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rampallion99
Reviews
The Neverending Story II: The Next Chapter (1990)
Really NOT worth it
I loved the original so much that I wanted to see the sequel, even though I was 15 when it came out. My dad is fond of clean movies and was glad to take me. It was fairly horrid, for a kid who'd gotten attached to the original at the perfect age. (In 1984 I was 9 to 10, and I was basically any of the 4 boys at the beginning of Stranger Things, which was extra difficult because I'm female.)
My dad and I thought it sucked. This was largely because Bastian's main companion in the film is a very poorly executed bird-man. Think crappy Big Bird knockoff who does children's parties. He had a terrible speaking voice, which is now reminiscent of Jar Jar Binks to me. I do not remember Falcor being in the film at all. If he was, they must have spent the entire budget on his 10 seconds of screen time, because the movie looked cheaper than dirt compared to the original. The lack of interesting scenery added to how boring it was.
The kid who played Bastian was pretty good. This redeemed nothing, however. The film was too crappy. I would say that today, it can entertain smaller kids, if you want to use it for that. 6 or 7 year olds, at most.
Pump Up the Volume (1990)
Pretty darn great, if you can handle some major dorkitude
Others have described the film. I'm here because I realized I now have a good way to sum up the pros and cons of it: If you liked the divisive Stranger Things 2 episode "The Lost Sister," you will LOVE this movie, which may well have been one of Lost Sister's main influences. You need a high tolerance, and ideally an enjoyment, of awkwardness and intense feeling throughout the film. I'm talking about the kind of overall tone that the average person often finds stilted and preachy, but conveys true joy and wholeheartedness. It's the kind of experience that matches adolescence almost too closely. You also may really like this film if you like high camp, such as "Can't Stop the Music" and the comedy episodes of "Xena: Warrior Princess."
If you are in this film's target audience, you should also see "Pump up the Volume" director Allan Moyle's flawed masterpiece "Times Square," which was largely destroyed by the Robert Stigwood production machine, and thus has limited modern appeal. Enjoy!