Stardust (2007 film) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Stardust |
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Theatrical release poster
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| Directed by | Matthew Vaughn |
| Screenplay by |
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| Starring |
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| Music by | Ilan Eshkeri |
| Cinematography | Ben Davis |
| Editing by | Jon Harris |
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| Distributed by | Paramount Pictures |
| Release date(s) | 10 August 2007 (United States) 19 October 2007 (United Kingdom) |
| Running time | 128 minutes |
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| Language | English |
| Budget | $70–88.5 million |
| Money made | $137 million |
Stardust is a 2007 romantic fantasy adventure film directed by Matthew Vaughn and co-written by Vaughn and Jane Goldman. Based on Neil Gaiman's 1997 novel of the same name, the film features an ensemble cast led by Claire Danes, Charlie Cox, Sienna Miller, Ricky Gervais, Jason Flemyng, Rupert Everett, Peter O'Toole, Michelle Pfeiffer, and Robert De Niro, with narration by Ian McKellen.
The film follows Tristan, a young man from the fictional town of Wall in Great Britain. Wall is a town on the border of the magical fantasy kingdom of Stormhold. Tristan enters the magical world to collect a fallen star to give to his beloved Victoria, in return for her hand in marriage. He collects the star who, to his surprise, is a woman named Yvaine. Witches and the Princes of Stormhold are also hunting for Yvaine. Meanwhile, Tristan tries to get her back to Wall with him before Victoria's birthday, the deadline of her offer.
The film was released to positive reviews and grossed $137 million on a $70–88.5 million budget. In 2008, it won the Hugo Award for Best Dramatic Presentation, Long Form. Stardust was released on DVD, Blu-ray, and HD DVD on 18 December 2007.
Plot
The English village of Wall lies near a stone wall that borders the magical kingdom of Stormhold. A guard prevents anyone from crossing. Dunstan Thorne tricks the guard and crosses over the wall to a marketplace. He meets an enslaved princess named Una, who offers him a glass snowdrop in exchange for a kiss and they spend the night together. Nine months later, the Wall Guard delivers a baby to Dunstan, saying the baby's name is Tristan.
Eighteen years later, the dying King of Stormhold throws a ruby into the sky, decreeing that his successor will be the first of his fratricidal sons to recover it. The gem hits a star, and both fall out of the sky, landing in Stormhold. The remaining princes, Primus, Septimus and Tertius, independently search for the stone.
In Wall, Tristan sees the falling star and vows to retrieve it for the object of his infatuation, the manipulative and vain Victoria, in return for her hand in marriage. Tristan learns that his mother is from beyond the wall, and receives a Babylon candle that she left for him, which can take the user to any desired location. Tristan lights it and is transported to the fallen star, personified as a beautiful woman named Yvaine. He chains her to take her to Victoria.
Three ancient witch sisters resolve to eat the fallen star's heart to recover their youth and replenish their powers. Their leader, Lamia, eats the remnants of an earlier star's heart, and sets off to find Yvaine. She conjures up a wayside inn as a trap.
Yvaine becomes tired, so Tristan chains her to a tree and promises to bring food. In his absence, a unicorn releases her, but unwittingly takes her to Lamia's inn. Tristan discovers Yvaine gone, but the stars whisper that she is in danger, telling him to get on a passing coach, which happens to be Primus'. They stop at the inn, interrupting Lamia's attempt to kill Yvaine. Lamia kills Primus, but Tristan and Yvaine use the Babylon candle to escape into the clouds, where they are captured by pirates in a flying ship. The leader, Captain Shakespeare, lies to his crew, saying that Tristan is his nephew and Yvaine, a friend. Providing them with new clothes, he teaches Tristan how to fence and Yvaine how to dance.
Septimus discovers that as the last surviving son (Tertius having been poisoned earlier), he needs only find the stone to claim the throne. He learns it is in the possession of the fallen star and realizes that the heart of a star grants immortality.
After leaving Captain Shakespeare's ship, Tristan and Yvaine confess their love for one another and spend the night together at an inn at the marketplace. Come morning, Tristan leaves Yvaine sleeping and goes to Wall with a lock of her hair, to tell Victoria he will not marry her, having fallen in love with Yvaine. When the lock turns to stardust, he realizes Yvaine will die if she crosses the wall, and rushes back to save her.
Yvaine finds Tristan gone, and–thinking he has abandoned her for Victoria–despondently walks toward the wall. Una notices Yvaine walking to her doom and takes the reins of Ditchwater Sal's caravan to stop her. Lamia kills Sal, and captures Una and Yvaine, taking them to the witches' manor. Septimus and Tristan both pursue Lamia, agreeing to work together for the time being. Barging into the castle, Septimus recognizes Una as his long-lost sister and she informs Tristan that she is his mother.
Septimus and Tristan kill two of the witches, but Lamia uses a voodoo doll to kill Septimus. Lamia is about to finish Tristan off, when she appears to break down over the loss of her sisters. Lamia frees Yvaine, but her feigned defeat was a ruse, and she tries to kill them both. As Tristan and Yvaine embrace, their love allows her to shine once again, killing Lamia.
Tristan retrieves the stone from Yvaine. Una explains that, as her son, Tristan is the last male heir of Stormhold. He becomes king with Yvaine as his queen while Dunstan and Una are reunited. After eighty years of ruling Stormhold, they use a Babylon candle to ascend to the sky, where they live together as stars.
Cast
- Claire Danes as Yvaine, the fallen star
- Charlie Cox as Tristan Thorn
- Michelle Pfeiffer as Lamia
- Mark Strong as Prince Septimus
- Robert De Niro as Captain Shakespeare of the Caspartine
- Jason Flemyng as Prince Primus
- Rupert Everett as Prince Secundus
- Ricky Gervais as Ferdiland "Ferdy" the Fence
- Sienna Miller as Victoria Forester
- Peter O'Toole as the dying King of Stormhold
- Ian McKellen as the Narrator
- Kate Magowan as Princess Una
- Joanna Scanlan as Mormo, Lamia's sister
- Sarah Alexander as Empusa, Lamia's other sister
- Mark Heap as Prince Tertius
- Julian Rhind-Tutt as the ghost of Prince Quartus
- Adam Buxton as the ghost of Prince Quintus
- David Walliams as the ghost of Prince Sextus
- Nathaniel Parker as Dunstan Thorn
- Ben Barnes as a young Dunstan Thorn
- Henry Cavill as Humphrey, Victoria's boyfriend
- David Kelly as the Wall Guard
- Melanie Hill as Ditchwater Sal
- Mark Williams as Billy, a goat converted into human form
- Jake Curran as Bernard
- Olivia Grant as Bernard's female form
- George Innes as the Soothsayer
- Dexter Fletcher as the Skinny Pirate
- Eliot (Coco) Sumner as Ingrid, Yvaine's sister
- Mark Burns as the New Bishop
Sequel
Vaughn had an idea for Stardust 2 but the first film was not financially successful enough.
Legacy
On the 10th Anniversary of the film's release Vanity Fair interviewed Charlie Cox, who is frequently recognized by fans for the role early in his career. Cox is unsure why the film is so popular but notes that Vaughn wanted to make a film with broad appeal, and Goldman did a great job cutting out extraneous detail, and focusing on the heart of the story. Vanity Fair notes that the film gets replayed frequently in syndication and describes it as "endlessly likable", with a great cast, special effects that aren't too dated, and "the best adaptation of Gaiman's work, capturing his unique blend of darkness and whimsy perfectly."
Vaughn was critical of the marketing of the film, saying it had been promoted like it was Lord of the Rings when it had been much more influenced by The Princess Bride. He noted that although the film didn't do well in cinemas it became an "evergreen title" on DVD.
Images for kids
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Claire Danes promoting Stardust
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Locations used in Scotland included the area surrounding the Quiraing, on the Isle of Skye.
See also
In Spanish: Stardust (película) para niños
