The Pagemaster (1994)

Genres

Animation, Adventure, Comedy, Fantasy

Directors

Joe Johnston, Maurice Hunt

Country

USA

Cast

Macaulay Culkin, Christopher Lloyd, Patrick Stewart, Whoopi Goldberg, Frank Welker, Leonard Nimoy, George Hearn, Jim Cummings, Phil Hartman, Ed Gilbert, B.J. Ward, Ed Begley Jr., Mel Harris

Storyline

Richard Tyler (Macaulay Culkin), a young cowardly boy, enters a library to escape a storm only to be transformed into a cartoon and transported into a world of books, and he has to conquer his fears to return to real life.

Opinion

I watched The Pagemaster a lot as a kid and yet if it wasn't for Brittany's Thursday Movie Picks post, I wouldn't remember about it. Why? Simply because this film is forgettable.

I have to admit that up to this day I still love the storyline. I find the whole kid being transported into a world where books come to life thing quite fascinating - actually, I'd love if that could happen in real life. Also, I loved how the writers incorporated literary classics such as Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde and Moby Dick into the story, not to mention how I loved spotting on the shelves some books I love, like The Shining and Death in Venice. But that's pretty much it. The plot is terrible. There aren't real plot points, just things happening. And the literary classics are just there. What I mean is that at the end of the movie, a kid won't nothing about those famous characters.

But at least they will (maybe) have some fun with the original characters of the movie, three books: Adventure, Fantasy and Horror. They make a good team and teach the frightened kid how to be brave. By the way, Whoopi Goldberg as Fantasy completely steals the show.

And now there's the worst part, the absolutely horrifying part, even more horrifying than Horror. The animation. I cannot believe this film is only 23 years old. I cannot believe it. The animation is bland and looks cheap. And the colours are terrible. I think a kid would do a better job.