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The Pagemaster (1994) - Directed by Joe Johnston and Maurice Hunt
"Look to the books."
When I was a kid, I had this VHS of two Flintstones episodes, and it had two commercials at the beginning. One was for the series of Flintstones VHS's, and the other was a teaser for The Pagemaster. That trailer is actually one of my earliest childhood memories. When I was seven, it was the Feast of Tabernacles (I'm not Jewish but Dad kept those holidays), and Dad got me that VHS. I first watched it that Feast, and it redefined my life. It really did get me into adventure, fantasy and horror.
Macaulay Culkin and Christopher Lloyd star in this understated kids movie about a shy ten-year-old who buries himself in statistics to avoid harm. Mocked by the neighborhood kids and worried about by his parents, he's told to run an errand but ends up caught in a violent storm. Taking shelter in a large library, he soon ends up travelling into the world of literature itself, as a walking talking illustration! When he meets the ruler of that world, the Pagemaster, he's told that to find his way home, he needs to travel to different worlds and books in order to find the Exit. Guided by three talking books, he faces several villains from different novels to gain the courage he needs to stand up for himself and others.
The power of nostalgia has stopped affecting my ratings of films. There are SOME films I'll defend from my childhood, but not a lot. But in my early years I had felt the magical touch of The Pagemaster and as a result I have a lot of interest in being a writer myself. If not for The Pagemaster, I probably wouldn't have even watched art movies or finished the 1,200-page novel War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy. Even now I'm trying to work through Journey to the West. I've sped-read through Jurassic Park in three days as well. I'd say The Pagemaster did it's job.
First, let me point out that the A-Grade cast was not wasted. Unfortunately, Culkin was a young boy who had to stand with the giants of acting, and his live-action scenes didn't have the dedication he displayed in Home Alone. However, his voice-over work was perfectly fine and he flowed well with the obnoxiousness of the three talking books. Leave it to the brilliant Frank Welker (both Fred and Scooby) to voice the oddball Quasimoto-ripoff Horror in all his nervous glory. To start with the several Star Trek actors, Patrick Stewart puts on a brilliant performance as the pirate-themed Adventure, who's book-related gags actually work for the movie instead of relying on cheap Schwarzenegger puns (I will never forgive Joel Schumacher for Batman and Robin). Whoopi Goldberg plays Fantasy, the nice and loving but sassy and strong fairy book who's magic wand doesn't always work, and she brings a lot of charisma to the film. Then we have guest appearances by Leonard Nimoy, Ed Begley Jr. and Jim Cummings (Darkwing Duck and Winnie-thePooh).
The story is one big and quick ride through several literary works. We have some good animation and excellent cinematography that keep things exciting, and James Horner's soundtrack keeps things well and alive with beautiful music. However, the stories are all packed Ben-and-Jerry style into a 75-minute movie, so we don't always get to see the best parts of the books. The movie's really quick to get through and spends a decent amount of time boasting landscapes that look like stacked books (there's a Sonic zone in that somewhere). In the end, we hve a true jounrey of growth from Culkin's lead and little bits and pieces from the book sidekicks, but as a coherent story, it suffers from the many subplots that were not necessarily "stolen" from other stories considering the basis of the plot, but were just fudged in because of the basis.
The Pagemaster is one of the wildest magical rides a kid can ask for. Its all-star cast doesn't disappoint at all, and the visausl and character growth make from a pleasant experience. The darker and more mature fantasy aspects also add real atmosphere to the movie, as well as Horner's brilliant score. But the story doesn't feel so much like a story despite being all about literature, so take what you will from it.
"Look to the books."
When I was a kid, I had this VHS of two Flintstones episodes, and it had two commercials at the beginning. One was for the series of Flintstones VHS's, and the other was a teaser for The Pagemaster. That trailer is actually one of my earliest childhood memories. When I was seven, it was the Feast of Tabernacles (I'm not Jewish but Dad kept those holidays), and Dad got me that VHS. I first watched it that Feast, and it redefined my life. It really did get me into adventure, fantasy and horror.
Macaulay Culkin and Christopher Lloyd star in this understated kids movie about a shy ten-year-old who buries himself in statistics to avoid harm. Mocked by the neighborhood kids and worried about by his parents, he's told to run an errand but ends up caught in a violent storm. Taking shelter in a large library, he soon ends up travelling into the world of literature itself, as a walking talking illustration! When he meets the ruler of that world, the Pagemaster, he's told that to find his way home, he needs to travel to different worlds and books in order to find the Exit. Guided by three talking books, he faces several villains from different novels to gain the courage he needs to stand up for himself and others.
The power of nostalgia has stopped affecting my ratings of films. There are SOME films I'll defend from my childhood, but not a lot. But in my early years I had felt the magical touch of The Pagemaster and as a result I have a lot of interest in being a writer myself. If not for The Pagemaster, I probably wouldn't have even watched art movies or finished the 1,200-page novel War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy. Even now I'm trying to work through Journey to the West. I've sped-read through Jurassic Park in three days as well. I'd say The Pagemaster did it's job.
First, let me point out that the A-Grade cast was not wasted. Unfortunately, Culkin was a young boy who had to stand with the giants of acting, and his live-action scenes didn't have the dedication he displayed in Home Alone. However, his voice-over work was perfectly fine and he flowed well with the obnoxiousness of the three talking books. Leave it to the brilliant Frank Welker (both Fred and Scooby) to voice the oddball Quasimoto-ripoff Horror in all his nervous glory. To start with the several Star Trek actors, Patrick Stewart puts on a brilliant performance as the pirate-themed Adventure, who's book-related gags actually work for the movie instead of relying on cheap Schwarzenegger puns (I will never forgive Joel Schumacher for Batman and Robin). Whoopi Goldberg plays Fantasy, the nice and loving but sassy and strong fairy book who's magic wand doesn't always work, and she brings a lot of charisma to the film. Then we have guest appearances by Leonard Nimoy, Ed Begley Jr. and Jim Cummings (Darkwing Duck and Winnie-thePooh).
The story is one big and quick ride through several literary works. We have some good animation and excellent cinematography that keep things exciting, and James Horner's soundtrack keeps things well and alive with beautiful music. However, the stories are all packed Ben-and-Jerry style into a 75-minute movie, so we don't always get to see the best parts of the books. The movie's really quick to get through and spends a decent amount of time boasting landscapes that look like stacked books (there's a Sonic zone in that somewhere). In the end, we hve a true jounrey of growth from Culkin's lead and little bits and pieces from the book sidekicks, but as a coherent story, it suffers from the many subplots that were not necessarily "stolen" from other stories considering the basis of the plot, but were just fudged in because of the basis.
The Pagemaster is one of the wildest magical rides a kid can ask for. Its all-star cast doesn't disappoint at all, and the visausl and character growth make from a pleasant experience. The darker and more mature fantasy aspects also add real atmosphere to the movie, as well as Horner's brilliant score. But the story doesn't feel so much like a story despite being all about literature, so take what you will from it.