The Pagemaster

For the video game, see The Pagemaster (video game).
The Pagemaster
Theatrical release poster by Drew Struzan
Directed by
Screenplay by
Story by
  • David Kirschner
  • David Casci
Produced by
  • David Kirschner
  • Paul Gertz
Starring
CinematographyAlexander Gruszynski (live-action)
Edited byKaja Fehr (live-action)
Music byJames Horner
Production
companies
Distributed by
Release date
  • November 23, 1994 (1994-11-23)
Running time
75 minutes[1]
CountryUnited States[1]
LanguageEnglish
Budget$34 million[2]
Box office$13.7 million (US)[3]

The Pagemaster is a 1994 American live-action/animated fantasy adventure film starring Macaulay Culkin, Christopher Lloyd, Whoopi Goldberg, Patrick Stewart, Leonard Nimoy, Frank Welker, Ed Begley Jr., and Mel Harris. The film was produced by Turner Pictures and Hanna-Barbera and released by 20th Century Fox on November 23, 1994.[4] Culkin stars as a timid boy who uses statistics as an excuse to avoid anything he finds uncomfortable in life. But after reluctantly undertaking an errand for his father, he gets caught in a storm, which forces him to seek refuge in a library. He then finds himself trapped inside the library, where he must battle his way through literary classics come to life if he is to find his way home.

The film was written for the screen by David Casci,[5] based on a six-page pitch by writer Charles Pogue entitled "Library Days", presented to Casci by producer David Kirschner. The film was directed by Joe Johnston (live-action) and Pixote Hunt and Glenn Chaika (animation), and produced by David Kirschner and Paul Gertz. The film received generally negative reviews from critics and grossed $13.7 million from a budget of $34 million. The film's poor box office performance, along with the 1997 film Cats Don't Dance (which was in production at the time The Pagemaster was released), set back other animated films for the animation studio, Turner Feature Animation.[6]

  1. ^ a b c d e f "The Pagemaster (1994)". AFI Catalog of Feature Films. Archived from the original on 2019-12-03. Retrieved 2019-10-05.
  2. ^ McCall, Douglas L. (2015). Film Cartoons: A Guide to 20th Century American Animated Features and Shorts. McFarland & Company. pp. 53–54. ISBN 9781476609669. Retrieved 2019-10-05.
  3. ^ "The Pagemaster (1994)". Box Office Mojo. 1993-12-27. Archived from the original on 2024-09-09. Retrieved 2015-07-01.
  4. ^ "The Pagemaster". American Filme Institute. Retrieved 10 January 2017.
  5. ^ Rainer, Peter (1994-11-23). "MOVIE REVIEW: 'Pagemaster' a Live-Action Adventure in World of Books". The Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on 2022-05-06. Retrieved 2011-12-16.
  6. ^ Lyttelton, Oliver (2012-08-06). "5 Things You Might Not Know About Brad Bird's 'The Iron Giant'". IndieWire. Archived from the original on 2024-09-09. Retrieved 2019-10-05.