In his Saturday blog post, "Why I Like Russia," author Neil Gaiman is happy that the August 10th release of Stardust (based on Gaiman's book of the same name), was number one this weekend in Russian box offices. He's less thrilled with box office numbers in the United States, and notes that the US comprises about 40% of the film's theatrical market.
I am one of the many Americans who made Stardust's box office numbers a little lower this weekend. Although I've heard rumors that the movie's opening wasn't well-advertised in the US, and that even rabid Gaiman fans were unaware of its release, I've known Stardust was coming to the big screen for at least a year. So why wasn't I at the theater, eTicket in hand?
Well, see, I haven't read the book. I started it. I started it twice, in fact. I read Chapter One, set the book down, and didn't pick it up again until I felt I had forgotten the story. As the opening of the movie approached, I picked the book up again, read Chapter One again, and set it back down.
I'm probably missing a fantastic experience. Gaiman's novels, graphic novels, and film collaborations are always lots of fun. Gaiman figures high on my list of favorite fantasy writers. I know Stardust is worth the investment of turning that next page, starting Chapter Two- but Chapter One is so conventional in tone and character. Stardust announces itself as an adult fairy tale, but fails to spark my imagination with the promise of adventure. A young man's first roll in the hay isn't enough to grab me, not even when it takes place at the border of normal life and fairyland. I just haven't been enchanted. I don't have stardust in my eyes.
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