The Neverending Story
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Warner Home Video / 1985 / 99 Minutes / Rated PG
Street Date: September 11, 2001 
Wolfgang Petersen's first English language film after his critically acclaimed Das Boot. The NeverEnding Story remains an enchanting family film and one of the better genre efforts of the 80's. Petersen not only directed, but also wrote the screenplay based on Michael Ende's novel of the same name. (However, according to several fan websites and the IMDB, it appears that Ende wasn't too happy with the final product and had his name taken off of the final product. This is too bad, as his credit appears on the far inferior second and third entries in the series. Oh well.) The NeverEnding Story is the tale of Bastian (Barret Oliver), a young boy whose mother has passed away. He lives with his father and often finds himself picked on by the bullies from school. He enjoys reading, which seems to be his only escape from his earthly troubles. One day he is trying to escape from a wee bit of schoolyard pummeling and he hides in a used bookstore. The cranky old owner, Mr. Koreander, tells him to go away, but when Bastian convinces the owner that he too is a book lover, they have a quaint chat. Soon, Mr. Koreander is warning him of the book he is currently reading, The NeverEnding Story, which casts a wonderful spell on the reader. Bastian decides that this is a book he'll need to read and finds himself "borrowing" it. In an old attic at his school (an attic at school?), Bastian discovers the warning is true, and enters the wondrous land called Fantasia. Ruled by the Childlike Empress and inhabited by all sorts of interesting creatures, Bastian discovers that it is the real world's dreams and wishes that create Fantasia - and the lack of the imagination that is threatening to destroy it, personified by "The Nothing." It is up to Bastian and a heroic boy warrior, Atreyu (Noah Hathaway) to save this fantastical world from total destruction. Video: How Does The Disc Look? This transfer looks as if it was transferred from the same master as the previous-released laserdisc, which isn't necessary a bad thing - this transfer looks better than that on many newer films. The original theatrical aspect ratio ratio of The NeverEnding Story was 2.35:1, however, this transfer looks framed a bit tighter, around 2.2:1. The laserdisc was pretty darn phenomenal, so I was hoping for something even more spectacular with this DVD, which is only a marginal improvement. The image is slightly soft and the colors are a little undersaturated, though the multitudes of fabulous hues are stable with no bleeding or smearing and accurate fleshtones. Blacks are deep, with good contrast and shadow detail. The print appears clean, with little grain and barely a nick or scratch to be found. I suppose when you do it right the first time, it would be tricky to make it even better. Not bad at all. A severely cropped pan & scan version is provided on the flipside of the disc. Audio: How Does the Disc Sound? The English 2.0 surround track also seems to be the same as the laserdisc. The front sound stage is fairly well balanced as dialogue is generally bleed-free and anchored in the center channel. Not a great deal of directional effects as the rear channels are used mainly for score reproduction. Ambiance is fine, if subtle at best. There is some very decent LFE activity, especially during scenes involving the rock-biter. For an older mix the fidelity is pretty good with a reasonably wide dynamic range. Like the transfer, not bad, There is also French 2.0 surround track included, as well as English Closed Captions and English, French and Spanish subtitles. Supplements: What Goodies Are There? The special features available on this disc aren't very special. There are four pages of production note-type text: "Making Movie Magic," a special effect related blurbs about Falkor and nepotism, "The Heroes," description of the three main characters, "Childlike Empress," which is all but three bullet points outlining why her character is in the movie, and finally, "People of Fantasia," describing the remaining characters. Also included is the film's original theatrical trailer in anamorphic widescreen and 2.0 surround. Parting Thoughts This is a must-see film, for kids of all ages, and creative or imaginative entertainment starved adults. If you already own the laserdisc, you may want to save your dollars, though $19.98 is a very reasonable price for this disc. A little light on the extras for my tastes, but the flick is worth it. |
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