Stardust/Ondine (DVD)

Double bill of film fantasies. 'Stardust' (2007) is an adventure based on the bestselling graphic novel by Neil Gaiman and Charles Vess. When a young man, Tristan (Charlie Cox), tries to win the heart of his beautiful but cold object of his desire Victoria (Sienna Miller) by going on a quest to retrieve a fallen star, his journey takes him to a mysterious and forbidden land beyond the walls of his village. On his odyssey, Tristan finds the star, which has transformed into a striking girl called Yvaine (Claire Danes). However, Tristan is not the only one seeking the star. A king (Peter O'Toole)'s four sons - not to mention the ghosts of their three dead brothers - all need the star as they vie for the throne. Tristan must also overcome the evil witch, Lamia (Michelle Pfeiffer), who needs the star to make her young again. As Tristan battles to survive these threats, encountering a pirate named Captain Shakespeare (Robert De Niro) and a shady trader named Ferdy the Fence (Ricky Gervais) along the way, his quest changes. He must now win the heart of the star for himself as he discovers the meaning of true love. Neil Jordan directs the Irish drama 'Ondine' (2009). Syracuse (Colin Farrell) is a poor fisherman whose life is changed forever when he fishes a beautiful live woman (Alicja Bachleda) out of the sea. His young daughter, Annie (Alison Barry), is convinced that the mysterious beauty must be a mermaid. Theories abound about the girl's origins as she transforms the lives of Syracuse, Annie and the local townsfolk. Stephen Rea and Dervla Kirwan co-star.