I rewatched it 4 years ago as an adult. By myself, on my laptop, in the dark. It felt like I time traveled to my 5 year old self and I cried all night.
You can see this movie was made with dedication to convey emotions and purposes. It's not just a fantasy movie, it's a well tought out piece of art. I think that's why these scene still have deep impact on us. And yes...i cry a lot when Atreyu lost his friend. It makes me cry even today.
This movie is on Netflix right now... I made my family watch it... I haven’t seen it as an adult.... I was blown away by all the plot points I never understood as a child.
There is a scene in the movie where Atreyu stops to have lunch, and Bastian also stops in that moment to eat. I ALWAYS pause the movie right there and get something to eat. Who else is with me on this?
Growing up in the 80's, I watched this film religiously. Ugly crying into a pillow every time Artax sank into the Swamp, and getting choked up at the scene where the Rockbiter describes losing his friends. As an adult, I now proudly sport an Auryn tattoo and wait until my little girl is old enough to watch too.
So glad i grew up in the 80s and early 90s. We were truly in the best time, a very Creative time. I wouldn't trade it at all for growing up in this messed up era today.
I think this film validated all the kids of the world who lives their lives with noses buried in books, or video games. Role-playing, this film, it made me feel special.
Only if you are able to apply it in the real world like the protagonist. Its suppose to inspire you in the real world, but if you never go back well then it's a loss.
Well, the movie covers only half of the book. The first half is about the importance of fantasy. The second half is about the importance of finding your way back if you delved into a fantasy world. It is also exploring story-telling on a meta-textual level. The book is actually studied on university level over here. The movie, while quite good, doesn't even come close to it. And the ending is one of the reasons why it doesn't. The thing is that in the book NOTHING which was lost in the first half comes back. Bastian creates a new fantasia, but Atrax aso stay dead.
@@swanpride Yeah, that never say die quality of fantasy is definitely an American and specifically a Disney influenced quirk. Old school fantasy is typically a pinch more cruel and less neat in their endings.
The neverending story is one film I have a strong connection with- in part due to my great great uncle being in the movie. He played engywook, the old man who helps atreyu through the gates. His name was Sydney Bromley. ^^
LEGEND. That movie messed me up as a kid because I was disturbingly sexually attracted to Tim Curry as the demon. Like, he oozed sexuality, and kids do actually pick up on that, but they know they're considered too young and *shouldn't* know anything about that, so it causes anxiety and guilt. I should watch it again so I can just enjoy his sexuality now that I'm an adult! :p
Don't forget about the Goonies and Ghostbusters. While aimed to be slightly more light hearted... both deal with dark themes hard for kids to understand. There's others I can't think of on the spot but I grew up in louisiana so of course I was drawn to the dark themed movies. Lol In fact, I would throw in Ladyhawke. A lesser known movie that was along the lines of legend and Willow.
My daughter (born 2012) now shares my love for this classic childhood fairytale. It truly is a timeless story. Neverending Story is one of her's and my top favorite films.
That wasn't the "Never-ending Story", though. The Never-ending story was the story that the Old Man of Wandering Mountain was forced to write by the Childlike Empress. The movie kind of skipped several chapters, there. The title of the movie makes no sense, really, when you leave out those chapters. The (movie) story _isn't_ never-ending. It ends and starts over over and over, yes, but that's not "never-ending". The story that the Old Man was writing, however, WAS never-ending (with only one possibility of escaping the eternal loop).
I’m sure if they do remake it. They will some how make It Woke as fuck and then go broke because of it An all female cast and basin and falkor gets killed in the first two seconds of the movie. (R.i.p. Terminator franchise )
It's good for how much is missing. I'd be ok with it being twice as long plus put in all the stuff missing from atreyus adventure and maybe the entire second half of the book.
The special effects are lacking by modern standards, but could easily be worse. The movie is still pretty good, though can be spooky and surreal in some places for younger children.
Her voice is so annoyingly patronizing, it makes me want to hurl. This mans wife died, and his son is spacing out. They are both grieving and he’s not bullying.. he’s parenting to the best of his damn ability.
It is sad that she sees the father as bullying his son. He is hurting, just differently than his son. Instead of getting closer he's trying to protect himself and he thinks he's helping his son.
This made me so angry. It's not bullying. They both suffered traumatic loss, they're both grieving and they both have trouble communicating that to one another. The catharsis of the book (not really shown in this movie) is that they learn to communicate their feelings for one another that they've been holding in. Has nothing to do with parenting in the 80s at all, except maybe that people were less aware of how important it is to talk to their children.
Back when film makers remembered how narrative is supposed to work. Films telling a story that matters, where the hero(es) have to struggle to overcome their doubts - rather than a 120 minute socio-political rant. Films that live on in the heart of some of the people who watch them for decades - rather than being forgotten almost as soon as the credits roll.
Wasn't the movie about people losing their ability to "Imagine" And Nothing was simply the lack of imagination. Same way the story book "Gradually lost words the further it got" to force the reader to "Imagine"/""fill" them.
Thats how I saw it too, especially since the old man in the book shop was critisizing the growing interest in technology and decreasing interest in books
One of my favorite movies of all time. I am 38 years old and the scene where Artax dies is still very painful to this day. But the movie has taken on a different meaning for me as I’ve grown and experienced my own hopelessness and challenges.
I cried during this because I connect with it so much. I've always loved this movie. I was bullied from elementary school until the end of high school and dealt with abuse at home. To go to school to be bullied and to go home and be abused is why I have such bad PTSD and probably why I developed rheumatoid arthritis (people with trauma have an increased risk for autoimmunity). My escape was and still is books and art. Art is my creative outlet and when I don't create I my depression gets worse. I think many of us with trauma have an internal world where dreams come true. I used to daydream all the time (and still do sometimes) about my ideal life without pain. My trauma has turned me into an advocate for those who are stepped on, and I'm grateful for being able to stand up and fight for what's right when no one does, but I also now have the price of severe mental health issues and autoimmunity complications that bring me down daily.
I loved this movie when I was a kid, I watched this with my dad 100 times, and the symbolism was never lost on me. Thanks for the Nostalgia kick Looper ❤️
gregory18000 the first movie only actually goes through the first half of the book. The second half of the book is the second movie. Those wishes to fix Fantasia come at a pretty big cost and the point is the book actually heals the wound between father and son.
You know what else never ends? This is the song that never ends. Yes, it goes on and on my friends. Some people started singing it, not knowing what it was. And the'll continue sing it forever, just because this is the song that never ends. Yes, it goes on and on my friends.
I grew up in the 90's and I didn't know about the sequels either. As much as I want to see a young Jack Black, I'ma hafta pass on those and stick with the original
I never got over seeing this movie when I was a kid in the 80s. Never. I recently watched on Amazon Prime and yes, the scene with the horse always got me. Always did. Always will.
This story coloured my childhood. These days, seeing the story, brings back deep felt memories of a magic time in my life, a time long gone. My mother passed away this year, and she loved this story... ,,It has to hurt if it's to heal"...
That's what I was going to say, too. She recapped the films and talked about some of the themes but didn't actually go into what any of it actually meant. The NeverEnding Story is about the destruction of our imaginations. The Nothing represents "the Real World", or the loss of childhood imagination. And, I actually love NEII. It's still heartfelt and pretty good acting. The actors are trying and while it has no where near the budget of NE, it's trying to end the whole of the book. A lot of the events taking place in NE2 actually happen in the book. Bastion goes into the world of Fantasia and begans making wishes. Every wish he makes, he forgets who he is in the Human world. This has happened to almost every child who comes to Fantasia before him. I think this is supposed to highlight the dangers of getting too deeply into a fantasy realm that you forget yourself. Ziaeda exists in the book. There is this extremely sad part when they go to this place called the Forgotten City and they find all these past children who've forgotten who they are and lost the ability to go home forever. They all took the same route Bastion had been taking. It shows him how dangerous forgetting your true self can be: absolute power corrupting absoluty, and how Atreyu had been trying to warn him all along the dangers of making wishes with Auryn. It's a beautifully written book and writing this makes me both sad and wanting to read it again. NE3 is garbage, and doesn't exist. The only good thing about that piece of filth is Jack Black. That's it. Don't watch it, seriously, it will make you want to kill things.
The Child-like Empress was always what I remembered from this movie. Her tortured cry of "Bastian say my name!" for some reason can always make me cry even as an adult.
Michael Ende's novel (on whose first half the film is based) is heavily influenced by Aleister Crowley's Thelema. The most obvious references are the Auryn's inscription ("Do what thou wilt") and the name Bastian gives to the Childlike Empress ("Moonchild"), but it doesn't stop there. As for the hero's journey, the real fun begins in the (nearly unfilmable) second half of the novel, where Bastian misinterprets the Auryn's inscription and loses his whole identity to the hero-persona he crafts for himself by wishing for all sorts of strengths and powers.
Over harsh on the father, stoicism is lorded in men however its easy to see his father is still battling his own grief. Ideally he could put it aside to support his son but the 'nothing' that grief brings is a harsh demon to fight when men lack support networks to do so.
I was born in 2000 but I’ve seen all these movies. They were stuck in my head for a while not knowing where I got these faint memories from. Now that I’m an adult I will rewatch these movies again
Much like the Dark Crystal and other films from my childhood....i love this movie but haven't seen it in years. The first movie I've seen in theaters. My parents brought me so I might have a hard time watching this because I lost my mom earlier this year. R I. P. Mommy, I miss you!
The only reaction I had to the horse was that it pulled me completely out of the story, because even as a child, I saw a terrified horse. You brought back that childhood trauma just showing it to me. I remember asking my own mother why they couldn't see how scared that horse was? I could see it.
He didn’t name her Moon Child after his mom , that was just Hollywood making it seems so, the book never really mentions his mom at all. It would be interesting to know why. The book portrays the childlike empress not so innocently or childlike, she never sat back and cried and pleaded with Bastian. She is like a Goddess in child form ancient and innocent, good and evil. She has agency and took it upon herself to climb up a giant icy mountain top in a thin night gown barefoot ! She visited the old man that was writing the book in real time and it was one place she was forbidden to go , because it essentially trapped Bastian and everything and everyone in a Neverending loop . This forced Bastian to give her a new name else he would have been trapped in the book forever, he actually didn’t have a choice. To make it worse this wasn't the last time the Childlike Empress trapped Bastian, after giving him her Auryn, Bastain had to go on an even more perilous journey and almost lost his mind in the process. Let’s just all agree NES 3 never happened, though that empress is a wonderful actress. Also the scores for NES 1 & 2 are so underated!
I am now 45 and still think this movie is unmitigated brilliance. As a child it was a true fantasy experience for me. I felt every emotion so viscerally: happiness, anger, profound sadness, and on and on. Artax in the swamp of sadness caused me to ponder the complexities of life and loss in ways not yet visited by my young mind. And as a child, I thought the childlike empress was the sweetest most lovely girl I had ever seen. Mind blowing to think that I am now quoting Rock Biter to my own kids, “…I couldn’t hold on to them the nothing pulled them right out of my hands.”
"Colonisation"? The Nothing has exactly that to do with colonisation, nothing. The Nothing is created by kids giving up reading for stupidly watching tv, so storyland dies because they don't use their imagination anymore.
ironically the fact that they made that point proves that the ones who made this analyses are consumed by The Nothing and see negative things like this when there is none
Well I reckon it analogically fits, seems like the former “colonialists” nationals are getting TRIGGERED at the mere suggestion there maybe a commentary on their dreadful past !
A friend once suggested that since this was originally written in a foreign language and translated, "Moon Child" was probably the American meaning of the German name.
@@dtwistrewind7361 Movie came out in '84. Mother would've had to have been born in there early 50's. Her husband was clearly a square, so I don't think she was a hippie.
@@tigerburn81 so it works out she was 24 when she had a son in 1974, he only looks ten years old, so she was 18 in 1968 a good age for getting off her face on acid, her husband was a square but opposites attract, so I don't see why not.
When I first watched the movie as a little girl, I was completely in love with Falkor and all I wanted was to take a nap against his side. Side note: My library actually has or had the Michael Ende book. SIDE side note: the theme song makes me cry because it’s so beautifully done. Anyone else?
@@MarcoBonechi ... What are you talking about. His kid was being a weakling, and his dad said, "Chin up". This is after he got him horse lessons even, but Bastion was too scared to even try. This is what we're talking about when we mean parenting in the 80's was better. His dad was a good role model. But people don't know how to parent these days because they are too sensitive *(and weak, like Bastion). MW Fresh!
Ah, but let’s not forget the end of that conversation when Bastion’s dad said; “well, I think we had a good talk. We should have more.” This comment tells me that he and Bastion never really had a connection, and his father became even more disconnected after his wife died.
I saw The Neverending Story II before I saw the first one, and in retrospect I'm glad that I did because partly it made the first movie better for me, and in the second movie they redeemed Bastians father by engaging him in the story this time around and connecting more with his son.
Yeah... Although, it's kind of a shame that the sequal kind of seemed like a let-down in places, and only really seemed to borrow concepts from the 2nd half of the book, rather than really try to adapt it well. Either way, nothing can really be worse than the embarassment that the 3rd movie was. Certainly makes it kind of understandable why the OG author's estate, currently has a vice-like grip on the IP, these days.
@@retrogamelover2012 I felt that way when I saw the third movie. That one just felt like a big cluster f*** in comparison to both of the previous two. At least with the second movie it was fun and enjoyable film, as opposed to the last one which just felt lazy and uninspired.
I watched this movie again and again in the 80's as a kid. I could never understand what Bastian named the Empress. It's hard to hear. Years later (as a teenager) I found the book "The Neverending Story" in the mall book shop, and I bought it, if only to read what word Bastian is shouting. Imagine my shock at seeing that his mom's name was Moon Child. That is so odd, and is not explained at all. I wonder if that was her nickname. Anyway, in the 90's (as a teen) I showed this movie to some Russian kids I babysat. They were kind of hard kids, and they actually laughed at the part where Artax sinks in the swamp. I was kind of shocked by that! My husband and I now love to watch this, The Karate Kid, and Back to the Future when we're in the mood for movies we grew up with. We have 80's movie nights at our house! I never liked The Neverending Story II. I didn't even know there was a number III.
When this movie came out, I had a friend who was the only child of German parents who was bilingual (of course!) and was taken to Germany on a regular basis. He told me the film only covered a fraction of the novel, which was quite apparent when I got a copy and read part of it. I never did finish it, as other things intervened. The thing I found most amazing was that this long, complicated book was written for German kids in _grade school,_ which made me wonder a lot about the educational system in the US.
In The Neverending Story, Engywook explains the Magic Mirror Gate to Falkor, he says that the mirror shows a person their true nature. Brave men are cowards. Kind men are cruel. so when Atreyu looks into the Magic Mirror Gate, why does Atreyu see Bastion and Bastion see Atreyu? I think it is because Bastion as the main protagonist of the story is the same as Atreyu, as the empress said: "Just as he is sharing all your adventures, other's are sharing his." Its a 4th wall break inside a 4th wall break. Atreyu realises he is the main character of the book about him, the same way bastion realises he is the main character of the movie that we are watching. This proves to them both that anything is possible. The movie has a great underlining message about the world of books and film and that if people don't pay attention to something it will ultimately fail and turn to nothing. A.K.A - Destroyed by the "Nothing". It's a pretty deep message for a kids movie. What do you think? Maybe I'm overthinking it.
Being the fact I was born in 75, This movie is my Childhood. Well always love this movie. Cause it's so true on so many Levels. I think every child needs to sit down and enjoy this movie. Or Adults that never seen or heard of it.
@@shoesncheese "Unintentional bullying"? That is not a thing. Intent is crucial for something to count as bullying. Bullies put others down to elevate themselves. They are fully aware of what they are doing and they mean to do it, and they get a rise out of it. A parent dealing with grief and trying to help their kid with theirs, even with poor methods and communication skills, does certainly not count as bullying. That's not to say that it can't put stress on the kid and do some damage, but that is not the intent, and that matters. Be careful with those labels, seriously.
I perceive Bastian as mankind, in the story the bullies and his father represent society, wanting him to mold and grow up, be like anyone else, face reality, after the loss of his mother he is struggling to cope, not only with the loss of his mother but with the loss of innocence, Fantasia and The Empress represents his innocence, his dreams, his imagination, Bastian fights to hold on to those through Atreyu, is not ready to grow up yet, the loss of his mother is forcing him to grow up too soon 😢
That swamp of sorrows scene was amazing acting and does still stick with me. Man that killed me as a child. I also never noticed that line from the empress that basically is saying that we are watching bastions story.
I watched this movie as an 8, almost 9 yr old child with my mother. She took me to the theatre to see it in 1984. This year I lost my mother and now the story resonates with me more than ever. I feel like the Nothing is coming up behind me.
This movie, the neverending story, was without a doubt the culmination of my being. And this video helped me understand the 'why' of that. I love this movie so much. I still feel everything I felt then with more understanding though now. 🙏🏾❤️
Watching this as a parent, I can sympathize with dad more. Give him some grace, our kids always do stuff that goes counter to how we were raised and we think it's not normal, but is. I think it's unfair to call him a bully.
The first Neverending Story---Classic! The Neverending Story II: The Next Chapter---Not as great as the first, but still good. The Neverending Story III: Escape From Fantasia---Utter trash (but at least Jack Black was cool)
TheRealKaz don't feel bad, my friend. Neither did I-- I actually stumbled upon it when I saw a review of it from the Nostalgia Critic. It's a hilariously bad film, oh my God. But the review of him tearing it up is really funny itself, check it out when you get a chance.
