The NeverEnding Story III
| The NeverEnding Story III: Escape from Fantasia |
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Canadian video release poster
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| Directed by | Peter MacDonald |
| Produced by | Heinz Bibo Dieter Geissler Tim Hampton Klaus Kaehler Harry Nap Harold Lee Tichenor |
| Screenplay by | Jeff Lieberman |
| Story by | Karin Howard |
| Based on | Characters created by Michael Ende |
| Starring |
Jason James Richter Melody Kay Jack Black Freddie Jones Julie Cox Tony Robinson |
| Music by | Peter Wolf |
| Cinematography | Robin Vidgeon |
| Edited by | Michael Bradsell Jim Roddan |
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Production
company |
CineVox Entertainment
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| Distributed by |
Miramax Films (USA & Canada) Warner Bros. Family Entertainment (International) |
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Release date
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Running time
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95 minutes |
| Country | Germany United States Canada |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $17 million |
The NeverEnding Story III: Escape from Fantasia (also known as: The NeverEnding Story III: Return to Fantasia) is a 1994 film and the second sequel to the fantasy film The NeverEnding Story (following the first sequel The NeverEnding Story II: The Next Chapter). It starred Jason James Richter as the principal character Bastian Bux, and Jack Black in one of his early roles as the school bully Slip. This film used the characters from Michael Ende's novel The Neverending Story (1979), but introduced a new storyline.
The special creature effects were provided by Jim Henson's Creature Shop. The movie has no connection to the source material of the book beyond the usage of characters from it.
In a prologue, the Old Man of Wandering Mountain (Freddie Jones) reads from a large book; begins to record a prophecy of a day when 'The Nasty' will arrive in Fantasia; and describes the savior of "Extraordinary Courage".
Bastian Balthazar Bux (Jason James Richter) grown older, and his father Barney (Kevin McNulty) has married a woman named Jane (Tracey Ellis) whose daughter Nicole (Melody Kay) is displeased at having a new family. Bastian has also started high school, where he has become victim to the Nasties: a quintet of bullies led by Slip (Jack Black). He arranges for them to be expelled with the help of the janitor (Mark Acheson) after they trap him in the boiler room. He later flees to the library where he is surprised to find Mr. Koreander (Freddie Jones) and the Neverending Story. The Nasties locate him, but he uses the book to escape to Fantasia, where he is reunited with Falkor (William Hootkins), Engywook and Urgl (Tony Robinson and Moya Brady). On Earth, the Nasties find the Neverending Story and use it to bombard Fantasia with fireballs and a storm. With a walking tree named Bark Troll (William Hootkins), Bastian and his friends head for the Wandering Mountains to speak with the Childlike Empress (Julie Cox), who asks Bastian to find the Neverending Story with the AURYN. Falkor, Barky, the gnomes, and the Rock Biter's son, Junior, help him; but a "wish overload" scatters across Earth, where Barky ends up in a conifer forest; Falkor saves Junior from falling to his death near Mount Rushmore; and the gnomes arrive in Nome, Alaska. Bastian locates Falkor and Junior, and Falkor flies off to find the others while Junior stays at Bastian's house. Rock Biter sadly informs his wife that Junior is gone, and the Nasties provoke them to quarrel.
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