Shy and awkward young boy Bastian (a fine and likeable performance b Barret Oliver) finds himself deeply engrossed in a book about brave teenage warrior Atreyu (an excellent portrayal by Noah Hathaway), who must save the Childlike Empress (Tami Stronach, who's enchanting, but never cutesy) and the glorious land of Fantasia from being destroyed by the evil Nothing.

Director/co-writer Wolfgang Petersen brings a sense of awe, wonder, and tremendous sweeping creativity to the captivating plot along with a more dark and daring sensibility that prevents the premise from becoming too silly or sappy. The world of Fantasia is beautifully well realized: The special effects hold up extremely well, with the assorted animatronic creatures registering as remarkably lifelike and convincing. Said colorful creatures include friendly luck dragon Falkor, gentle giant Rock Biter, scary wolf G'mork, and apathetic turtle Morla.

Gerald McRaney contributes a solid turn as Bastian's preoccupied father while Sydney Bromley and Patricia Hayes provide amusing comic relief as a couple of bickering gnomes. Jost Vacano's sumptuous widescreen cinematography provides a wealth of striking visuals. The ethereal synth score by Klaus Doldinger and Giorgio Moroder does the tuneful trick. Best of all, this film even makes a sweet and touching point about the importance of never losing one's capacity for hope and ability to make dreams come true with the sheer power of pure imagination. A total treat.

An '80s classic which I've only now had the chance to encounter for the first time, THE NEVERENDING STORY is a masterpiece of action and special effects. It magnificently conjures up the magic of reading a good book in a way similar to the later but less successful (at least for me) PRINCESS BRIDE, and I loved the whole breaking of the fourth wall at the climax. The story itself is an dramatic adventure narrative in which a heroic child must find a way to stop the "nothingness" (which reminded me of THE LANGOLIERS) destroying his world.

Where this film shines is in the effects, which are extensive and elaborate and much better than our modern CGI. There's lots of back projection, wonderful set design and magical landscapes, and a whole slew of creatures. Some of them look like Jim Henson creations, while others are brilliantly conceived and animated, such as the Luck Dragon or the huge mountain troll creature. It's imagination writ large on screen, uninhibited and at its best, and you can't ask for more than that.

Bastian is a troubled boy who lost his mother and bullied by schoolmates. While running from school bullies, he escapes into a book store where the owner warns him about a book called 'The NeverEnding Story'. He get curious and takes the book. He hides in a storage room at school and starts reading.

The book tells the story of the fantastical world of Fantasia. It is slowly being destroyed by a Nothing. The Empress is deathly ill. It's understood that a great warrior named Atreyu will come to save the day, but he turns out to be a Native American boy.

After the award winning 'Das Boot', Wolfgang Petersen goes in a different direction with this interesting children's movie. It's filled with fantastical creatures, and wild adventures. It's a visually memorable film. The kids aren't really the best actors or the most memorable. That's probably the most obvious deficit. They are sufficiently average cute kids for the job. As for the conceit of the movie, it's trying for something very interesting but it's meanders. It probably works great for kids as they watch the movie. It's probably quite effective to be a kid being talked directly to.