I'm not the first and almost certainly not the last to say this, but with a title like that I would've expected the film to be never ending. But all good and bad things (more the former than the latter most of the time) must come to an end, and we did get two sequels which kind of extends the run time for a total of about 279 minutes (in other words, slightly beyond the length of the extended version of
Return of the King). Though while the second one is worth watching as it does adapt the parts of the book that the first one missed, the third one was an original story and boy was it bad. One of my cousins got me into this and I got to say, I found some enjoyment in it out of loads of fantasy films that I have seen. So let's see if it's still holds up and look at the sequels too, while we're at it:
The NeverEnding Story
Set some time in the 80s, ten-year-old Bastian Bux (played by Barret Oliver) is a troubled boy who is often bullied at school and lives with his widowed yet loving father. One day when escaping bullies, he takes refuge in a bookstore where he meets the bookseller Carl Conrad Coreander (played by Thomas Hill). Curious about a book he is reading, Bastian asks about this book which the bookseller warns is not a safe read. With his curiosity at an all-time high, Bastian secretly takes the book (though not before leaving a note that he would return it) and hides in the school attic where he reads it. What he reads is a fantasy story in which a world is soon to be devoured by a being called "The Nothing" and that a hero is needed to save that world (but not the hero you might be thinking of). This film is a typical 80s film in almost every way. The theme while a sweet tune in its own right, is very much an 80s theme. The scenes we have set in our world look very much like the 80s would look. But then again, it was also released in the 80s so all of that was to be expected. But what about the fantasy world you may ask. Well it's clear that the filmmakers took some inspiration from Jim Henson's work with
Labyrinth,
The Dark Crystal and of course The Muppets in making the fantasy creatures look and feel real without the use of CGI, and it works. It's been out for years now and to me, it still holds up well as a good fantasy film with emotion, magic, action and a lot of surprise twists and turns along the way. 8/10
II: The Next Chapter
So the second film. A film that wasn't very well-received, but did adapt parts of the second half of the book to give us a new story but trying to keep it all familiar. Following the first film, Bastion (this time played by Jonathan Brandis) has a fear of heights which dashes his dreams of joining his school's swimming club. He returns to the bookstore where he revisits the book from the first film and somehow manages to get summoned into Fantasia (the world of the book). There he learns of a new threat called "The Emptiness" which has been created by an evil sorceress called Xayide (played by Clarissa Burt) who wants to seize control of the world. It's up to Bastion to stop her from fulfilling her plans, even though he remains unaware that beings close to him may not be as they seem. While not as good as the first film, the second is still worth a watch as it does adapt elements of the second half of the book. It's still not perfect, but you get some of the beloved characters from the last film returning, and it does a decent job of what it's trying to achieve. Honestly if it really was based on the second half of the book, they should've just done that instead of using elements because it just didn't work. But then again, there is a third film which by comparison makes this film less bad than it already was to begin with. 6/10
III: Escape from/Return to Fantasia
The only film not to be based on the book and probably should have never been made in the first place. Years have gone by and Bastion (this time played by Jason James Richter) has started high school, but not before moving to a new neighbourhood. Like before, he is troubled and being bullied at school. But in a surprise twist, he discovers the book once again and escapes to Fantasia while the bullies use the book to bring chaos into the world which eventually makes Bastion and his allies be scattered in the real world. And so it's a race to return to Fantasia and stop the bullies before it's too late. The wise and wonderful puppetry characters from the previous films have been turned into utter jokes in this film. Clearly indicating that continuing the franchise beyond the book it came from is a path towards doom. But what I find most annoying of all in this film is Jack Black being unfunny. Yep, you read that right. This film is so bad that Jack Black who is otherwise very funny, is just wasted in this film. That and all the great characters from the previous two films are unnecessarily reworked for the worse. Nothing else to say about this film. Just don't bother. 2/10
Some film franchises do great all the way through. Some do well with a few misfires here and there. And then you get the ones that just don't work. This film series should have only been one film or two if the second one was based on the second half and not used just elements. The first one will always be a classic and the second one is worth a watch too if you are a die hard fan and just want to see how the second half could have played out. But as for the third, it can rot in hell for all I care. Just don't bother with it. It was a series that had great potential, but it just didn't work beyond the first film. 6/10
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