The NeverEnding Story II: The Next Chapter (1991)

I love this movie so much

Excellent adaptation.

A lot of fun.

It's funny, it's tense, it features two great performances from two actors and the director expertly creates a web of odd tension where you actually don't know what is happening for the majority of the run time.

I work in the industry, especially with continuity, so I have a GREAT problem whenever ANYONE is re-cast in an established role, be it Victoria in Twilight, or EVERYONE, but the book store owner, in the this movie! Without retaining the same people, we lose the flow of the story. ALL of the main kids are different, Bastian's Father is a different actor, and the voices established in the first movie are all altered from the established ones! Honestly, the only things that tie it to the original is the movie title itself, character names, the book store owner is played by the same Actor, and, LUCKILY, they still have the original Luck Dragon and Rockbitter props.It is not a horrible movie, per say, but all of these changes make it a mere shadow of the glories of the original film. Although the kids do an admirable job in this movie, by not casting all of the original actors, it causes a disconnect, because we are looking at people we do not recognize as, say, Bastian, who is now a blue eyed blond. Then, they have the right Falkor and Rockbitter, but their voices are totally different! I wish this movie would have had ALL the magic of the first movie, but it takes half the film to acknowledge the new actors as the established roles, which, to me, robs the viewer of the full experience. This movie had so much potential!

The original is one of my all time favourite movies, beautifully designed, well acted and had the sense of wonder that enthralled me when I was a child. I saw Neverending Story 3 recently, and thought it was absolute garbage with next to no redeeming qualities. NeverEnding Story 2: The Next Chapter wasn't terrible, but I will admit I was disappointed.The film does look spectacular, with lovely costumes and sets- the image of the silver boats on the river was a beautiful image. The music by Robert Folk was gorgeous, very lyrical and atmospheric. And I did think Xayide was a pretty good villainess and Clarissa Burt was superb playing her, and that Ken Morrison did a worthy job replacing Noah Hathaway as Atreyu. I do admit Hathaway was better, he was born to play the part. Falcor wasn't too bad either, if not as wise as he was in the original movie.There are flaws however. The plot is disjointed, and there are a lot of unfocused moments in the screenplay. Also that big bird was really irritating. Not to mention some contradictions in comparison to the original, then again NeverEnding Story 3 had a lot more contradictions, and did do an even worse job than this film. Barrett Oliver as Bastian was great in the original, and I do appreciate that they made him older and wiser here, but I did think as the hero Jonathan Brandis was rather feeble, but he did try his best with superficial material.Overall, disappointing, but it wasn't that bad. If anything I think it is average, so I will give it a 5/10. Bethany Cox

"The Neverending Story" is thought by many to be a classic fantasy movie for both kids and adults alike. It had amazing visuals, and for a 27 million dollar budget, it better have had good visuals. Now, the unnecessary sequel has a 36 million dollar budget, and looks nowhere near as good as the first. And along with that, the acting, story and writing are worse too.Bastian Bux is back to reading the Neverending Story, and a new story is taking place. Pages in the book are disappearing because of an evil, condescending queen who has kidnapped the childlike empress and locked her away. Bastian and Atreyu go on a stupid adventure and have problems with each other along the way. The first film can be enjoyed by kids and adults. This one is a brain dead, scatter plotted mess, that can only be enjoyed by kids under 10, who don't care about quality. None of the principle actors return from the first film, and the replacements look and sound nothing like the characters in the first. The acting is terrible, along with all of this.In the end, this is just a weird sequel. In no way does it have the same feel as the good first film. This is like a kids action movie, where the first was like an amazing visual (and mental) portal into one's imagination.My rating: 1/2 out of ****. PG for violence. 83 mins

The first installment of this trilogy had a beginning, a middle, and a satisfying ending, making this sequel as unnecessary as many other critics have claimed. THIS sequel, however, does mandate the NEXT sequel, in that it left a bit to be explained.This is really a convoluted, contrived, uneven mess; bearing none of the original talent, thereby losing all of the Magick of the original. These actors are capable, but failed to illicit the same feeling of wonder, creativity, and awe.All in all, this is an exercise in utter futility, and was completely unnecessary. But if you watch this one, you need to see the last, in order to clear up the many holes left by this installment.It rates a 4.5/10 from...the Fiend :.