...and they lived happily ever after

It's not easy to follow on the heels of established fantasy film blockbusters like the "Lord of the Rings," "Harry Potter," and "Pirates of the Caribbean" films. But "Stardust," an overlooked but satisfying little pixie of a picture from 2007, acquits itself well as a standalone example of how Hollywood fantasy doesn't require a multi-part franchise to capture the imagination. Following are the key discussion points of our recent CineVerse chat on this movie:

WHAT SURPRISED YOU ABOUT “STARDUST” THAT YOU PERHAPS DIDN’T EXPECT?

• It’s marketed as a family-friendly fairy tale fantasy, but actually has some mature elements in it, including PG-13 violence and horror. This makes sense, considering that the source material upon which it is based came from a 1999 novel by Neil Gaiman, known for blending fantasy and horror.

• Yet, unlike the Middle Earth and Harry Potter films, some critics contend that “Stardust” is more of an old school fantasy film. Reviewer James Berardinelli wrote: "The success of the Lord of the Rings and the Harry Potter movies have elevated fantasy from a niche film genre into the mainstream, but Stardust is a little of a throwback to how fantasy movies used to be before the emergence of the multi-part epic serials. It's a lighter, simpler sort of tale. Despite just cracking the two-hour barrier, the film is paced and edited in such a way that the story always seems to be moving forward and there is no sense of drag or a letdown."

• Indeed, the film earns points among many viewers for being relatively shorter, simpler, and standalone than multi-part fantasy epics that play out their tale over three or more films.

• In contrast to those aforementioned fantasy epics, this film isn’t bloated with special effects or necessarily trying to wow you with off-the-charts visuals; instead, it relies on genre and storybook conventions and a formulaic but fresh narrative to keep our attention.

• It casts Robert DeNiro in a curiously written role: that of a gay swashbuckling space pirate, and the actor gives an exaggerated, flamboyant performance you won’t forget.

• Michelle Pfeiffer has been credited as well cast—against type—in portraying the witch.

FILMS THAT “STARDUST” REMINDS US OF

• Shakespeare’s Macbeth

• The Princess Bride

• The Neverending Story

• The Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings, Chronicles of Narnia, and Pirates of the Caribbean movies

• The fantasy films of Terry Gilliam, including Time Bandits and The Adventures of Baron Munchausen

• Golden Compass

• The Witches

• The TV show “Once”

• Shrek