The Pagemaster (1994)

18% of critics liked it
(17 reviews)
48% of users liked it
(49,293 ratings)

A young boy overcomes his obsessive fears by discovering a love for books in this animated fantasy adventure. In a live action wraparound, Macaulay Culkin stars as Richard Tyler, an easily bullied, nervous wreck of a kid who's an expert on safety statistics. His mother and father (Mel Harris and Ed… More A young boy overcomes his obsessive fears by discovering a love for books in this animated fantasy adventure. In a live action wraparound, Macaulay Culkin stars as Richard Tyler, an easily bullied, nervous wreck of a kid who's an expert on safety statistics. His mother and father (Mel Harris and Ed Begley, Jr.) don't know how to inspire their son to embrace life boldly. Barely able to leave the house, Richard ventures out one day, but he gets lost in a storm and ends up at a mysterious library. Inside, he slips, knocks himself unconscious and finds himself in a cartoon realm where books come to life. Guided by Adventure (Patrick Stewart), Fantasy (Whoopi Goldberg) and Horror (Frank Welker), Tyler experiences the adventures of classic novels such as Moby Dick and Treasure Island, and he even meets some famed fictional characters, such as Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (Leonard Nimoy). Through his experiences in the pages of the legendary books, Richard confronts his phobias and learns to face life more courageously. The Pagemaster was directed by Joe Johnston, a former special effects supervisor and production designer who later directed Jumanji (1995) and October Sky (1999). ~ Karl Williams, Rovi

Play Trailer

Rating, Runtime: G, 1 hr. 15 min.
Directed By: Pixote Hunt, Maurice Hunt
Genres: Action & Adventure, Kids & Family, Science Fiction & Fantasy

In Theaters: Nov 23, 1994 Wide
On DVD: May 28, 2002
Studio: Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment

Critic Reviews

Brian Lowry, Variety
Built on a wispy premise better suited to the realm of TV, The Pagemaster plays like a slickly produced afternoon special.
Caryn James, New York Times
A pallid film framed at the start and finish by live action and mostly composed of cheap-looking animation.
Rita Kempley, Washington Post
A splendidly original children's fantasy about the world of books.
James Berardinelli, ReelViews
This clever, often engaging, and always fast-paced motion picture uses the visual medium to encourage its viewers to reach out with their imagination.
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times
A sad and dreary film.
Peter Stack, San Francisco Chronicle
Plays too much like a TV cartoon.
Alex Orner, Common Sense Media
Weak Macaulay Culkin fantasy with some cartoon violence.
Renee Schonfeld, Common Sense Media
Weak Macaulay Culkin fantasy with some cartoon violence.
, TV Guide's Movie Guide
The film rests on its initial ingenuity and fails to develop the concept in interesting or surprising ways.
Derek Adams, Time Out
Mediocre, really, this mixture of real actors and animation.
Scott Weinberg, Apollo Guide
If you're looking for a movie that may inspire your children to read, ignore this one and lay your money down for The Princess Bride or The NeverEnding Story.
Walter Chaw, Film Freak Central
a nice starting point for an important conversation with your child about why so many cartoons think children are stupid.
Alison Macor, Austin Chronicle
In this age of technology, a not-so-subtle plug for a classic method of mental stimulation comes as a pleasant surprise.
Chris Hicks, Deseret News, Salt Lake City
The Pagemaster's problems can be easily traced back to the screenplay, which simply lacks anything remotely resembling wit.

Read all 14 critic reviews

Critic ratings and reviews powered by RottenTomatoes.com

Fresh (60% or more critics rated the movie positively)

Rotten (59% or fewer critics rated the movie positively)

Featured Audience Ratings

Michael E

Kids will like it and the animation is nice, plus some good acting, but overall its not the most memorable animated film made
AJ V

A fantastic fantasy adventure for kids. Culkin gets turned into a cartoon and has to find his way back home from the book lands, and find his courage along the way. It's really a cool movie, and kids will love it.
Marc L

(Relativley short review) Like "A Troll in Central Park", "The Pagemaster" is a family movie that most will hate, but I actually like. I like the lesson, I like the characters and I like the plot. The humor wasn't funny, but apart from that it was good.… More
(Relativley short review) Like "A Troll in Central Park", "The Pagemaster" is a family movie that most will hate, but I actually like. I like the lesson, I like the characters and I like the plot. The humor wasn't funny, but apart from that it was good. Like always, we start with the bad. This movie had WAY too many book puns. What's worse? They weren't even funny and they got old VERY quickly. It would have been a better movie without them. Still this movie had good. It has a good lesson, that kids should face their fears and that when they do, they'll come out stronger. Kids will never apply it, but it's a good lesson. The main character is someone you can really root for. He's a nerd and a coward, but he has a lot of potential too be something more. You'll be rooting for him the whole way. The books were very interesting characters too, and Whoopi Goldberg did a great job as Fantasy. "Adventure" did a nice job too. Finally, the plot was very original. I think it's good that hollywood is getting kids too read. This is a very good introduction to some of literature's greatest classics. Overrall, a pretty good film. Not great, but good.
KJ P

Alright, I'll admit, I shouldn't like it as much as I do, but I don't care what everyone else thinks. I think this movie is great!
Drew S

I remember going to see this when it first came out...my brother and father and I were the only people in the theater. Watching it again fifteen years later with friends, I realized there was a reason why.
Dan S

Hated this movie, just really dark and dreary and I just hated the whole concept.
Leigh R

It was cute enough to enjoy.
Naughtia N

I remember watching this movie a lot when I was younger. I just enjoyed the way they managed to mix a cartoon with a live action movie. The storyline was also great.
Remi L

I've seen this movie a MILLION times and it will always be a treasured part of my childhood. Macaulay Culkin was THE child star back then so I had to see pretty much all of his movies. This movie made it cool to want to read =)
Sarah B

Christopher Lloyd is born to play villains, Macaulay Culkin is the archetypal child actor, the animation is sheer joy and the premise brilliant, shame about the plot...
Sunil J

Silly but still fun.
Quinto W

An incredibly rare instance where the love I had for a film as a child is completely gone by the time I grew up. The whale scene still scared the shit out of me, though.
Jim W

The Pagemaster is a harmless movie about a kid that gets transported into the world of famous stories where he's now in cartoon form. Where he learns to be braver. It's not Macaulay Culkin's most memorable movie but it's not his worst either. For some… More
The Pagemaster is a harmless movie about a kid that gets transported into the world of famous stories where he's now in cartoon form. Where he learns to be braver. It's not Macaulay Culkin's most memorable movie but it's not his worst either. For some reason though, when he says "I'm...I'm a cartoon", it doesn't work for me. I think it might've worked better if it was just known to the viewers that he was now in cartoon form. The line is just kind of dumb lol. Anyway the movie is entertaining enough when you are watching it but when it's over, it's easily forgettable.
Leo L

Cute!
Sarah P

A past childhood favorite and a guilty pleasure of today.