The beautiful Victoria has Tristan Thorne besotted. So when she sees a falling star and asks him to go fetch it, he does. It doesn't matter that the star has fallen on the other side of the mysterious wall that adjoins his village, nor is he deterred by the fact that the star turns out to take the form of a flesh-and-blood girl called Yvaine, one who's not particularly keen on being dragged back as a present. Throw in three witches who need the soul of a fallen star to restore their beauty, and a bunch of princes who are also seeking out the star for reasons of their own, plus Tristan's somewhat complicated parentage, and you've got the makings of a most mischievous fairy tale.

Brilliantly cast (with the exception of Ricky Gervais, who, given, his recent film appearances, possibly shouldn't be appearing in stuff he hasn't written himself), wittily written and gorgeously filmed, this is a sweet, funny adventure-tale. And, as an ugly bloke myself, any film that smooshes the face of the oh-so-pretty Rupert Everett is A-OK by me...

As a King lies weary in his throne, his lands ravaged by pestilence and drought, he is killed by his own sword in the hands of his son Prince Arren. The King's rule has brought imbalance to the land, and rumour has it that the Dragons (yes, those flying firebreathing things with wings) are returning to rectify the situation.

Prince Arren, now on the run from his father's followers, is taken under the wing of Sparrowhawk, the legendary archmage. As he travels with Sparrowhawk, Arren learns of the true relationship between Dragons and man: the two share a kind of yin and yang balance with nature, and the selfish nature of man has upset the balance. He also learns of the suffering amidst the peasant population of the land, which prompts Arren to set about restoring the balance to the land.

Tales from Earthsea is loosely based on the third and fourth books in Ursula K. Le Guin's Earthsea series. It isn't the first production based on the Earthsea books, but it is the first worth watching. It is also the debut animated feature of Goro Miyazaki, the son of Studio Ghibli founder Hayao Miyazaki. Goro's style is certainly different to that of his father (even for this story, which is quite similar to the sort of story you would expect from his father) and that makes Tales from Earthsea even more interesting viewing. This is a must see for all fans of fantasy and anime.