140 Character Movie Review – #140RVW
Saw this for 1st time since childhood. Loved so much then I couldn’t possibly be critical now, but feel no need to anyway. Great kids movie.
Spoiler-free Movie Review of The NeverEnding Story:
(Full review July 22, 2014)
Missed updating this review on the 30th anniversary of the release of the film as I chose to review the another movie released on July 20, 1984. Certainly made the wrong choice on that one…
Watched this film last fall for the first time since I was a kid. I was surprised how much of it I remembered, but then it is a very memorable movie.
The NeverEnding Story is a misleading and confusing title, and not just because the title theme is by the lead singer of Kajagoogoo. It is based on a beloved German fantasy novel by Michael Ende, who was so upset about the movie adaptation that he (unsuccessfully) sued the filmmakers. It’s unclear from my reading whether Ende disliked the film or was merely upset that by essentially cutting the book in half and adapting only the first part, the filmmakers had subverted his story. Apparently had I read the book, the title would have made more sense. They did use the discarded second half of the novel in making the sequel, The NeverEnding Story II, but I never saw it, partly because it is even more ridiculous of a title, but mostly because it came out seven years later, by which point any of the kids who grew up with the first one were no longer interested in such things.
The film is notable as being the first English-language film of director Wolfgang Petersen (although the film was financed and filmed in Germany, the most expensive film ever made in that country at the time).
If you don’t remember, The NeverEnding Story is a really great movie, although more than a little confusing. It has a dizzying number of strange characters and would likely still have been overpopulated if it was twice as long. I’m not even going to try to sum them all up. The movie stars Barret Oliver as Bastian, a quiet kid who has withdrawn since the death of his mom. He finds the mysterious book in a mysterious bookshop and brings it to school. He never quite makes it to class, though, and hides in the school’s attic, a cool if completely unlikely set.
Much of the rest of the story filmed is the story that Bastian is reading. It’s a tale of a fantastic land called Fantasia, where this huge dark nothingness (called “The Nothing”) is overtaking the world, leaving, well, nothing. It’s also affecting the Empress (Tami Stronach), so she sends child warrior Atreyu (Noah Hathaway) to sort it out. Atreyu has many adventures full of oddly named but interesting characters, pretty good puppets and some really good looking sets. Before the film is out, Atreyu, Bastian and the viewers will all have experienced this story.
It may sound a bit confusing, and my half-hearted and snarky synopsis isn’t helping. You may even get the impression that I’m making fun of the film. Nothing could be further from the truth. I love this movie – it’s just a little hard to describe without spoiling everything about it. I enjoyed it as a kid and enjoyed it nearly as much watching it for the first time since childhood, this time with my own child. It brought back all kinds of great memories and the sensation of finding an old book you loved and forgot. That feeling is apt, since The NeverEnding Story is a very literary movie and a celebration of the power of books. If this movie were made today it would almost certainly be a heavy-handed message movie, so I sure hope the so far unsuccessful plans to reboot this thing stay dead.
I’m aware that there are larger themes contained both in the book and in this film, providing what I’m sure is an interesting primer on German philosophy and existentialism. I don’t care. I’m ignoring them. I don’t want to overthink this thing. It’s a great fantasy film, a great kids film and is maybe the best example of a film that captures the spirit of discovery and enjoyment of reading that I’ve ever seen. It does all this without being tiresome or feeling like it was sponsored by the American Library Association. It’s a fun trip down memory lane. Highly recommended.
Poster:
Trailer:
http://youtu.be/jbncmdHxobg
Bechdel Test:
Fail
The Representation Test Score: ( pts)
(http://therepresentationproject.org/grading-hollywood-the-representation-test/)
| Main Cast | Noah Hathaway Atreyu, Barret Oliver Bastian, Tami Stronach The Childlike Empress, Gerald McRaney Bastian’s Father |
| Rating | PG |
| Release Date | Fri 20 Jul 1984 UTC |
| Director | Wolfgang Petersen |
| Genres | Adventure, Drama, Family, Fantasy |
| Plot | A troubled boy dives into a wonderous fantasy world through the pages of a mysterious book. |
| Poster |  |
| Runtime | 102 |
| Tagline | A boy who needs a friend finds a world that needs a hero in a land beyond imagination! |
| Writers | Wolfgang Petersen (screenplay) &, Herman Weigel (screenplay) … |
| Year | 1984 |
