The NeverEnding Story III (1994)

A young boy must restore order when a group of bullies steal the magical book that acts as a portal between Earth and the imaginary world of Fantasia.

Director:

Peter MacDonald (as Peter Macdonald)

Writers:

Jeff Lieberman (screenplay), Karin Howard (story)

Stars:

Jason James Richter, Melody Kay, Jack Black

Bottom Rated Movies #65 | 1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Jason James Richter	...	Bastian
Melody Kay	...	Nicole
Jack Black	...	Slip
Carole Finn	...	Mookie
Ryan Bollman	...	Dog
Freddie Jones	...	Mr. Coreander / Old Man of Wandering Mountain
Julie Cox	...	The Empress
Moya Brady	...	Urgl
Tony Robinson	...	Engywook
Thomas Petruo	...	Large Head
Tracey Ellis	...	Jane Bux
Kevin McNulty	...	Barney
Nicole Parker	...	Nasty #1
Adrien Dorval	...	Nasty #2 (as P. Adrien Dorval)
Kaefan Shaw	...	Bark Troll

Storyline

Bastian's wish for a sibling comes true when his father remarries, but he's soon having trouble with new stepsister Nicole and with a gang of school bullies, The Nasties. Hiding in the school library, Bastian finds his favorite book, THE NEVERENDING STORY. Later it's found by the gang's leader Slip, who recognizes the book's power and starts to form Fantasia after his bad intentions. When the chaos worsens, the Child-like Empress requests Bastian to move back to the real world, get the book back, and save Fantasia. Some Fantasia characters accidentally travel with him into reality and get lost in different places. Meanwhile, Slip and the other Nasties spread anarchy. Finally, Bastian gets support from Nicole, who begins to believe in the power of Fantasia.

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Plot Keywords:

sequel by name only | cult film | playing guitar | new kid in school | destruction | 

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Taglines:

It's a brand new beginning in the adventure that never ends

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Genres:

Adventure | Comedy | Family | Fantasy

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Certificate:

G

Did You Know?

Trivia

Freddie Jones and Julie Cox both starred in screen adaptations of Frank Herbert's best selling 1965 science fiction fantasy novel "Dune". Freddie Jones starred as Thufir Hawat in Dune (1984) and Julie Cox starred as Princess Irulan Corrino in Dune (2000) and Children of Dune (2003).

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Goofs

Position of the papers and files Bastian drops.

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Quotes

Nicole: [as the rest of the kids run from a group of bullies known as "The Nasties"] Come on!
Bastian: Why? Who are they?
Nicole: The Nasties!

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Crazy Credits

At the beginning of the end credits we see the "Easy Rider"-sequence again in the upper half of the screen.

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Connections

Referenced in Nostalgia Critic Real Thoughts: Neverending Story Movies (2015)

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Soundtracks

Games People Play
Written by Joe South
Performed by Inner Circle

User Reviews

do not ever watch this horrible film

In the beginning, there was The Neverending Story. It is the best film ever made.

Then, there was The Neverending Story II. I'll vent my spleen over that mess later.

And then, there came this waste of film and effort. Hold on a minute while I go throw up.

While it is a clean, safe film in terms of subject matter, the third NES should never have been made. And I mean NEVER. The first two movies covered all the wondrous things within the original book, so I don't understand why this film was made at all. It is just cheesy, stupid, abysmal, and an absolute disgrace to the idea of The Neverending Story.

First of all, what's going on with this stepsister of Bastian's that has somehow appeared? Wrong, wrong. . . Then, what happened to good old Falkor? And most of all, where is Atreyu? If you are bold enough to see this film, that is the one thing you will distinctly notice if you've seen the other two- no Atreyu.The boy who played Bastian was not nearly as obnoxious as the actor from the second film, but he just doesn't hold a candle to the original actor, Barret Oliver.

I have only seen this movie once, because I was informed of how awful it was, and just had to see for myself. It was a waste of my precious time. I hardly remember the plot line or anything important like that because it just didn't stick with me. One gets the impression that this was made as a sort of kid/family-friendly approach to The Neverending Story, because it is just so simplistic, and sacrifices the charm of the original characters and settings for the sake of being funny and entertaining. But trust me, it is NOT funny and it is NOT entertaining. Any NES fan worth their salt would be appalled by this film. If however you are not familiar with the Neverending Story, see the original 1984 movie and read the book and be contented with that.

Do not subject yourself to the torturous nightmare that is the Neverending Story 3, I implore you.

As for a star rating out of ten, I give this film nothing. Nil. Zip. Nichts.

Details

Country:

Germany USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

2 February 1996 (USA)

Also Known As:

The NeverEnding Story III

Filming Locations:

1938 W 19th Avenue, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

Box Office

Budget:

$17,000,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Cinevox Filmproduktion GmbH, Bibo TV Studiobetriebs, Dieter Geissler Filmproduktion

Technical Specs

Runtime:

95 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1