stormhold. The Briton's Arms tea house became the Slaughtered Prince public house. The owners were so enthralled with the new look - including a spectacular mural and new thatching - that they appealed to the local council and English Heritage to keep it. However, their request was refused.

Reception

Box Office
Stardust was released on Aug. 10, 2007 (3 years ago) in the United States in 2,540 theaters, earning US $9,169,779 in its opening weekend (an average of $3,610 per theater). The movie also opened the same day in Russia and the rest of the Commonwealth of Independent States, earning $8,118,263 as of Oct. 14 2007 (3 years ago). Stardust has earned a total of $135,553,760 worldwide. Its biggest markets were the US where it made $38 million, and the UK where it made $31 million (approx. £16 million GBP).

The movie rates 66% at the movie review aggregator Metacritic based on 33 reviews. On another aggregator, Rotten Tomatoes, the movie received 76% rating. The movie has received Rotten Tomatoes' Cream of the Crop rating of 65% from major news outlets. Stardust was released in the UK and Ireland on Oct. 19, 2007 (3 years ago), where it enjoyed particularly strong reception and box office success.

Associated Press movie critic David Germain named the movie the #7 best movie of 2007 (3 years ago). The New Yorker’s Bruce Diones called it “more surprising and effective than the usual kiddie-matinée madness.” But while Roger Ebert noted it a "fun" movie, he criticized the pacing as being cluttered and unfocused.

Source: en.wikipedia.org

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Linked to Stardust

• Female Celebrities / Katrina Kaif
• Female Celebrities / Lauren Anderson
• Female Celebrities / Sarah Michelle Gellar
• Female Celebrities / Sienna Miller
• Male Celebrities / Robert De Niro

Songs by Stardust

• Stardust - Music Sounds Better With You
• Stardust - Music Sounds Better With You (Bibi & Dim's Remix)

Latest news about Stardust

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