[meteorite-list] 'Stardust' Brings a Falling Star to theSilverScreen

From: MexicoDoug <MexicoDoug_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Tue, 7 Aug 2007 07:09:09 -0500
Message-ID: <001001c7d8eb$c3646800$4001a8c0_at_gateway.2wire.net>

Darren wrote:

> Never, NEVER underestimate Hollywood's ability to dumb down and destroy
any work
> of literature, so don't be too hopeful on this yet.

Hi Darren,

Incidentally the STARDUST novella was inspired by a fireball he saw in the
desert when visiting Tucson (
http://www.worldfantasy.org/awards/1991.html ), the same year he won a
Harvey Award* in Dallas( http://www.harveyawards.org/awards_1991win.html ):

"That night [in 1991] I went out to a party held by a lady by the name of
Terry Windling out in the desert. And in the Tucson desert, I got to watch a
falling star. In England, they're just sort of a streak of light across the
sky. I discovered if you're in the Tucson desert and you watch, it's like
this little diamond coming down. You go, 'My God, that was..,' just watching
it. I thought, 'What if you went to get that falling star?' And then I
thought, 'And what if it wasn't a star, it was a girl. And what if she had a
broken leg and a foul-temper and had no desire to be dragged halfway across
the world and presented to anybody's would-be fianc?e?' Suddenly, there was
the story."

from: http://movies.about.com/od/stardust/a/stardust080106.htm

The movie was mostly filmed in quaint villages in Scotland though Michelle
Pfeiffer reputedly steals the show in studio footage, so don't be so
fearful. In 1999 Stardust was awarded the Mythopoeic Award as best novel
for adults.

Break a Leg,
Doug

*In 2003, Gaiman was to be the keynote speaker at the Harvey Award
presentation banquet, but he stood the organizing committee up ... perhaps
it's time to offer him a second chance :-)





Dear List,

I appear to be back on line and will take this opportunity to HEARTILY
RECOMMEND that each and every meteorite friend see this movie, "Stardust" as
well as say hello and sorry to be out of touch with all of my favorite list
members.

Last year I rated all of the meteorite related fiction I could find with the
help of the list and bought every single book covered (most in Spanish which
proved a great challenge to find translations, as the best were to be gifts
for aspiring monolingual meteorite hunters).

While I haven't seen any pre-screenings, it would be very hard to fail into
coloring this book into a movie. It's the most enchanting movie to lift our
spirits - and will feel equally comfortable watching going out with your
loved one, your friends, or your children for the unforgettable fairytale
which is a latent commendation of meteorite hunting.

STARDUST by the British author Neil Gaiman was the otherworldly gem that
came gracefully streaming several thousand leagues above the field of other
books. It did so because it romanticizes meteorite hunting in linking it to
the quest for love in what we think is just a stone. The author ingeniously
pulls off an adult fairy tale that children will believe is their exclusive
domain. But it ranks with Alice in Wonderland excepting that the theme is
100% ours to share.

This story will never lose style. All is united into everything beloved
about meteorite hunting; all is clear as to why these extraterrestrial
stones are forever young and always treasured. Hidden away in the text I
even found the explanation as to why meteorites hold such a fantasy-like
fascination: what happens to them if they cross the gate of the Wall where
there is no return and graceful meteoroids turn into metallic stones.
Stardust is a brilliantly related fantasy novel made to our order. One
opens their eyes wide and wonders what a meteorites could say if it had such
an alluring voice (that naively shrieks something pejorative like "f---!"
upon painful impact with Earth*). It's a square hit on the meteoritical
anvil, brimming with disguised whining witches, whose fingers, if given the
chance to get to the meteorite first, would usurp the Italian de Marsiliis's
Chinese Water Drop torture in Brian Innes's The History of Torture (1998)
without any givaway crumbs. Not to mention other charming characters to
meet along the way...

*At least this was my interpretation in the Spanish translation

If you want to know more about the tale, please click on this post to the
list,
http://six.pairlist.net/pipermail/meteorite-list/2006-November/028476.html

I hope all are in great health and wish you all the best,
Doug

----- Original Message -----
From: "Ron Baalke" <baalke at zagami.jpl.nasa.gov>
To: "Meteorite Mailing List" <meteorite-list at meteoritecentral.com>
Sent: Monday, August 06, 2007 2:17 PM
Subject: [meteorite-list] 'Stardust' Brings a Falling Star to the
SilverScreen


>
>
http://www.syracuse.com/articles/entertainment/index.ssf?/base/entertainment-0/118604544413010.xml
>
> 'Stardust' brings a falling star to the silver screen
> By Joan E. Vadeboncoeur
> syracuse.com
> August 05, 2007
>
> A star falls to Earth, crashing into a magical kingdom. But the star is
> not a meteorite. It is a beautiful woman.
>
> Thus begins "Stardust," based on a book by Neil Gaiman and starring
> Claire Danes.
>
> Because she has secret powers, she is chased by an array of individuals
> seeking her powers. However, she has a youth named Tristan (James McAvoy
> of "The Last King of Scotland") to help her evade the pursuers. His
> alliance with the star takes him away from his village's most young
> woman (Sienna Miller), who he had hoped to wed.
>
> Michelle Pfeiffer portrays a chillingly powerful witch, Robert De Niro
> is a pirate captain and Peter O'Toole dons regal robes as a king.
>
> Set to open Friday, the screen adaptation is directed by Matthew Vaughn.
>
> [snip]
Received on Tue 07 Aug 2007 08:09:09 AM PDT