The Neverending Story

The Neverending Story, or Die Unendliche Geschichte is the first film adaptation of the novel written by Michael Ende in 1979.

Story

The film begins in the real world, with a young boy named Bastian (Barret Oliver), who is alienated at school and troubled by his mother's recent death. Bastian finds a mysterious book at a local book shop, which he takes home with him and begins to read. The book The Neverending Story tells the story of a land called “Fantasia,” which is being overcome with a growing darkness called “the nothing.” The Empress of the land sends a boy hero named Atreyu (Noah Hathaway) on a quest to find a cure for her growing sickness and the dying land. Atreyu gets help along the way from characters like Falkor the “luckdragon” (Alan Oppenheimer) and the Gnome creatures Urgi (Patricia Hayes) and Engywook (Sydney Bromely). However, Bastian soon discovers that the more he reads The Neverending Story, the more the book seems to mysteriously pull him into the narrative, as it continually mentions the “Earth child” who has the power to save Fantasia.

Fast Facts

1. Director: Wolfgang Peterson
2. Distributed by: Warner Brothers
3. Opening Weekend: $4,325,823
4. Release Date: July 20, 1984
5. Running Time: 1 Hour 32 Minutes
6. Starring: Noah Hathaway, Barret Oliver, Tami Stronach, Patricia Hayes
7. Bastian screams the name "Moonchild" at the end of the story

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