I never did watch this movie all the way through until today. It was pretty good (and interesting to see Deep Roy in what must have been a very early role), but the ending really messes it up a lot.
******SPOILER!!!******* Our hero Bastian is pretty much a coward, running away from three school bullies who call him "chicken" and toss him into a trash bin. We're led to believe that he has learned more about himself and his potential, and become a braver, more confident boy, as a result of his saving Fantasia.
Yet after using the power of his imagination to restore Fantasia, Bastian has one last wish for the Luckdragon; help him terrorize the three bullies. "How do you like it, CHICKENS!" he screams as he rides the back a 50 foot flying beast who chases the boys down an alley and makes them hide in the same trash bin they tossed him into.
Seems to me Bastian hasn't grown much at all; if he had he would have faced the bullies on his own, just like Atreyu who faced most of the dangers of his quest alone. (Or, he could have brought a couple of smaller Fantasia denizens to make it an even fight.) The bullies may fear him because he can call on his friend the Luckdragon, but they won't respect him.
Maybe I'm over-analyzing, but I just felt that ending was very poorly thought out and messed up an otherwise good film.
******SPOILER!!!******* Our hero Bastian is pretty much a coward, running away from three school bullies who call him "chicken" and toss him into a trash bin. We're led to believe that he has learned more about himself and his potential, and become a braver, more confident boy, as a result of his saving Fantasia.
Yet after using the power of his imagination to restore Fantasia, Bastian has one last wish for the Luckdragon; help him terrorize the three bullies. "How do you like it, CHICKENS!" he screams as he rides the back a 50 foot flying beast who chases the boys down an alley and makes them hide in the same trash bin they tossed him into.
Seems to me Bastian hasn't grown much at all; if he had he would have faced the bullies on his own, just like Atreyu who faced most of the dangers of his quest alone. (Or, he could have brought a couple of smaller Fantasia denizens to make it an even fight.) The bullies may fear him because he can call on his friend the Luckdragon, but they won't respect him.
Maybe I'm over-analyzing, but I just felt that ending was very poorly thought out and messed up an otherwise good film.