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Neverending Story 2: Next Chapter
Warner Bros. // PG // September 11, 2001
List Price: $19.99 [Buy now and save at Amazon]
The Movie:
After the original "Neverending Story" gained an even wider cult following after its massively successful theatrical release in 1984, it became apparent that a sequel might not be out of the question. Director Wolfgang Peterson ("Air Force One", "Perfect Storm") did not come back, nor did any members of the main cast, who had obviously grown up beyond their characters at that point. The results of this 1990 effort aren't quite as imaginative or interesting, but the film still has its moments.
Bastian (this time, played by Jonathan Brandis of the "Seaquest" series) finds himself generally in the same place this time around. He's still not getting along with with the other children in school and this time, he's starting to become at odds with his father. Again, he seeks out the old man's bookstore and, soon, hears the pleas of the Childlike Empress asking the young lad to return to Fantasia and save the day with his imagination once more.
The first half seems like simply a Wizard of Oz clone merged with the opportunity to reintroduce the favorite characters from the first picture. Sebastian finds himself with the ability to grant wishes, but not only do his wishes not go well, they're being controlled by an evil witch. Every time Sebastian makes a wish, the witch takes away one of his memories - until he's left with no more. Joined again by Atreyu (Kenny Morrison this time), he sets out to save Fantasia before his memories are wiped clean. Characters like Falcor and Rockbiter make brief cameos.
Several differences take away from the sequel. The entire cast is not nearly as believable, sympathetic or engaging as the cast that populated the first film. Especially lacking is Brandis, whose character is too bratty and driven by one-liners. The film's special effects should have been improved at this point, compared to what was available during the original picture, but they really haven't. Some of the matte paintings are rather obvious and although some of the other effects are less primitive, they also seem less imaginative.
Still, the film is at least mildly watchable for the most part, but pales in comparison to the original. The unfortunate thing is, the third feature in the series really paled in comparison to this one, as well.
The DVD
VIDEO: Earlier this week, I reviewed the original "Neverending Story". The 1984 picture received a 2.35:1 anamorphic transfer that was not without some minor concerns, but otherwise represented the picture in such a sharp, clean way that I was impressed. Going into the 1990 sequel, I was expecting an even smoother and cleaner presentation and, for the most part, my expectations were met. The 2.35:1 anamorphic transfer for this sequel is generally superb, with fine sharpness and detail, even though a few scenes do appear to be shot in an intentionally "soft" focus.
Unfortunately, the picture does present some minor problems. Slight pixelation was occasionally apparent, as was a few tiny instances of edge enhancement. Yet, the picture seemed almost completely free of wear, as only a few minor speckles were the only problems that I noticed. I didn't see any marks, scratches, dirt or worse.
Colors look fabulous throughout the movie, appearing bright and lively throughout, looking well-saturated and with no instances of smearing or other problems. Other than a few minor blemishes throughout the movie, this is quite a nice presentation from Warner Brothers.
SOUND: The film's Dolby 2.0 soundtrack is generally pleasant, although a newly done 5.1 presentation would have been appreciated. Some of the sound effects are rather primitive sounding, while others do sound clean and crisp. The score also sounds warm and rich, as do the occasional cheesy early 90's song that's included on the soundtrack. Dialogue sounded clear and no issues in regards to thin or edgy sounding speech were heard.
MENUS:: Static, non-animated menus with the score in the background.
EXTRAS:: Bastian's challenge game, trailer.
Final Thoughts: "Neverending Story 2" isn't a horrible sequel, but it definitely doesn't capture the magic or imagination of the original picture. Warner Brothers has produced a very nice DVD though; audio/video quality are very good, but there really isn't much in the way of supplemental features (nor were there for the original film's DVD).
After the original "Neverending Story" gained an even wider cult following after its massively successful theatrical release in 1984, it became apparent that a sequel might not be out of the question. Director Wolfgang Peterson ("Air Force One", "Perfect Storm") did not come back, nor did any members of the main cast, who had obviously grown up beyond their characters at that point. The results of this 1990 effort aren't quite as imaginative or interesting, but the film still has its moments.
Bastian (this time, played by Jonathan Brandis of the "Seaquest" series) finds himself generally in the same place this time around. He's still not getting along with with the other children in school and this time, he's starting to become at odds with his father. Again, he seeks out the old man's bookstore and, soon, hears the pleas of the Childlike Empress asking the young lad to return to Fantasia and save the day with his imagination once more.
The first half seems like simply a Wizard of Oz clone merged with the opportunity to reintroduce the favorite characters from the first picture. Sebastian finds himself with the ability to grant wishes, but not only do his wishes not go well, they're being controlled by an evil witch. Every time Sebastian makes a wish, the witch takes away one of his memories - until he's left with no more. Joined again by Atreyu (Kenny Morrison this time), he sets out to save Fantasia before his memories are wiped clean. Characters like Falcor and Rockbiter make brief cameos.
Several differences take away from the sequel. The entire cast is not nearly as believable, sympathetic or engaging as the cast that populated the first film. Especially lacking is Brandis, whose character is too bratty and driven by one-liners. The film's special effects should have been improved at this point, compared to what was available during the original picture, but they really haven't. Some of the matte paintings are rather obvious and although some of the other effects are less primitive, they also seem less imaginative.
Still, the film is at least mildly watchable for the most part, but pales in comparison to the original. The unfortunate thing is, the third feature in the series really paled in comparison to this one, as well.
The DVD
VIDEO: Earlier this week, I reviewed the original "Neverending Story". The 1984 picture received a 2.35:1 anamorphic transfer that was not without some minor concerns, but otherwise represented the picture in such a sharp, clean way that I was impressed. Going into the 1990 sequel, I was expecting an even smoother and cleaner presentation and, for the most part, my expectations were met. The 2.35:1 anamorphic transfer for this sequel is generally superb, with fine sharpness and detail, even though a few scenes do appear to be shot in an intentionally "soft" focus.
Unfortunately, the picture does present some minor problems. Slight pixelation was occasionally apparent, as was a few tiny instances of edge enhancement. Yet, the picture seemed almost completely free of wear, as only a few minor speckles were the only problems that I noticed. I didn't see any marks, scratches, dirt or worse.
Colors look fabulous throughout the movie, appearing bright and lively throughout, looking well-saturated and with no instances of smearing or other problems. Other than a few minor blemishes throughout the movie, this is quite a nice presentation from Warner Brothers.
SOUND: The film's Dolby 2.0 soundtrack is generally pleasant, although a newly done 5.1 presentation would have been appreciated. Some of the sound effects are rather primitive sounding, while others do sound clean and crisp. The score also sounds warm and rich, as do the occasional cheesy early 90's song that's included on the soundtrack. Dialogue sounded clear and no issues in regards to thin or edgy sounding speech were heard.
MENUS:: Static, non-animated menus with the score in the background.
EXTRAS:: Bastian's challenge game, trailer.
Final Thoughts: "Neverending Story 2" isn't a horrible sequel, but it definitely doesn't capture the magic or imagination of the original picture. Warner Brothers has produced a very nice DVD though; audio/video quality are very good, but there really isn't much in the way of supplemental features (nor were there for the original film's DVD).
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