Jesper Brun Why such a low rating? A movie with such good intentions and well made characters deserve more love. I was so into the idea from the start, and the message about facing your own fear was well woven into a classic fairy-tale trope of going through 3 tests. Of course you'll get the most out of the movie if you know all the references to classic books like Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde, Treasure Island, Alice in Wonderland, The Hound of the Baskervilles, Moby Dick, etc., but I think that's what makes The Pagemaster a good family movie. Kids can get entertained by the lively animated characters and relate to Macauly Culkin's role while adults can enjoy the clever use of historic literature. The different segments of literary genres could've been both deeper and wider had the movie been just fifteen or so minutes longer, because honestly, it was a little rushed at times, but that's my only complaint about it. The segments were fine as they were, but could've made more out of its source material. The animation was pretty good at times. Also a little dated sometimes, but the horror segment and that of fantasy actually had a grand feel to it. The dragon was my favorite simply because of the massive presence it had. It really felt BIG. The anthropomorphic books were also cute and clever in their interactions. Some may find them annoying, but Whoopi Goldberg,Patrick Stewart and Frank Welker brought them to life with exellence. An underated family movie which deserves more attention. Entertaining, educational and heartwarming

nightmarelyre The Pagemaster is a live action/animation hybrid movie about a young boy (played by Macaulay Culkin) who worries a lot about the world, being obsessed with death statistics and thinking through things twice. One day the kid is sent out to the store, but runs into a thunderstorm on the way and has to seek shelter in a library, where Christopher Lloyd plays a creepy librarian that has no bearing on the plot. While waiting for the storm to stop, the kid goes on to look at the books when he slips and hits his head, and is magically transported into a alternate animated world where books come to life and he has to learn some sort of lesson about... something.Look, the plot doesn't really matter. This film is first and foremost an attempt to try and make children read more books more than it is a coherent story. Once the kid gets transported into the magical world, he meets three anthropomorphic books with paper-thin personalities who guide him through a theme park ride of various famous book characters, where nothing feels like a cohesive narrative and none of these characters are given any sort of weight to them.Dr. Jekyll, Ahab from Moby-Dick and Long John Silver appear but their inclusion in the story has no bearing on the plot, and gives no indication of who they are, why they do what they do or why these are considered to be classic books. Why would Dr. Jekyll drink this potion to make him into Mr. Hyde? Why is Ahab out to kill this whale? Why is Long John Silver such a legendary pirate? None of these questions are even acknowledged, it is assumed that the viewer will be so curious of these one-note displays of out of water characters that one would just go pick up the book on that alone, but I don't really feel inspired to read at all by this.Because on top of being a confused narrative with tons of plot holes, poor pacing and very little character or meaning behind it, it's also just a bad propaganda film. When I was a kid I didn't even think about the fact that these characters were from books or that I could go read about them while watching this because nothing they did affected me or made me curious to look closer, and as an adult all it makes me want to do is hunt down better cartoons.Then there is also the attempt at some sort of second moral about overcoming your fears or something, but it makes no sense what so ever. So, what, this kid who is already clearly suffering from anxiety hits his head and is either transported into a dimension where serial killer mad doctors, pirates, dragons and sharks are constantly trying to kill him; or suffered major brain injury and had one hell of a scary fever dream depending on how you look at it, all while his dad and other kids make fun of him for being a coward, and this is supposed to help him somehow? Or is it supposed to be about how escapism can help you cope with your fears, but only escapism in fiction books and nothing else? It's very muddled and to me at least comes off as somebody's grand-dad complaining about "them kids these days being sheltered, unlike in my day", which isn't all that inspirational.The best thing one could say about this movie is that it has a remarkable all-star cast (albeit with less than remarkable performances at times), some decent looking animation and some flashy colors to distract kids with. However, the lack of a proper story, the manipulative attempts at shaming kids for their taste in media and a confused tone that can't decide if it's supposed to be cynical, whimsical or thrilling makes this end up as a forgettable and mildly unpleasant watch. Only recommended for the nostalgia value or for hardcore Macaulay Culkin fans.

Ruairidh MacVeigh Now this was popular with Cartoon Network, when I was growing up this was always a classic movie special for the channel, and as a kid I do have some fond memories of this film. But as an adult I can see the problems of which there are many.What's the marshmallow? Macaulay Culkin plays Richard Tyler, a nervous and awkward child who allows statistics to control his life, meaning he never does anything sporty or risky like other kids. This all changes though when he enters a creepy library to escape a raging storm, and is soon thrown into an enchanted animated world where he has to locate the exit. On the way he picks up three books, Adventure, Fantasy and Horror, who help him embark on his quest through the library and all the mysterious and strange wonders it may entail.Now, the problems. It is quite slow in places which even as a kid left me rather turned off to it. At the same time there are quite a few little holes in the story that do make you scratch your head in confusion. Another problem I found as a kid was the fact that it only dabbled in three genres of literature. What about Science Fiction, Non-Fiction, Action, Celebrity Autobiography? I realise they're trying to keep it simple, but it didn't have to be as simple as that! Also, it's simplistic nature does cause some issues when they come across literary legends as they're literally just glanced over! If it weren't for the fact that I'd heard of these icons of novels already, you wouldn't know who they were or what stories they were from as the movie never takes the time to explain them properly!But on the plus side, the animation is very good, with some lovely colours and an interesting art style. As a kid I never had any complaints on that front. Another good thing is that the story, while as mentioned slow in places, does keep you gripped long enough to watch it.On the whole, a lot of problems with the film, but at the same time some good things that will keep you entertained. Perhaps for younger kids I'd say this movie is recommended, but for adults you'll probably find yourself disinterested.

TheLittleSongbird The Pagemaster in my opinion, was a wonderful film, and I do think the 4.8 rating is too low. I have seen much worse movies, that are rated higher than that. Sure it's not Disney, but it is a good family film that I guarantee if you give it a chance that the whole family will love. The animation is not so bad, perhaps a little dated and rushed, but I've seen worse, and the dragon was excellent. The music by James Horner was beautiful, very fitting with what was going on on screen, very reminiscent of Land Before Time and Once Upon a Forest, and Whatever You imagine was amazing. The story tells of a young boy named Richard, who is serious and fearful of everything, until an unexpected visit to the library changes his life forever. I loved the story and the clever and diverse references to the literary giants, like Treasure Island, Jekyll and Hyde and Moby Dick, and the message of the film about facing your fears that doesn't preach. Macaulay Culkin is excellent here as is Christopher Lloyd, and Patrick Stewart (rousing and witty), Whoopi Goldberg (sugar and starch) and Frank Welker (in a fine Igor impression) expertly bring the snappy screenplay to life. I loved the witty banter between Adventure and Fantasy, and the librarian's rant about the different literary genres. And I don't think it is Macaulay Culkin or Christopher Lloyd's worst film, Culkin's was Richie Rich, Lloyd's was My Favourite Martian. All in all, a terrific film, with a 10/10. Bethany Cox