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The NeverEnding Story

Original title: The Neverending Story
  • 1984
  • PG
  • 1h 42m
IMDb RATING
7.3/10
164K
YOUR RATING
POPULARITY
1,284
134
Noah Hathaway, Sydney Bromley, Tilo Prückner, and Deep Roy in The NeverEnding Story (1984)
Official Trailer 2
Play trailer1:22
13 Videos
99+ Photos
Adventure EpicFantasy EpicQuestSword & SorceryAdventureDramaFamilyFantasy

A troubled boy dives into a wondrous fantasy world through the pages of a mysterious book.A troubled boy dives into a wondrous fantasy world through the pages of a mysterious book.A troubled boy dives into a wondrous fantasy world through the pages of a mysterious book.

  • Director
    • Wolfgang Petersen
  • Writers
    • Wolfgang Petersen
    • Herman Weigel
    • Michael Ende
  • Stars
    • Noah Hathaway
    • Barret Oliver
    • Tami Stronach
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • IMDb RATING
    7.3/10
    164K
    YOUR RATING
    POPULARITY
    1,284
    134
    • Director
      • Wolfgang Petersen
    • Writers
      • Wolfgang Petersen
      • Herman Weigel
      • Michael Ende
    • Stars
      • Noah Hathaway
      • Barret Oliver
      • Tami Stronach
    • 435User reviews
    • 107Critic reviews
    • 49Metascore
  • See production info at IMDbPro
    • Awards
      • 6 wins & 9 nominations total

    Videos13

    The Neverending Story
    Trailer 1:22
    The Neverending Story
    The Neverending Story
    Trailer 1:23
    The Neverending Story
    The Neverending Story
    Trailer 1:23
    The Neverending Story
    What to Stream With Your Family Right Now
    Clip 3:57
    What to Stream With Your Family Right Now
    Neverending Story: Rock Eater (Blu-Ray)
    Clip 2:05
    Neverending Story: Rock Eater (Blu-Ray)
    Neverending Story: First Gate (Blu-Ray)
    Clip 1:59
    Neverending Story: First Gate (Blu-Ray)
    Neverending Story: Morla (Blu-Ray)
    Clip 2:05
    Neverending Story: Morla (Blu-Ray)

    Photos270

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    Top cast25

    Edit
    Noah Hathaway
    Noah Hathaway
    • Atreyu
    Barret Oliver
    Barret Oliver
    • Bastian
    Tami Stronach
    Tami Stronach
    • The Childlike Empress
    Gerald McRaney
    Gerald McRaney
    • Bastian's Father
    Chris Eastman
    Chris Eastman
    • 1st Bully
    • (as Drum Garrett)
    Darryl Cooksey
    • 2nd Bully
    Nicholas Gilbert
    • 3rd Bully
    Thomas Hill
    Thomas Hill
    • Carl Conrad Coreander
    Deep Roy
    Deep Roy
    • Teeny Weeny
    Tilo Prückner
    Tilo Prückner
    • Night Hob
    Moses Gunn
    Moses Gunn
    • Cairon
    Sydney Bromley
    Sydney Bromley
    • Engywook
    Patricia Hayes
    Patricia Hayes
    • Urgl
    Beth Anderson
    • The 2nd Balladeer
    • (voice)
    • (uncredited)
    Donald Arthur
    • School's Caretaker
    • (uncredited)
    Willie Coppen
    • Fantasia Inhabitant
    • (uncredited)
    Bernd Eichinger
    Bernd Eichinger
    • Man next to Man Who Drops Milk
    • (uncredited)
    Dee Harris
    • The Balladeers' Lead Guitarist
    • (uncredited)
    • Director
      • Wolfgang Petersen
    • Writers
      • Wolfgang Petersen
      • Herman Weigel
      • Michael Ende
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

    User reviews435

    7.3164.1K
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    Featured reviews

    10TheLittleSongbird

    Drop Dead Gorgeous!

    The NeverEnding Story is one of my all time favourite movies, it is just so magical. The music is brilliant, and the story is a magical, simple and effective one. The scenery, sets and costumes were visually a feast to the eyes, just gorgeous to look at, and if it didn't get any awards for best art direction, then that is a massive shame, because it was so beautiful to watch. Falcor was a fantastic character, a very warm and loving character, that you just have to love. I have to admit though, Gmork is very scary. The acting is fantastic, Barret Oliver very spirited as Bastian, and Noah Hathaway born to play Atreyu. And Tami Stromach as the Childlike Empress has a small but wholly relevant role in the film. This film is practically perfect in every way and has a wonderful message, don't miss it! The second film's okay, but the third one is god awful and should be in the bottom 100. 10/10 for this though. Bethany Cox
    Moon Child

    This is such a BEAUTIFUL film, with a message that will never die.

    Although I was only a year old when the Neverending Story first came out, I remember watching it over and over as a little girl. My grandma got it for me when I was little and I remember making her watch it with me almost every day--sometimes two or three times in the same day. Then somehow I lost the tape, and although I still remembered and loved the movie, I forgot just how magical it really was. Then finally, (after years of "I wonder what happened to...") I found it. I realize now that in finding it I not only rediscovered a part of myself, but a beautiful world I forgot existed.

    I admit that I am still waiting for a luck dragon to come and take me home to Fantasia. I belong there. A part of me lives there and so does a part of everyone, although they may not be aware of it. This is without a doubt the most beautiful movie ever made (although Legend comes close) and its message will never die as long as people hold on to their dreams. Barret Oliver's performance as Bastian still makes me cry. He speaks to that part of all of us that is not afraid to "do what we dream." Noah Hathaway was perfect for the part of Atreyu. He is one of the most beautiful and realistic heroes ever depicted. And Tami Stronach as the Childlike Empress (Moon Child) remains one of the most beautiful characters ever to grace the screen. The acting is wonderful, and the background scenery is breathtaking.

    But the Neverending Story is more than just a movie. It speaks to that part in all of us that will never let go of our dreams. It is a story that will never end as long as there are people to appreciate its message. Everyone should see this movie and remember: Fantasia IS real. And "Fantasia can arise in you."
    9supertom-3

    Great fantasy film!

    One of the best kids fantasy films of the 80's. This is a great films about troubled young boy Bastien who escapes some pursuing bullies in an old book shop finding a story. As he reads this story alone, in hiding, he becomes enraptured in it and soon begins to feel more than a reader but involved in the story and is sucked into the world of Fantasia.

    Now, does the film have the important elements of a fantasy yarn? Yep it sure does. It looks great it has strange creatures and wonderful landscapes and it's fair share of adventure. The book bastien read centres around Artreyu a young warrior who is the only hope of saving Fantasia from the evil that is "the Nothing" which is what it's name suggest and will turn Fantasia into nothing.

    I had never watched this until recently when purely by chance it was on TV and had a good write up (ah the power of movie critics!) so I thought that as a lover of fantasy, I would watch it. Glad I did people, glad I did. It takes you back to feelings of childhood and captures the imagination. Wolfgang Peterson, who didn't particularly impress me in recent flop Troy, directs preceedings with class and control. There are some good young actors too. ****
    7elisa-grant

    Magical and sweet

    Just rewatched with my 9yr and she loved it! Saw it accepted by her with the same enthusiasm I had as a kid!

    Yes, it's dated. Yes, the acting isn't the best. But... it is so magical and super sweet. Also very telling... in 1984 they told us that hope was disappearing and despair was setting in. A prediction of things to come - at least from 2020 to now in 2022!
    10Banshee57

    Dark, if not surreal fantasy delivers a good message.

    Finally, the truth about stories. The fact is, nothing ever really ends, and thusly, someone had to say so. That's what this movie does, and it does it ever so elegantly. A young boy, who knows so much about the "Lord Of The Rings", and "Beowulf" is about to find out something more real as he borrows a mystical book he finds enchanting. the even more powerful fact, is that once the book is opened, it will never close. Just as life never really ends on this earth, neither to stories. The book, titled "The Never Ending Story", is about Fantasia, a world that is dying, and an unbelievably horrifying substance known as "The Nothing", is enclosing it. A young warrior must face the danger of finding a cure. On earth, or in the book, life is intertwined to reach the ultimate answer to a young boys fears, and a young warriors quest. Film is full of some really lovable characters such as Falkor, the luck dragon, and the Rock Biter. Then, there is the Gmorg, whom I believe, is the most wretched creature in cinema. That thing is scary! In any case, film starts out as colorful and mystical, and grows dark and nightmarish with every scene, leading to a wonderful message about the substance that keeps Fantasia , and every other world out there, alive. Beautiful, just beautiful. A classic.

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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      With a budget of 50 million Deutsche Mark (about $27,000,000), this was the most expensive film ever produced in Germany at the time.
    • Goofs
      When Atreyu is in the Swamps of Sadness with his horse, the horse sinks because it gives into the sadness, but Atreyu doesn't sink, even though he is crying and sad that his friend has died. Though not properly shown in the movie, the book explains how AURYN is protecting him. (His eventual near-sinking at the end of the scene, which never occurred in the book, is due to the plot changes that were made for the movie.)
    • Quotes

      Rock Biter: They look like big, good, strong hands, don't they? I always thought that's what they were.

    • Alternate versions
      The Warner Bros. Pictures logo and it's closing Saul Bass variant are both plastered with the 1992 variant in the DVD version, and 2003 variant in the Blu-ray version.
    • Connections
      Featured in At the Movies: The Neverending Story/The Last Starfighter/Electric Dreams/That Sinking Feeling (1984)
    • Soundtracks
      The Neverending Story
      Music by Giorgio Moroder

      Lyrics by Keith Forsey

      Performed by Limahl Feat. Beth Anderson (uncredited)

      Guitar solo Dee Harris (uncredited)

      Courtesy of EMI Records, Ltd.

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    FAQ23

    • How long is The NeverEnding Story?Powered by Alexa
    • Why does Atreyu have to go alone and leave behind his weapons when he goes out on his journey to save the world?
    • What name does Bastian scream out the window towards the end of the movie?
    • What are the differences between the US theatrical cut and the German theatrical cut?

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • July 20, 1984 (United States)
    • Countries of origin
      • West Germany
      • United States
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • La historia sin fin
    • Filming locations
      • Blood Alley, Gastown, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada(alley that Bastian is chased into)
    • Production companies
      • Constantin Film
      • Bavaria Studios
      • Westdeutscher Rundfunk (WDR)
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    • Budget
      • $27,000,000 (estimated)
    • Gross US & Canada
      • $20,192,381
    • Opening weekend US & Canada
      • $4,325,823
      • Jul 22, 1984
    • Gross worldwide
      • $20,289,924
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Tech specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      1 hour 42 minutes
    • Color
      • Color
    • Aspect ratio
      • 2.35 : 1

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    Noah Hathaway, Sydney Bromley, Tilo Prückner, and Deep Roy in The NeverEnding Story (1984)
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