"This is the story of how Tristan becomes a man... To achieve it, he must win the heart of his one true love." From the beginning of Stardust, there is a distinct waft of The Princess Bride. The warm, old-man voice (Ian McKellan, of course) narrating the tale like a grandfather telling a bedtime story, the fantastical adventure dotted with romance and humor, and even the echoing words "his one true love" made me feel nostalgic for that magical love story of my youth.

As it happens, Stardust is a perfectly adequate Princess Bride-style tale, a bright and enthralling adventure with plenty of danger, magic and love. In the story, the aforementioned Tristan (played by the outrageously attractive Charlie Cox) is a lovestruck young man tasked with the challenge of bringing back a fallen star for the petulant, conceited object of his affections, Victoria (Sienna Miller). He meets the star, a luminescent woman named Yvaine (Claire Danes) who has landed near Tristan's sleepy village, and he determines to bring her to Victoria as proof of his adoration. That's just the tip of this fantasy iceberg, though, so read more



