The Neverending Story
3/4
Starring: Barrett Oliver, Noah Hathaway, Tami Stronach, and the voice of Alan Oppenheimer
Rated PG for Fantasy Violence and Action (I Guess...)
"Fern Gully," "Heavy Weights," "The NeverEnding Story." These three movies are mementos of my childhood. I'd watch them at summer camp, and looking back, they are special. Upon revisiting them, none are as good as I remember (in fact, had it not been for the nostalgia factor, I wouldn't recommend any without reservations).
Of the three, "The NeverEnding Story" is the most troubled. It is also the most ambitious. Using a kid's story to allow a troubled kid to come into his own is a unique premise. Unfortuantely, it doesn't really work (probably because it's only tells the first half of the story that it was based on).
Bastian (Oliver) is young kid who has some serious troubles. His mother passed away recently, he's not doing well in school, and he is constantly robbed and pushed into dumpsters by a trio of bullies. His father (Gerard McRaney) tells his fantasy and adventure loving son to "get his head out of the clouds and join the real world." One day, while he's running away from the bullies, he takes refuge in a bookstore. The crochety owner, Carl Conrad Coreander (Thomas Hill) tells him about the need to stand up for himself, and through reverse psychology, gets him to steal the book that he is reading (leaving a note that he plans on returning it). Bastian avoids taking a math test and instead goes into the school attic to read.
"The NeverEnding Story," as it turns out, takes place in a fantasy world called "Fantasia." Its inhabitants are frightened, however. Their world is being destroyed by something called The Nothing. The only one who can save them is Atreyu (Hathaway), a mighty warrior (who turns out to be a kid as old as Bastian. Nevertheless, he is sent off to find a cure for the ill princess (Stronach), whose sickness is tied to The Nothing's presence.
Of course, the film ties together the two plotlines, and it does it in an interesting way. This, however, is the film's most daring move, but it is also the most problematic. Without giving anything away, it causes the film's final third to drag because it has to spend a long time explaining how everything comes together. It makes sense but it's pretty contrived.
That's the biggest problem with the film. Almost 90% of it is talk. There's a lot of potential here, but director Wolfgang Peterson and his screenwriters fail to really tap into it (from what I recall, which is very little, the film's first sequel rectifies this matter). The film also breaks the biggest rule in fantasy fiction: establish a set of rules and stick to them. Failing to do that, as is done here, means that the film seems to make itself up as it goes along.
And yet, this is all compelling stuff. The acting is mostly effective. Barrett Oliver is mostly effective as Bastian, a kid whose grief at life seems to have no end. At one time or another, we feel the same way. Noah Hathaway is also good as the intrepid Atreyu. Both of them (Hathaway in particular) have some stiff moments, although that's due in part by the sometimes clunky script.
The film is quite imaginative, and the special effects are cool (though after thirty years, they're quite dated). Wolfgang Peterson does what he can, but ultimately, this is an introduction to a complex world, and there's little that can be done other than to explain the rules.
Still, I was caught up in the story and wanted to see it through to the end. Those two things make it worth recommending. Plus, it's always better to try and fail than to play safe and be generic.
Special note: A remake is rumored to be in the works (tentatively to be released in 2014). This is one movie, if done right, could be an improvement on the original. Reportedly, the Kennedy/Marshall Company, who has done great work in the past, is going to be behind it (along with Leonardo DiCaprio's company Appian Way). That's cause for optimism.
Starring: Barrett Oliver, Noah Hathaway, Tami Stronach, and the voice of Alan Oppenheimer
Rated PG for Fantasy Violence and Action (I Guess...)
"Fern Gully," "Heavy Weights," "The NeverEnding Story." These three movies are mementos of my childhood. I'd watch them at summer camp, and looking back, they are special. Upon revisiting them, none are as good as I remember (in fact, had it not been for the nostalgia factor, I wouldn't recommend any without reservations).
Of the three, "The NeverEnding Story" is the most troubled. It is also the most ambitious. Using a kid's story to allow a troubled kid to come into his own is a unique premise. Unfortuantely, it doesn't really work (probably because it's only tells the first half of the story that it was based on).
Bastian (Oliver) is young kid who has some serious troubles. His mother passed away recently, he's not doing well in school, and he is constantly robbed and pushed into dumpsters by a trio of bullies. His father (Gerard McRaney) tells his fantasy and adventure loving son to "get his head out of the clouds and join the real world." One day, while he's running away from the bullies, he takes refuge in a bookstore. The crochety owner, Carl Conrad Coreander (Thomas Hill) tells him about the need to stand up for himself, and through reverse psychology, gets him to steal the book that he is reading (leaving a note that he plans on returning it). Bastian avoids taking a math test and instead goes into the school attic to read.
"The NeverEnding Story," as it turns out, takes place in a fantasy world called "Fantasia." Its inhabitants are frightened, however. Their world is being destroyed by something called The Nothing. The only one who can save them is Atreyu (Hathaway), a mighty warrior (who turns out to be a kid as old as Bastian. Nevertheless, he is sent off to find a cure for the ill princess (Stronach), whose sickness is tied to The Nothing's presence.
Of course, the film ties together the two plotlines, and it does it in an interesting way. This, however, is the film's most daring move, but it is also the most problematic. Without giving anything away, it causes the film's final third to drag because it has to spend a long time explaining how everything comes together. It makes sense but it's pretty contrived.
That's the biggest problem with the film. Almost 90% of it is talk. There's a lot of potential here, but director Wolfgang Peterson and his screenwriters fail to really tap into it (from what I recall, which is very little, the film's first sequel rectifies this matter). The film also breaks the biggest rule in fantasy fiction: establish a set of rules and stick to them. Failing to do that, as is done here, means that the film seems to make itself up as it goes along.
And yet, this is all compelling stuff. The acting is mostly effective. Barrett Oliver is mostly effective as Bastian, a kid whose grief at life seems to have no end. At one time or another, we feel the same way. Noah Hathaway is also good as the intrepid Atreyu. Both of them (Hathaway in particular) have some stiff moments, although that's due in part by the sometimes clunky script.
The film is quite imaginative, and the special effects are cool (though after thirty years, they're quite dated). Wolfgang Peterson does what he can, but ultimately, this is an introduction to a complex world, and there's little that can be done other than to explain the rules.
Still, I was caught up in the story and wanted to see it through to the end. Those two things make it worth recommending. Plus, it's always better to try and fail than to play safe and be generic.
Special note: A remake is rumored to be in the works (tentatively to be released in 2014). This is one movie, if done right, could be an improvement on the original. Reportedly, the Kennedy/Marshall Company, who has done great work in the past, is going to be behind it (along with Leonardo DiCaprio's company Appian Way). That's cause for optimism.
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