I think this is a new genre that they're all sort of working their way through it and haven't got all the kinks worked out yet but it's a genre that works for me.

The Age of Commercialism

Did you people see the same film I saw?

All of these films share one commonality, that being a kind of emotional center that humanizes a cast of monsters.

The Pagemaster was released after 3 and a half years of work in 1994 to critical and financial failure. However I ask, does anyone care? I saw this film a very long time ago, as a kid. I loved it back then! And I'm sure I'm not the only one. I'm sure I was not the only one to grow up and be surprised by this films rampant bad reviews. Does it deserve them? The film opens with a live action segment showing Macaulay Culkin's character and his family. Thankfully this is a short part of the film as it is relatively boring, until it reaches the Library. Here we are introduced to one of many seasoned actors in this film. We start with Christopher Lloyd, as the creepy librarian. Lloyd's performance in this minor scene is really what kick starts the better part of the film. It turns animated in less then 5 minutes from this point. Now let's talk about the animation first, standard for the time. But very well done. It is gorgeous to look at, although somewhat bland in certain moments. The horror scenes in particular are not very interesting. It's not given enough time for real atmosphere and does not come off at all scary. The adventure section is faster paced, and even a bit longer. We get more time to appreciate the animation here. The animated sequences reach their peak during the fantasy section. This brings me to the story line. There is one very obvious and unfortunate flaw wit this film. It is only 75 minutes long, which for an animated film may not be a problem. But for this film, they tried to cram way to much in it for a run-time this short. For starters they have classic story-lines from some of the most incredible novels of all time to work with, and very few of them are given any more than 2 to 5 minutes each. This is insulting. To hire someone as perfect as Leonard Nemoy to play Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde for only 5 minutes at most is a waste, pure and simple. To include Captain Ahab for less then 2 minutes is confusing to those who do not know the true mania of his character. The only one to get any semblance of screen time is Long John Silver. If they were planning to show three plots, one from each section, they failed. Too many are included here and all are unfocused. It may have worked if they chose one story for each section and stuck to it for 20 minutes each, finding better ways to include the characters. Not only do I believe that would have worked, but it would have been very unique.So what about the humor? Meh, hit and miss. Mostly miss. Almost all miss. In fact the script mostly consists of references and repeated lines. The only truly funny one here is Patrick Stewart's character. I admit to still giggling despite my self at his "curl up with a good book" quip. So far this movie doesn't sound all that great, so what does work in it? The actors, that's what. Christopher Lloyd, Leonard Nemoy, Frank Welker, Whoopie Goldburg, and Patrick Stewart all play their parts very well. In particular Stewart, he played the character so well that I didn't even recognize his legendary voice in the role. Now that is performing. Frank Welker is always fantastic, whether you know you are hearing him or not. Nemoy's voice is wonderful, it's just a shame we didn't hear more of it. I never really liked Macaulay Culkin. I know he was a huge deal in the early nineties, when all said and done though, I've seen far better child actors in better films over the years. Okay he's scared, what else has he to offer? Not much, he spends most of all his performances talking to himself. I've found him to be far more creepy than cute. Alright, so far not a great review. The story is too fast and unfocused. The novel references are insulting to anyone who knows the stories well, and too vague for anyone who has not read them. I mean really, how many kids in the 90's has read Moby-Dick or The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde? I did later on, but sure didn't when I was 6 years old. The acting is enjoyable, although brief. Too many big names are wasted here. The movie moves along far to quickly and spends no time finding itself or figuring out what it wants to be. It could have had a decent message behind it, but it gets lost in a sea of lazy writing and lighting speed pacing issues. Now, before giving my final word here. I have a love for this movie, because I grew up with it. This is the curse this movie will always have, it is only appealing to the very young. Unless they were very young the first time they saw it. To anyone else it would come across as bad for all of the reasons I've listed above. Overall, it's too quick, actors are wasted, the lead is not appealing and it's only appealing to the very young. And worst of all, insulting to those who are familiar with the classic stories it travels through. I still enjoy it though. 4/10.

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.

Hello. This is gavin.thelordofthefuture and this would be a review of a film that I've seen twenty years ago when I was a kid. The story about an 11 year old boy with statistics named Richard Tyler who stumbles upon a library during a thunderstorm and enters it. After meeting an old librarian, he goes to the fiction section and sees a mural with four pictures, but little did he realized that he gets transported to a world where every fiction story comes to life and sees a wise old sorcerer called the "Pagemaster". Then, his adventure begins and meets three fiction books named Adventure, Fantasy, and Horror and together, they must encounter haunted houses, pirates, and monsters in order to help get Richard back home.Why am I reviewing this in the middle of a Christmas break? Well, let's just say that I've been watching this since I was a child and seeing how it has been 20 years, that's why I made that risky decision. Now, is there anything that I don't like about The Pagemaster? Well, let's just say that the only nitpick I do have is the animation. Don't get me wrong. It's beautiful and is very creative in it's making of the world of literary including Dr. Jekyll/Mr. Hyde, the pirates led by Captain Long John Silver, and the Dragon in the climax of the film, but as time went by, it became a little dated to me.Anyway, everything else still holds up. The story is very engaging with very clever writing and the morals about facing your fears and using your imagination doesn't preach on you as it is done perfectly. Also, it has some very good characters and they still hold up to this day. Macaulay Culkin is likable as Richard Tyler, Christopher Lloyd relishes his role as the librarian Mr. Dewey and The Pagemaster, and the three talking books, Adventure, a swashbuckling pirate book with Patrick Stewart's solid pirate accent, Fantasy, a sassy, but caring fairy tale book who pulls off some nice humorous moments while being wise thanks to Whoopi Goldberg, and Horror, a fearful Hunchbook and also has some funny bits with the famous Frank Welker, known for voicing animal creatures in other animated films. The other characters are also good with cameos from Leonard Nimoy as Dr. Jekyll/Mr. Hyde, Phil Hartman as one of the pirate crew members Tom Morgan and Jim Cummings as Long John Silver.The pacing is very brisk and doesn't come to the point where it would bore me to death, but the best part about The Pagemaster is the music score from James Horner, one of my favorite music composers. To some, it does copy music elements from his other scores from Star Trek II and others, but to me, it has a nostalgic value to it. Why, you may ask? Well, the reason why I brought this up is because it does a solid job interpreting the theme song "Whatever You Imagine" that plays throughout the movie and has been stuck with me since my childhood ended. That piece of music alone is what made me watch this film over and over again.Overall, The Pagemaster became one of my childhood films and today, it still holds up. It has an engaging story, some likable characters, some clever writing, and some really beautiful music. As those aspects stayed with me in my memory, this deserves a gold trophy of recommendation as a film that is worth watching to some who hasn't seen it yet. Check it out and relive your imagination!

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