The Pagemaster (1994)

A cowardly boy, who buries himself in accident statistics, enters a library to escape a storm, only to be transformed into an animated illustration by the Pagemaster. He has to work through obstacles from classic books to return to real-life.

Directors:

Pixote Hunt (as Maurice Hunt), Joe Johnston

Writers:

David Kirschner (story), David Casci (story)

Stars:

Macaulay Culkin, Christopher Lloyd, Kanin Howell

5 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Macaulay Culkin	...	Richard Tyler
Kanin Howell	...	Neighborhood Kid (as Canan J. Howell)
Alexis Kirschner	...	Neighborhood Kid
Jessica Kirschner	...	Neighborhood Kid
Guy Mansker	...	Neighborhood Kid
Brandon S. McKay	...	Neighborhood Kid (as Brandon McKay)
Stephen Sheehan	...	Neighborhood Kid
Ed Begley Jr.	...	Alan Tyler
Mel Harris	...	Claire Tyler
Christopher Lloyd	...	Mr. Dewey / The Pagemaster
Patrick Stewart	...	Adventure (voice)
Whoopi Goldberg	...	Fantasy (voice)
Frank Welker	...	Horror (voice)
Leonard Nimoy	...	Dr. Jekyll / Mr. Hyde (voice)
George Hearn	...	Captain Ahab (voice)

Storyline

This is the story of a young boy named Richard Tyler, who spouts statistics about the possibility of accidents. So much so, he is scared to do anything that might endanger him, like riding his bike, or climbing into his treehouse. While riding his bike home, Richard finds shelter from a storm inside a nearby library. Richard slips and is knocked unconscious while exploring a rotunda in the library. Upon awakening, he is led on a journey through conflicts and events that resemble fictional stories, keeping him from finding the exit from the library.

---

Plot Keywords:

rain | thunder | lightning | bicycle | bike | 

---

Taglines:

All the adventure your imagination can hold.

---

Genres:

Animation | Adventure | Comedy | Family | Fantasy

---

Certificate:

G

Did You Know?

Trivia

This is one of two animated movies Whoopi Goldberg voiced in 1994. The other being The Lion King (1994).

---

Goofs

Richard never regains his jacket in the library.

---

Quotes

Richard Tyler: Hey! How'd you get here?
Fantasy: Quit it! We are in the presence of the Pagemaster.
Richard Tyler: I *know* who he is. He's the guy who did all THIS to me! Do you have any idea what I've been through?
The Pagemaster: Tell me.
Richard Tyler: I was nearly torn to shreds by a crazy doctor, I was made a slave to a bunch of mangy pirates, and eaten. Got that? Eaten by a fire-breathing dragon!
Horror: He don't mean it, my Pagemaster. He don't mean it.
Richard Tyler: Not to mention being tossed, squashed, and scared practically to death!
The Pagemaster: Yet you stand before me.
Richard Tyler: Well, yeah.
The Pagemaster: Think, boy....

---

Connections

References The Wizard of Oz (1939)

---

Soundtracks

Whatever You Imagine (Montage)
(1994) (uncredited)
Lyric by Cynthia Weil
Music by Barry Mann and James Horner
Produced by Keith Thomas
Executive Producer: Jay Landers
Performed by Wendy Moten
Wendy Moten courtesy of Thunderbird Records / EMI Records

User Reviews

Part of my childhood

Just because something is part of my childhood doesn't mean it's good, and this movie is really not a great animated film. It's got a nice message, and it looks good, but the premise of jumping from storybook to storybook gets tiring by the end.

Richard Tyler (McCaulay Culkin) is a scaredy cat who's always getting picked on. On a stormy night he gets stuck in a library, and ends up animated with several book friends. He meets Fantasy (Whoopie Goldberg), Adventure (Patrick Stewart) and Horror (Frank Welker), and he goes through many famous books. The plot is very slim, and kind of just jumps around from book to book, but it actually works very well. This also has a great musical score and it manages to make the movie sad at times. Unlike many animated films, you actually come to like the characters by the end, and that's hard to do.

"The Pagemaster" is a very underrated, good animated movie that will appeal to kids and will amuse adults.

My rating: *** out of ****. 70 mins. Rated G

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

23 November 1994 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Pagemaster

Filming Locations:

Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$27,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$4,188,399, 27 November 1994

Gross USA:

$13,670,688

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$13,670,688

Company Credits

Production Co:

Twentieth Century Fox, Turner Pictures (I)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

80 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1