Dir. Matthew Vaughn, UK/US, 2007, 128 mins
Cast: Robert De Niro, Claire Danes, Charlie Cox, Michelle Pfeiffer
Review by Carol Allen
Neil Gaiman's fantasy comic book series turned novel, on which this is based, seems an unlikely choice for Vaughn, producer of "Lock Stock", who made his directorial debut with the gangster thriller Layer Cake, but as director and co-writer (with Jane Goldman), he's turned the story into a totally delightful, original, imaginative and funny family film, which takes the traditional fairy tale format and turns it inside out and upside down.
The story is set in the magical land of Stormhold in a parallel universe just the other side of a crumbling stone wall on the boundaries of a Victorian village called Wall, where Tristan (Cox) lives with his father Dunstan (Nathaniel Parker). Years ago, Dunstan took a forbidden trip "over the wall", which is where lies the secret of Tristan's birth and who his mother is. So when Tristan goes into the magic kingdom to capture a fallen star, with which to win the heart of cold hearted local beauty Victoria (Sienna Miller),he finds himself bumping up against his own past. He also discovers the star has turned into the beautiful and not always sweet tempered Yvaine (Danes), who's none too keen on being captured as a love token. Tristan, however, is not the only one who wants the star. The three surviving sons of the dying King, who've killed their brothers and are in the process of bumping off each other, are after her, because he who holds the star inherits the kingdom. While the evil witch Larnia (Pfeiffer) and her two weird sisters want to kill Yvaine and take her heart, which will give them eternal youth.
Vaughn has assembled a cracking cast, who play the fun to the hilt. Cox has a nice cheeky chappie air about him as Tristan, Danes is a charming and feisty heroine and Pfeiffer has a ball as Larnia, who ages dramatically every time she casts a spell, depleting her store of "youth potion". De Niro plays the apparently ruthless pirate Captain Shakespeare, who hides a heart of gold and a secret life as a transvestite, while Mark Strong is the ruthless Septimus, who ups his chances of becoming king by sending his two remaining brothers to join their dead siblings in a wickedly funny ghost chorus, which comments on the action. The film is also rich in cameos from actors such as Peter O'Toole as the dying king; Ricky Gervais, pretty much playing himself in peasant costume, and David Walliams, Rupert Everett, Julian Rhind-Tutt and Jason Flemyng as the deceased princes, while the fruity tones of Ian McKellan as the invisible story teller keep us on track.
The story is full of unexpected twist and turns, which keep you on your toes and the film features a wealth of witty special effects, such as De Niro's sky flying pirate ship and a sequence where Larnia conjures up a complete coaching inn out of nowhere, turning a goat into Billy the landlord and the goatherd into a serving girl with distinctly boyish tendencies. It's a bit gruesome at times, but kids now are a tougher lot than they were in Snow White's day. The inventive climax perhaps goes on just touch too long, but overall this mix of traditional fairy tale fantasy, comedy and spectacle works very well. |
