I just came from the theater where I caught a screening of Stardust and I must say this fairy tale really didn’t behave! It starts off like any typical movie in this genre would and pretty much runs you through a very exciting narrative that has many twist and turns not typical to any film in the fantasy genre.

Despite having read the numerous positive reviews of the film, my experience with Stardust was in no way spoiled as I found the movie very entertaining, engaging and exciting.

Ten reasons:

1. Good narrative - Stardust tells the story of a young shop boy named Tristan (Charlie Cox) who finds himself on an adventure he never expected to be involved in, when he decides to find a falling star to present to the woman he wants to marry. It’s basically the tried and tested tale of a hero on a quest, of swords and magic, of finding one’s destiny and true love, but the way it was told on screen — by director Matthew Vaughn and fellow screenwriter Jane Goldman — turned the simple story into an amazing motion picture event. I loved the exposition and the unfolding of the events in this film.

2. Claire Danes - This is probably the first time I’ve ever liked Claire Danes a lot. The closest she’s gotten to getting my affections was in Shopgirl. Here in Stardust, she’s just awesome. I think she did a great job as fallen-star Yvaine and was able to convey the essence of the character. I can see why John Campea wants to marry her after watching this movie.

3. Charlie Cox - I’ve never seen this guy in films before so I don’t have any basis of comparison from his previous acting gigs. However, his on-screen presence and chemistry with Danes, and his ability to carry himself well against Hollywood heavyweights Robert De Niro and Michelle Pfeiffer tells a lot about his thesping abilities. I’m expecting great things in the future in Cox’s career.

4. The Seven Princes - And I don’t mean just the cool names. These guys are one of the film’s comic reliefs and it was fun watching them scheme and elbow their way to the throne of Stormhold. Talk about sibling rivalry.

5. Robert De Niro / Captain Shakespeare - Man! You are going to see a completely different Robert De Niro here. At first you’d think his Captain Shakespeare character would be another addition to his long list of strong characters he’s done in the past. But no! This tough guy has a heart — you can see that on his face in one scene. (*winks*) I now believe that De Niro can do anything. Hahaha!

6. Michelle Pfeiffer / Lamia - Yes! We already know Michelle Pfeiffer is an excellent actress, just as we know it is freezing cold in the North Pole. Still, it is fun to watch Pfeiffer have fun with the character she’s given to portray — that of cold-hearted witch Lamia who would stop at nothing to get what she wants. She leaves her signature in this film: that of taking a role and running away with it.

7. Production values - Everything in Stardust from the costumes to the sets to the visual effects to the props to the music and sound effects were done well — IMO, at least — and made the finished product outstanding.

8. Life lessons/principles - I loved the scene where Dunstan Thorn (Nathaniel Parker) was telling Tristan about his mother. As the Dunstan told his son of his family history (and giving the letter Tristan’s mother wrote for him as an infant), I saw a picture of a father giving identity to his son, speaking destiny and blessing to him. It was one of my favorite scenes in the film.

I also liked the way Tristan found his true love. Initially, he had his heart set on a girl from his town, but as he went on his journey with Yvaine he discovers that what he was looking for was right before his eyes. And it’s like that in life. Sometimes what we are seeking all along is right there before us, but there is a sort of journey one has to go through to discover that truth. If we’re not willing to go through the journey, we may never know what’s right there in front of us. Tristan "found" Yvaine because they journeyed together. I love this aspect of the film.

9. Rule the World - A bit of a welcome surprise for me was the end credit song "Rule the World" sung by Take That — a boy band I used to be crazy about. At first I thought it was George Michael singing the song, but four lines into it I realized it was Gary Barlow expressing the heart of the movie into song. Thank you for the little surprises, Lord!

10. Matthew Vaughn - Yes! After watching this movie, I now believe that Matthew Vaughn could’ve done a better job with X-Men: The Last Stand as he said he could’ve. He could have sprinkled a lot of star dust over X3. Oh well.

Stardust gets a five-star rating from me because it was a well-balanced film. It was well done, well acted and well directed. And there are more aspects of the movie that viewers will certainly love.