BASED on the graphic novel by Neil Gaiman and Charles Vess, Stardust is an utterly charming adventure for the entire family with a generous sprinkling of romance and black comedy.

With an offbeat sense of humour that recalls The Princess Bride, Matthew Vaughn's magical fairy-tale propels an ordinary young man on an extraordinary journey of self-discovery, into an otherworldly kingdom of witches, flying pirates and duelling nobility.

Rising star Charlie Cox more than holds his own against screen beauties Claire Danes and Sienna Miller as the unlikely hero.

Impressive special effects and larger than life supporting performances from Robert De Niro and Michelle Pfeiffer are complemen-ted by cameos from Ricky Gervais and David Walliams.

The narrator (Ian McKellen) welcomes us to the sleepy English village of Wall, so-called because of the dry-stone wall that encircles the community, protecting the inhabitants from the dangers that lie beyond a single hole guarded 24 hours a day by the elderly sentry (David Kelly).

Shy and innocent village boy Tristan Thorne (Cox), the secret love child of a mortal (Nathaniel Parker) and an enchanted princess (Kate Magowan), is madly in love with fair maiden Victoria (Miller).

Unfortunately, she only has fluttering eyes for bounder Humphrey (Henry Cavill).

In order to prove his love, Tristan agrees to bring Victoria a fallen star as a birthday present and he crosses the wall into the magical realm of Stormhold, where Prince Septimus (Mark Strong) and conniving hag Lamia (Pfeiffer) also seek the fallen celestial body.

Tristan reaches the crash site first where he discovers that the star is in fact a young woman called Yvaine (Danes), who dearly needs his help to return to her heavenly home.

Tristan, however, is determined to deliver Yvaine to Victoria.

"Nothing says romance like the gift of an injured, kidnapped woman," snipes Yvaine sarcastically.

And so the couple begins the epic journey back to Wall, encountering a conniving witch called Ditchwater Sal (Melanie Hill) and myriad dangers along the way.

Stardust glitters with colourful performances, from Pfeiffer's witch whose beauty fades every time she uses her magic, to De Niro's airship captain with a secret passion for couture ("Ever tried to get blood stains out of a silk shirt? Nightmare!").

Risque humour should appeal to parents while fantasy violence (like Lamia and her sisters divining the future by disembowelling various critters) is mild enough to delight younger audiences rather than terrify them.

Production design and costumes are suitably grand, augmented with digital effects, while Ilan Eshkeri's bombastic score matches the sweeping visuals.

Cox is an endearing leading man, sparking with the (literally) luminous Danes as the immortal heavenly child.

"Everlasting life?" ponders Tristan. "I'd imagine it could be kind of lonely... unless you had someone to share it with."

Perhaps she does...

  • See it at Empire, ABC