Nice concoction with plenty of stars

Rating: 7/10 (20 October 2015)

Michelle Pfeiffer as a sexy lethal witch with an aging problem is in better form than in "Witches of Eastwick." Robert DE Niro comes to the rescue out of the sky like the plumber in "Brazil," in a sky ship just like the one from Disney's "Treasure Planet." Ian McKellen narrates, and come to think of it, the hero's (Charlie Cox') theme bears some resemblance to the Fellowship Theme in "LOTR." At least there are no R.O.U.S. in it!
Despite uncountable derivative elements, and a high degree of predictability (c'mon, who did not think it will be Pfeiffer vs. Cox at the end with starlight saving the day, 15 minutes into the show?), this film manages to remain charming, well-directed, crammed with great actors doing their work exquisitely, and a deft script.
The story is great fantasy. Tristan, a grocery boy whose father once stumbled over "The Wall" into a magical world right "next to" England, saves a fallen star incarnated as a beautiful girl. The star is pursued by witches who want her heart for everlasting life, and princes Secundus through Septimus who need her jewel to become king, but die like flies instead. The star gives her heart willingly to Tristan, aptly named after a German legendary prince: His mother is Una, the dying King's firstborn, whom his father had wooed during that one night over "The Wall" many years earlier.
It is no "Princess Bride" however, a film that was starry-eyed where this one is just a little too glib and derivative. De Niro is great, but the drag show is a somewhat desperate attempt to be different. Having the evil witch give up, only to rise suddenly once more, is just like those all-too-expected endings of horror flicks where the dead monster pops up one last time for a gratuitous scare. Having the star profess her love to Tristan while he's hexed into a mouse, but then he confesses he understood everything is an old "overheard monologue" trick. At least he was a Rodent Of Usual Size. And yes, those notes from the LOTR "Fellowship" theme got a bit annoying after a while.
Still, while the film is not great, it is very, very good: well-paced, with plenty of action, romance, comedy, scare, visuals, and fairy-tale. Matthew Vaughn is a versatile craftsman, having directed everything from crime thrillers to superhero flicks ... to this great little fantasy tale, worth seeing more than once.