L'Histoire sans fin

Just rewatched with my 9yr and she loved it! Saw it accepted by her with the same enthusiasm I had as a kid!

Yes, it's dated. Yes, the acting isn't the best. But... it is so magical and super sweet. Also very telling... in 1984 they told us that hope was disappearing and despair was setting in. A prediction of things to come - at least from 2020 to now in 2022!

Although I was only a year old when the Neverending Story first came out, I remember watching it over and over as a little girl. My grandma got it for me when I was little and I remember making her watch it with me almost every day--sometimes two or three times in the same day. Then somehow I lost the tape, and although I still remembered and loved the movie, I forgot just how magical it really was. Then finally, (after years of "I wonder what happened to...") I found it. I realize now that in finding it I not only rediscovered a part of myself, but a beautiful world I forgot existed.

I admit that I am still waiting for a luck dragon to come and take me home to Fantasia. I belong there. A part of me lives there and so does a part of everyone, although they may not be aware of it. This is without a doubt the most beautiful movie ever made (although Legend comes close) and its message will never die as long as people hold on to their dreams. Barret Oliver's performance as Bastian still makes me cry. He speaks to that part of all of us that is not afraid to "do what we dream." Noah Hathaway was perfect for the part of Atreyu. He is one of the most beautiful and realistic heroes ever depicted. And Tami Stronach as the Childlike Empress (Moon Child) remains one of the most beautiful characters ever to grace the screen. The acting is wonderful, and the background scenery is breathtaking.

But the Neverending Story is more than just a movie. It speaks to that part in all of us that will never let go of our dreams. It is a story that will never end as long as there are people to appreciate its message. Everyone should see this movie and remember: Fantasia IS real. And "Fantasia can arise in you."

This film was a favorite of mine as a kid, but even back then I recognized that the book by Michael Ende was superior. Overall, it's a wonderful children's film marred by an inconsistent tone and an unsatisfying ending.

No fantasy film I've seen has tapped more successfully into the kinds of philosophical thoughts that kids have. Think of Rockbiter's speech describing the Nothing: "A hole would be something. Nah, this was nothing. And it got bigger, and bigger, and bigger...." This is the type of film that greatly appeals to introspective kids who think about things like infinity and the end of the universe. Do children really think about such things? I did. People who find that surprising have forgotten how profound children can sometimes be.

The whole of Fantasia, indeed, seems to be built out of children's dreams and fears. Some of it is about exhilaration, as when Atreyu rides Falkor. Others reflect anxiety, as in Atreyu's trek through the Swamps of Sadness. What appealed to me most as a kid was how an imaginative but passive child, sort of a young Walter Mitty, opens up a book in which an older, braver version of himself goes on adventures. But "Neverending Story" isn't so much escapism as it is about escapism. It's essentially a fable about the destruction of a child's fantasy world as he grows older and adapts to the modern world.

The special effects are good for their day. Although they look phony at a few points, the film's distinct visual look, from the shimmering Ivory Tower to the assortment of weird creatures, holds up well today. What makes the film work especially well is that the two child stars--Barret Oliver and Noah Hathaway--prove themselves capable actors. I use the word "capable" because almost everyone in the film overacts in an annoying way, which I blame primarily on the director. But there's a wonderful cameo by Gerald McRaney as Bastian's father. He has the perfect tone for the scene, appearing loving but distant, unable to fathom Bastian's mind. I wish the film had followed through by returning to their relationship at the end and exploring how Bastian changes as a result of his experiences in Fantasia.

The reason the ending doesn't work is obvious to anyone who's read the book. Simply put, the movie shows only the first half of the book! While this isn't the movie's fault entirely--there was no way the entire story could have fit into one movie--this could have been handled better. "The Wizard of Oz" faced the same problem yet managed not only to become one of the greatest fantasy movies of all time but to surpass its source material in some ways. "The Neverending Story" doesn't accomplish that feat. The story feels unresolved at the end while at the same time failing to clearly set up for a sequel. It attempts to wrap everything up with a sequence in which Bastian takes revenge on his old bullies. I enjoyed this scene when I was a kid, but in retrospect it creates a clash between the real world and the fantasy world. Bastian never grows as a character, he never learns to put his feet on the ground, something the early scenes suggest will happen.

There's one other problem, and that's that Wolfgang Petersen never really figured out the proper tone for a children's movie. He must not have had a clear idea what age he was shooting for. Some of the scenes are quite scary and violent, making this film inappropriate for younger children. Yet the muppet-like characters are presented in an annoyingly condescending way that I doubt older kids (not to mention teens and adults) would appreciate. For example, the first scene in Fantasia plays like a revival of Sesame Street, with Rockbiter filling the Cookie Monster role. By the time I was old enough to appreciate the deeper aspects of the story, I cringed at the film's cutesy moments. Petersen didn't have to direct the film this way. Had he shot for a wider age group, the result would have been fresher and more authentic for everyone.

One of the best kids fantasy films of the 80's. This is a great films about troubled young boy Bastien who escapes some pursuing bullies in an old book shop finding a story. As he reads this story alone, in hiding, he becomes enraptured in it and soon begins to feel more than a reader but involved in the story and is sucked into the world of Fantasia.

Now, does the film have the important elements of a fantasy yarn? Yep it sure does. It looks great it has strange creatures and wonderful landscapes and it's fair share of adventure. The book bastien read centres around Artreyu a young warrior who is the only hope of saving Fantasia from the evil that is "the Nothing" which is what it's name suggest and will turn Fantasia into nothing.

I had never watched this until recently when purely by chance it was on TV and had a good write up (ah the power of movie critics!) so I thought that as a lover of fantasy, I would watch it. Glad I did people, glad I did. It takes you back to feelings of childhood and captures the imagination. Wolfgang Peterson, who didn't particularly impress me in recent flop Troy, directs preceedings with class and control. There are some good young actors too. ****

Finally, the truth about stories. The fact is, nothing ever really ends, and thusly, someone had to say so. That's what this movie does, and it does it ever so elegantly. A young boy, who knows so much about the "Lord Of The Rings", and "Beowulf" is about to find out something more real as he borrows a mystical book he finds enchanting. the even more powerful fact, is that once the book is opened, it will never close. Just as life never really ends on this earth, neither to stories. The book, titled "The Never Ending Story", is about Fantasia, a world that is dying, and an unbelievably horrifying substance known as "The Nothing", is enclosing it. A young warrior must face the danger of finding a cure. On earth, or in the book, life is intertwined to reach the ultimate answer to a young boys fears, and a young warriors quest. Film is full of some really lovable characters such as Falkor, the luck dragon, and the Rock Biter. Then, there is the Gmorg, whom I believe, is the most wretched creature in cinema. That thing is scary! In any case, film starts out as colorful and mystical, and grows dark and nightmarish with every scene, leading to a wonderful message about the substance that keeps Fantasia , and every other world out there, alive. Beautiful, just beautiful. A classic.