Stardust: LT Movie Night

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Stardust: LT Movie Night

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1lorannen
Jun 19, 2018, 12:42 pm

Next Friday, June 29th, at 9pm Eastern (US) join us right here in Talk to discuss the 2007 film adaptation of our OLOB read Stardust.

Stardust is streaming on Netflix in some countries, or you can rent it on Amazon, Google, or iTunes. Check out the trailer on YouTube, if you're not concerned about mild spoilers.

Please keep this thread spoiler-free until movie night! When in doubt, use the spoiler tag.

We'll talk about both the book and the movie, of course, though you're not required to have read it.

If you're a Twitterer or Facebooker, we'll be using the hashtag #LTMovieNight (or #LitsyMovieNight, if you're on Litsy) on those platforms.

2lorannen
Jun 21, 2018, 11:23 am

I have fond memories of this movie. I actually wasn't even aware of its existence until a friend of mine texted me and asked if I'd like to go to a free screening of it. We managed to score seats, and I was completely charmed by the movie—to the extent that I went out and bought the illustrated edition of the book the next day.

Some months later, once it was released on DVD, it was one of the last movies I bought at our local Blockbuster before it went under. I still have the DVD, too!

I last watched it 3 or 4 years ago, so I'm looking forward to the excuse to revisit an old favorite.

3lorax
Jun 21, 2018, 11:55 am

Okay, so you're the second person I've seen mentioning the "illustrated edition" of the book, and that's the first I've heard of it. I'd always thought there were two versions:

1. The original graphic novel, with illustrations by Charles Vess: https://www.librarything.com/work/13264184

2. The text-only adaptation, which does not have any illustrations but which also has different text, to add visual descriptions where they weren't needed previously: https://www.librarything.com/work/3574878

Now you're suggesting that there's a third version, combining the text of the text-only adaptation with illustrations? Interesting!

4lorannen
Jun 21, 2018, 1:18 pm

>3 lorax: Sorry, that wasn't what I meant! I meant I got the graphic novel edition, published by Vertigo (my copy, anyway). To my knowledge, those are the only two that exist! I think of it as "illustrated" more than graphic novel because of the way the content is presented—some pages are all text, some are all illustration, but there are no panels—text and image do work together, but not quite in the same way I think of graphic novels as doing.

5lorannen
Jun 29, 2018, 8:57 pm

All right, almost movie o'clock! I've substituted cookies in lieu of popcorn tonight because my Gram's cookies > popcorn.

6threadnsong
Jun 29, 2018, 9:06 pm

Oh, here's the movie starting up and I forgot that Sir Ian MacKellan starts this fabulous movie.

7lorannen
Jun 29, 2018, 9:11 pm

>6 threadnsong: Me too! Uncredited, too, if I remember right.

8lorannen
Jun 29, 2018, 9:13 pm

And once again I am confused as to why they changed his name to Tristan from Tristran (in the book).

9threadnsong
Jun 29, 2018, 9:16 pm

If I'm not on Twitter or the Book of Faces, is it possible to have lively discussions here in this format?

10lorannen
Jun 29, 2018, 9:22 pm

>9 threadnsong: I certainly hope so! I'll be chiming in here, mostly.

11lorannen
Editado: Jun 29, 2018, 9:23 pm

I'd forgotten how much I enjoy the extra Princes of Stormhold as comic relief. Rupert Everett was a good choice for the smirking exit of Secundus.

12threadnsong
Jun 29, 2018, 9:26 pm

>10 lorannen: Oh good, I'll chime in here, too.

13amanda4242
Jun 29, 2018, 9:26 pm

>8 lorannen: According to the trivia on imdb it's because Tristan was easier to say.

14threadnsong
Jun 29, 2018, 9:27 pm

The introduction of the book and Tristran's "beginnings" are much longer than in the movie. Oh, and the history of the Lilim is only four centuries.

15lorannen
Jun 29, 2018, 9:29 pm

>14 threadnsong: AND they're not the Lilim! It's Lamia and her sisters. That was a weird change in my mind.

16threadnsong
Jun 29, 2018, 9:30 pm

I always love Michelle Pfeiffer in this movie. I always think of her with "Ladyhawke" in mind. She's so ethereal.

17lorannen
Jun 29, 2018, 9:30 pm

Do we think we should keep a separate thread going for recording differences between book/film? I don't want to split the convo, so I'm keeping a running list in Evernote that I could share later, but I'd be happy to have another thread going if folks would prefer that. :)

18amanda4242
Jun 29, 2018, 9:31 pm

>17 lorannen: I think one thread is good.

19lorannen
Jun 29, 2018, 9:31 pm

>16 threadnsong: I feel similarly about Claire Danes. I was a big fan of hers dating back to My So-Called Life, and I thought she was an excellent pick for Yvaine.

20threadnsong
Jun 29, 2018, 9:40 pm

I just caught the ruby theme! Guess I was so enchanted by the movie that I didn't trace the ruby's journey.

21kgriffith
Jun 29, 2018, 9:40 pm

I’m loving how much more comedic the film is; as an adaptation, it reminds me of how The Princess Bride was successful in both formats, largely due for me at least to the different tones of the humor.

22threadnsong
Jun 29, 2018, 9:47 pm

>21 kgriffith: Yes to comedic, and the world and inhabitants of Faerie are left more to the viewer's imagination in the film, while they are very detailed in the book.

23kgriffith
Jun 29, 2018, 9:48 pm

I don’t think I like the change to remove the fight between the lion and the unicorn; it was a moment between Tristran and Yvaine that I feel like we needed.

24lorannen
Jun 29, 2018, 9:50 pm

>23 kgriffith: Agreed. It certainly gives us a reason to not root against him. Also, is it just me or is his sense of direction played as less uncanny in the movie? In the book it seemed more pointed.

25LilyMarlene
Jun 29, 2018, 9:50 pm

Got my husband to watch with me, hah, all he watches is sports

26threadnsong
Editado: Jun 29, 2018, 9:55 pm

When, oh when, will film makers show unicorns more to fit the descriptions on medieval tapestries and Peter Beagle' description in The Last Unicorn and less like a tall white horse with a horn stuck on its forehead??

27lorannen
Jun 29, 2018, 9:51 pm

Mark Williams! I love the Billy-formerly-known-as-goat bit.

28threadnsong
Jun 29, 2018, 9:52 pm

>24 lorannen: The distances and places in the movie are definitely downplayed than in the book. You're right about his sense of direction being less uncanny in the movie.

29lorannen
Jun 29, 2018, 9:53 pm

>26 threadnsong: YES. More The Last Unicorn; less "easily mistaken for a horse".

30amanda4242
Jun 29, 2018, 9:54 pm

>26 threadnsong: When it stops being easier to just stick a horn on a horse.

31threadnsong
Jun 29, 2018, 9:57 pm

>29 lorannen: And sadly, a CGI unicorn is not a horse one can ride on screen :)

32lorannen
Jun 29, 2018, 9:58 pm

I'm getting the weird impression that (movie) Tristan is somehow both less hapless and more useless than (book) Tristran so far.

Movie Tristan had grand ideas of travel, getting out in the world, etc., where book Tristran did not. However, he also seems to lack things like the very useful (faerie) sense of direction, and the plot devices that showed off his memory for stories/poems have been removed.

33LilyMarlene
Jun 29, 2018, 9:59 pm

Yes I missed the the lion and unicorn part too.but lots of departures from the book in the movie

34amanda4242
Jun 29, 2018, 10:01 pm

I really miss the hairy little man.

35lorannen
Jun 29, 2018, 10:02 pm

I love the little sight gags in this movie, like Prince Primus's blue blood.

36lorannen
Jun 29, 2018, 10:02 pm

>34 amanda4242: Me too! The entire Fellowship of the Castle, really.

37threadnsong
Editado: Jun 29, 2018, 10:04 pm

Movie Yvaine is much kinder towards Tristan earlier on than book Yvaine. The book Yvaine just does not give Tristran a break in her dislike of him.

38lorannen
Jun 29, 2018, 10:05 pm

>37 threadnsong: Yeah, and I'm kind of all right with book Yvaine on that point. She's got plenty of reason to not be a fan.

39amanda4242
Editado: Jun 29, 2018, 10:08 pm

>35 lorannen: And did you notice all the princes have Roman numerals on their clothes?

Edited to correct auto correct

40lorannen
Jun 29, 2018, 10:08 pm

>39 amanda4242: I'd forgotten that! And hadn't noticed yet this time around. The costuming department must have had fun with that.

41threadnsong
Jun 29, 2018, 10:12 pm

Just love Robert De Niro in his role on the pirate ship!

42amanda4242
Editado: Jun 29, 2018, 10:15 pm

>41 threadnsong: That's actually the change I really hate. Of course that may be because I've never been fond of De Niro.

43threadnsong
Jun 29, 2018, 10:16 pm

>42 amanda4242: I can see how that would make it a not-so-great change. I love the steampunk theme with the pirate ship. So tres fantasy Victorian.

44lorannen
Editado: Jun 29, 2018, 10:18 pm

>42 amanda4242: I like De Niro just fine, and I liked this well enough having seen the movie first, but reflecting on it after reading the book, it frustrates me, because it was such a small portion of the book, and became such a large one of the movie.

ETA: I do enjoy a good montage, though.

45kgriffith
Editado: Jun 29, 2018, 10:18 pm

I’m loving De Niro, and we’ve now officially gotten past the part I’ve read to this time around. Also agreed re the sight gags, Loranne — and the royal brothers in general are excellent comic relief.

46threadnsong
Jun 29, 2018, 10:21 pm

Tristan (movie) certainly cleans up nicely as the captain's nephew.

47lorannen
Jun 29, 2018, 10:26 pm

>46 threadnsong: Agreed! Oh but he is *painfully bad* as a fencer (I say this as someone who fenced epee).

48lorannen
Jun 29, 2018, 10:28 pm

"And what do stars do best?"
"Well it's certainly not the waltz."

lol

49threadnsong
Jun 29, 2018, 10:29 pm

>47 lorannen: I always wanted to learn fencing. I'm so jealous!

50threadnsong
Jun 29, 2018, 10:30 pm

Will they ever include this captain in the Captain Morgan commercials? Complete with lady's garb?

51lorannen
Jun 29, 2018, 10:32 pm

>50 threadnsong: You marketing visionary!

Unrelated: What even does a "face like a bag of frogs" look like, do we think? Too many eyes?

52lorannen
Jun 29, 2018, 10:33 pm

Anyone else think the movie is doing a much better job of making the romance angle plausible?

53threadnsong
Editado: Jun 29, 2018, 10:36 pm

>52 lorannen: Definitely seeing the romance angle much more plausible. Maybe that was why they spent so much time of a different sort on the ship (shorter time in the book than in the movie). And much more learning on the ship in the movie, including about love.

Oh, I just love Yvaine's speech about love! Is it in the book that way? I still have 50 or so pages to go.

54lorannen
Jun 29, 2018, 10:37 pm

>49 threadnsong: It's so much fun! If you've got a facility nearby, give it a go! I started immediately after college, and knew professors who were a few decades my senior and still heading to open fencing sessions.

55lorannen
Editado: Jun 29, 2018, 10:42 pm

>53 threadnsong: I don't have my copy handy (left it in a room where someone's sleeping just now), but I don't think so. I don't recall her having opinions/ideas about love, other than what he's expressing about Victoria sure doesn't sound like it.

ETA: Oh wait, I think she does do some bits of it, but it's not quite as delightful. I'm a bit behind move-time-wise. I'll check it tomorrow. Goes along with the whole romance angle being more plausible in the film angle I mentioned in >52 lorannen: —in the book, it seems more like an accident at the very end.

56lorannen
Jun 29, 2018, 10:39 pm

I'm remembering now that this was the first movie in which I became aware of Mark Strong. What a gem.

57timspalding
Jun 29, 2018, 10:51 pm

I'm 0:45 in. I don't particularly object to any of the changes, because I don't think Gaiman's plot is really what's good about the book, but rather the fun around the plot. There are definitely some good sight gags.

58lorannen
Jun 29, 2018, 10:52 pm

One thing that needles me in both the book and the movie—why wouldn't Yvaine know she can't cross the wall?

59amanda4242
Editado: Jun 29, 2018, 10:59 pm

>53 threadnsong: They actually spent quite some time on the ship in the book--at least long enough for Yvaine's broken leg to heal. It just doesn't seem very long because the section is so short.

>58 lorannen: She does know she can't cross, in the book at least. In chapter ten, after he comes back from Wall, she tells Tristran what would have happened if she had left Faerie. Why she didn't tell him *before* is my question.

60trollsdotter
Jun 29, 2018, 10:58 pm

I still need to reread the book, but I've ejoyed rewatching the movie. I always think of it when I hear Offenbach. Still, as much as I love the movie, I think the ending is much weaker than the book's ending. It is just so Hollywood bland when compared to it.

61lorannen
Jun 29, 2018, 11:00 pm

>59 amanda4242: Ah, you're right. That's what I was thinking of.

62kgriffith
Jun 29, 2018, 11:05 pm

I’m not buying the “shine the witch to death” thing.

63lorannen
Jun 29, 2018, 11:06 pm

Well this must have been a fun sword fight to film.

64kgriffith
Jun 29, 2018, 11:08 pm

Right?? I wonder how much of that was Marc Strong did himself and how much was CGI/dummies/etc.

65amanda4242
Jun 29, 2018, 11:09 pm

>62 kgriffith: I'm not fond of them killing the witch in *any* way.

66threadnsong
Jun 29, 2018, 11:09 pm

More analogies with "The Princess Bride" in this fight scene.

67lorannen
Jun 29, 2018, 11:15 pm

Okay, I really miss their whole "yeah, we'll come see you about that whole ruling the kingdom thing... later." bit.

68trollsdotter
Jun 29, 2018, 11:17 pm

Oh yes, and all the adventures and things they learned together.

69amanda4242
Jun 29, 2018, 11:23 pm

I find myself missing the more "fairytale" moments, like the lodger granting Dunstan his heart's desire and the terms binding Una.

70trollsdotter
Jun 29, 2018, 11:37 pm

Aha! The Next Stormhold Ruler is in the deleted scenes.

71lorannen
Jun 30, 2018, 12:01 am

>70 trollsdotter: Ooh, nice! I'm on Netflix—one of the major drawbacks of that platform being the lack of extra features :/

72timspalding
Jun 30, 2018, 12:03 am

Finished up. Enjoyable, but no Princess Bride.

73kgriffith
Jun 30, 2018, 12:13 am

>66 threadnsong: And also the moment when Tristan and Septimus slump against the wall below the window to figure out their odds/how to attack.

74amanda4242
Jun 30, 2018, 12:23 am

>72 timspalding: Princess Bride would be a great pick for another movie night!

75NorthernStar
Jun 30, 2018, 1:32 am

Enjoyed the movie and the comments, but I still have to reread the book. I'd misplaced it and only found it this afternoon.

76Marcial87
Jun 30, 2018, 4:13 pm

The book had a better plot but the movie had more emotional resonance. I was very much in my DW's graces after watching this together as she loved the film. C. Danes made a great Yvaine. R De Niro stole the movie. What's the next book/film selection?

77.cris
Jun 30, 2018, 5:06 pm

I'm based in the UK, so I'm coming late to the party, but didn't Evaine say that they couldn't have children together in the book? I liked the lack of step mother in the film. It created a more intimate bond between Dunstan and his son, although we are given no clue as so who Tristan thinks his mother is (or was). There wouldn't have been any reason for the unicorn to save Tristan from being poisoned. They had never met before. I'm not sure why the captain was given the "closet" transvestite character. and I missed the little guy who befriended Tristan at the start of his journey. Was the story dumbed down so that Tristan's mother could only be released from captivity when the old entrantress died, leaving out the freedom could only come to fruition when two Monday are together on a Friday (or whatever).

78timspalding
Jun 30, 2018, 7:10 pm

>76 Marcial87:

Agreed. The movie manages to wring some emotional resonance out of the characters. That was definitely lacking in the book. But the book is much more clever.

79erinclark
Editado: Jun 30, 2018, 9:59 pm

Really enjoyed the book but LOVED the movie. It just expanded everything so much visually for me. Especially the little scene where Michelle Pfeiffer uses up a little too much magic doing some cosmetic surgery touchups on herself and her boobs droop, hilarious. The whole thing was a delight, loved the pirate ship and De Niro as a 'whoopsie':) And the ending in the movie was a little more happily ever after, which I liked.

80dougb56586
Jul 1, 2018, 2:48 am

>59 amanda4242: Tristran's mother tells Yvaine that she can't cross the wall - just before Yvaine tells Tristran. However, she did know that stars that "fall" never return to the sky. Maybe the significance of which side of the wall was minor compared to that ...

81PaperbackPirate
Jul 2, 2018, 1:41 pm

I was out of town over the weekend so I didn't watch the movie until yesterday.

I really enjoyed the movie and actually prefer it to the book. The movie made me root for Tristan and the star to get together because of the little moments they shared on the journey. In the book I really didn't care but knew they would wind up together.

I liked reading through all of your comments. I love horses so I was happy to see the unicorn portrayed as it was. I'm also a Claire Danes fan and was pleased to see her in a new role.

One thing I wondered was why the witch's sisters were young people with age makeup. Why not just get old actresses to play those parts? It's understandable for Michelle Pfeiffer because she had to age throughout. Maybe they just wanted them to match.

This was my first One LT, One Book and I had fun. Thank you for hosting and I hope to join you all again next time.

82kristilabrie
Jul 2, 2018, 6:01 pm

I was a little late to watching the movie, but I've got a few thoughts from my re-watch. I watched it before reading the book a few years back, and didn't remember much, so it was nice having the book to compare to this time 'round:

- The Market Town in Stormhold looked a lot different in the movie than in my head.... I pictured a much more intimate type of market, sprawled out in a wooded area just beyond the field, with trails that wind from cluster of booths to cluster of booths, lit up by string lights of sorts... not the bright, in-your-face colors and hubbub that was shown in the movie. It was an interesting contrast, for sure.
- Mark Heap! I didn't realize he played Tertius...loved him in the short-lived Spaced show.
- Am I getting my stories mixed up, or didn't Madame Semele turn the boy into a goat for her cart, and not the witch?
- I'm surprised I never figured out how Yvaine and Tristran ended up in the clouds, after their escape from the inn...of course it was because Yvaine was thinking of her home! Silly me.

Overall, the movie was pretty good. I have to agree with lorannen that the romance between Yvaine and Tristan seemed much more plausible in the movie than in the book. I enjoyed the comedic relief of the Stormhold princes, particularly the last fight between Tristan and the witch-queen. I'm not sure which ending I liked more, but I think I'd actually lean towards the book's ending (the pair exploring for a few years before settling down, and Tristran actually aging and dying, rather than becoming immortal simply for having the love of a star...I thought it added some nice realism to the fantasy). I'd probably read the book again...not sure if I'd watch the movie again, though De Niro was super fun to watch (just not a big enough part of the movie to garner myself watching it again).

83threadnsong
Jul 5, 2018, 3:40 pm

Thank you lorannen for hosting this movie event! I really enjoyed watching the film and reading comments from other folks doing exactly the same thing.

After reading the book for the first time, I like the emotional resonance of the movie, not to mention the steampunk elements, and I liked the fairy-tale resonance of the book. It was not as emotional a plot in the book, as some people observed, but there were lots of fun, hidden characters that didn't make it into the movie.