The NeverEnding Story (1984)

Tagline: A boy who needs a friend finds a world that needs a hero in a land beyond imagination!

Curiosity: It’s yet another childhood favorite.

Plot: Bastian (Barret Oliver) leads an escapist life through fiction. Given that he’s coping with poor grades, bullies, and his mother’s death, he could certainly use it. One day, he ducks into a bookstore to avoid three nasty classmates. There, he meets Mr. Koreander (Thomas Hill), the crotchety owner of the shop. He warms to the boy a little after appreciating his advanced reading level, though he still won’t let him take the book he’s reading, The NeverEnding Story. Bastian, having a tenuous grasp on reality, steals the book, makes his way to school, and then opts to read in the attic instead of attending class.

Bastian learns about the Nothing, an evil force threatening to destroy a land called Fantasia. Populated by all manner of magical creatures, Fantasia is powered by peoples’ imaginations, hopes, and dreams. These beings flock to see the land’s ruler, the Childlike Empress (Tami Stronach), but her strength is fading with the world. She asks Atreyu (Noah Hathaway), a young warrior, to find a method of dispelling the Nothing. Bastian follows Atreyu’s adventures, and at times the book mentions him reading about Atreyu. This is how we come to learn the meaning of the title – everything is connected, even the seemingly nonfictional and fictional.

Thoughts: I kept thinking that this movie could never be made today. Or at least, not made well. A majority of the story would end up as sterile CGI, which is a shame. Director Wolfgang Petersen (Air Force One, In the Line of Fire) captured so many incredible scenes thanks to real sets and puppetry. So while Falkor (voiced by Alan Oppenheimer) the luckdragon’s mouth movements might not always match up with his lines, he still has a texture that feels alive. Same goes some of the sets – when Atreyu loses his horse in the Swamps of Sadness, it’s incredibly powerful, and wouldn’t be nearly as effective without a real kid in a real swamp. Twenty-five years after its release, The NeverEnding Story still looks beautiful.

Of course, it helps that the leads are so appealing. Oliver possesses a naturalism to his performance that lends even the occasionally cheesy line believability. He sounds like an actual awkward boy. And let’s be honest, if given infinite wishes, wouldn’t your first wish be to ride Falkor too? Same goes for Hathaway, whose emotional range sells Atreyu’s trials and tribu-horse deaths. Seriously, that shit was so sad. And it happens like 20 minutes into the movie! I swear, when I was a kid, it felt like it happened a good hour into the story. I think it’s good for children’s movies to provide the occasional emotionally scarring jolt. It gives a story weight. In this case, it also prepares them for horse-death.

Reflection: What does Bastian rename the Empress? ’Cause to me it sounds like a dirty word. The subtitles don’t actually tell you the name.