In creating the website, Paramount Pictures created an opportunity for fans and people who haven't seen the movie alike to discover more about most aspects of the movie with mini character biographies, cast list, synopsis, soundtrack list, videos, photo gallery, etc.
The site is aimed at movie-goers who like fantasy, a good romance, even adventure. One selected quote from a critic's review is intended to draw young single adults with the claim, "One of the best date movies of the year." The idea is to spark the interest of at least one person who will in turn convince a group of friends to watch it for a group date. Hopefully then the snowball effect will begin and those from the one group will tell friends from another group and so on. This is not only available to the U.S. either. The entire site can be viewed in a number of languages which creates an international feel and connection.
In addition to the adult movie-goers, the interactive games on the site entice an even younger crowd to become part of the movie itself. Each game depicts a scene and characters from the movie and when played they allow you to vicariously do things that were done in the movie. The game linked here is called "Push That Prince." In this game you try to sneak up on the prince standing by a precariously high window and push him out.
http://www.stardustmovie.com/assets/games/prince/
Once the intended audience is swept in, they will find desktop backgrounds and screen savers for the computer to continually remind them of the fun they had in watching Stardust. If others who haven't seen Stardust happen to see the background, their curiosity could be struck and cause them to wonder whether or not they would enjoy the movie as well. Within the site you can move from one page to another and "visit" the different locations found in the movie and learn about the characters. For those like myself who enjoy movie music there is a page that lists the soundtrack information. Overall this site has been made to be fun and enjoyable to view.
Before coming to the main page, there is an initial page with options to buy Stardust on DVD or HD DVD, or to enter the site. Upon entering the Stardust movie website, you hear a voice clip of actor Ian McKellan speaking of a philosopher's words about people and stars: "Are we human because we gaze at the stars, or do we gaze at them because we are human?" He then says, "Pointless, really. Do the stars gaze back? Now that's a question!" This promotes viewers to think a little deeper about the whole context of Stardust and the concept of what a falling star really is. When the dialogue finishes, selections from the soundtrack will play and continue to do so throughout the duration of exploring the site unless you opt to turn off the sound. The music that plays gives a feel of adventure and exploring the unknown and potentially makes the viewer feel slightly adventurous and curious about what is out there in the world to see; or at least in the website. The website is very interactive and every time you place the arrow over a menu item to maneuver to a different page it makes the sound of either a bird or crickets. The cricket noises specifically add to the main page which is a view of the Village of Wall in the distance, the wall itself in the foreground, all under the cover of night while stars are continually falling in the night sky above.
Overall, the Stardust movie website is designed to convince those who view it that Stardust is a fun and enjoyable movie that can be applied to many human appeals such as adventurous, romantic, daring, fantasy. It is also designed to give an idea of who the characters are, the places in the movie, and what the premise is. Once the audience is convinced, the next step is for them to watch or ultimately buy the movie.
With a slightly juvenile tone created by the interactive games, the site loses some of the effectiveness for at least part of the adult audience. The game tasks are very simple to complete, the graphics aren't that intricate and are slow-moving. However, the juvenile aspect does not deter completely, and may even be an attraction for some because they have children or perhaps enjoy that sort of interactivity themselves.
The creators of the site show an awareness of the audience and the time frame in which the audience lives mostly through the fact that the text is a website. The audience is part of the digital and technological age when practically anything can be found on the internet. By whatever means people find this website whether it be to find out more about the movie before watching it, wanting to experience more of the fun from the movie, or being directed to it in order to write a paper on it, I personally found it quite effective in its goal of getting people to watch Stardust one way or another. Ever since I started looking at it to get a feel for it, I have wanted to watch Stardust.
It is not difficult when viewing the site to become enthralled in what it has to offer and wind up spending a good amount of time looking at what has been created to entice imagination and wonder among whoever views it. Why should you become one of many to begin the journey into the world of Stardust? Well, for one thing it would be nice to see in detail what has been described in this writing. But even more than that, it has been made for you to give you the opportunity to discover a world different from our own where a falling star means something entirely different. Go, explore, enjoy. I certainly did.
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