Matthew Vaughn to direct Stardust movie

The Layer Cake director, Matthew Vaughn, will now produce and direct the fantasy film based on Neil Gaiman's novel.

PRAVEENA SHIVRAM

13 March 2006
CHENNAI, INDIA

The latest film to join the fantasy film bandwagon is Stardust (1998) based on the award-winning book by Neil R Gaiman. With a stellar star cast, this film is already creating quite a sensation; though filming is due to begin only next month in the UK and Iceland. To be directed by Matthew Vaughn, the critically acclaimed director of Layer Cake, Stardust has managed to rope in Robert De Niro, to play the part of Captain Shakespeare, Michelle Pfeiffer to play the part of an evil witch, Claire Daines as the "fallen star", Tristian (Charlie Cox) as the star-crossed youth who tries to win the heart of his beloved, Victoria, played by Sienna Miller.

If those characters sound like Greek and Latin, then here's a short synopsis on the book and the characters the story is said to revolve around. Based on the best-selling book by Neil Gamion (who is said to have consciously written this book in the tradition of a pre-Tolkien English fantasy), Stardust is a fantasy, adventure love story. Set in an English village by the name of Wall, the story follows the travails of Tristian, who embarks on a quest to look for a "fallen star" to win the heart of his beloved. His journey takes him into a magical world of Faerie where he encounters the evil witch Lamia and a pirate who goes by the name of Captain Shakespeare.

Stardust was originally conceived by Gaiman and Charles Vess as a "story book with pictures", created by both. Initially it was released in 1997 in what is "known in the medium of comics as a "prestige" format four-issue mini-series. This means it came out once a month in a square-bound high-gloss "comics pamphlet" of sorts with high grade paper, high quality color and no advertisements".

Gaiman and Vess originally intended the story to be released complete, as a single book which would better reproduce the beautiful painted illustrations of Vess and be a "story book" for all ages, and a release in this format was made in 1998, which proved to be an out and out best seller. In 1999, Gaimon decided to publish Stardust as a conventional novel in hardback, without illustrations.

Matthew Vaughn, a long-time friend of Gaimon, had been working on the script of the film for a while, and has now co-written the script with Jane Goldman. The film is being produced by Vaughn himself with Gaiman, Lorenzo Di Bonaventura, and Michael Dreyer. Initially, said to be filmed with Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman in the lead, the idea was then dropped due to the divorce of the couple. In a press release issued by Paramount Pictures, writer/producer/director Vaughn stated, "I am delighted to be able to work with such a stellar cast in bringing the magic of Stardust to the screen. I look forward to once again shooting in the UK." It is tentatively said to release next year.

A little trivia on Gaimon and his works:

His friendship with singer Tori Amos is reflected in his work, as in Stardust as well. One of the characters in Stardust is a large tree with red leaves that talks. The character is based on Tori's song "Horses" in her 1996 album Boys For Pele. She sings "And if there is a way to find me you will find me/but will you find me if Neil makes me a tree?"

His Sandman series #19, took home the 1991 World Fantasy Award for best short story (making it the first comic ever to be awarded a literary award).

Babylon 5 Producer J. Michael Straczynski was so impressed with Gaiman's writing he named an alien race after him, the Gaim, who have a visual similarity to Gaiman's Sandman character.