Forget reviews saying this is not as good as the book. No films are are a good as the book! Watch this movie with an 8 year old child and you will see how good the film is.
Thank you Frank Oz for a wonderful film. The acting from the young children is above average and the tearful ending just right for a young audience. Interesting to note Steve Coogan plays a miniature model come to life - something he repeats later in his career in A Night At The Museum. Typecasting?
The effects are also very good. Remember this is 1995 when CGI was in it's infancy - but the miniaturisation of the cast is flawless.

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I'm a sucker for nice kids, not those snotty ones seen so often in films from the '60s to the present. In here is a wonderful neat-looking little kid, Hal Sardino, who is unusual in that this is the only movie he ever starred in. To his credit, Scardino went on to live a 'normal' life after this film, eventually going to college as a regular student like you and me with no celebrity status.
The film is anything but 'normal,' a fantasy about a young boy who receives a cupboard that transforms little toy figurines - in this case, an Indian and then a cowboy. - into miniature real-life people. Each time he opens or closes the box with the figures in them, they change to either real or back to plastic.
Scardino, who plays Omri,' is fun to watch, if for no other reason than the great expressions on his face. He has to be one of the most likable children I've ever seen on film. Meanwhile, his best friend 'Patrick' is the only villain, so to speak, only because he's a bit 'defiant,' as his mother labels him and he almost spoils everything for 'Omri.'
It's a solid family film that is fun for both the parents and kids to watch at the same time. Both will get a lot of entertainment out of it. With just a bit of profanity early on and a bit of obvious political correctness, there is nothing in here which should offend viewers. Critics didn't seem to care for it, so you know it truly was a nice, wholesome film....and fun to watch.

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Why this movie doesn't have an average of around 9 eludes me. It is a wondeful film. So well acted and with a very engaging story. This is a great film for the whole family. You'll love it. The lead actor - Hal Scardino - is such a natural. He's completely believable, as is his friend. The Indian is also wonderfully brought to life. How they made the special effects work so well back in 1995 (well... that was a while back for film special effects anyway...) I don't know. I wish we could see more warm hearted films like this today.

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I must first say I was shocked to see that the average rating given this film was below 6 (when I checked it in Jan of '05). While I gave it a 10, I fully expected at least a mid 7 from the IMDb audience. It is a wonderful film that I love to show to my children. What's not to like? It has a unique plot - that of an Indian coming to life in a young boy's cupboard, and wonderful acting and music. Through the boy's experiences with the Indian (wonderfully played by Litefoot) he comes to a new level of maturity. Hal Scardino's acting is natural and totally believable. If you are tired of the cut-out child actors that Hollywood gives us too often, then you'll love Hal. What a fabulously underplayed performance. The ending always makes me and my wife cry. There are so few really good films for children. I hate to suffer through other films I bought for the kids (like 'Inspector Gadget' - a truly awful film) and I wish that there were more films like this one. This is a wonderful film and I heartily recommend it.

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1995 was certainly a great year for fantasy films and The Indian In The Cupboard was one of the many great movies of that year.
A little boy puts a toy Indian in the cupboard and it comes to life. They gradually become good friends throughout the film and the young boy also puts some of his other toys into the cupboard as well.
The acting is great throughout and it's a nice little story as well. The great thing about films like this is that they are pure fantasy and they feature the type of things that most young kids dream about. What young child wouldn't like to bring some of their toys to life? It may never happen but it's great to be able to watch a movie where it does happen.
All in all, a lovely movie for the kids.

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On his ninth birthday a young boy (Hal Scardino) named Omri (it means 'The Lord is my life' and was the name of a Hebrew king whose story is told in I Kings 16) receives various presents from his parents (Richard Jenkins , Lindsay Crouse) and brothers . Two of them first seem to be less important : an old cupboard -a wooden medicine cabinet - from his brother and a little Indian figure made of plastic . Then there happens the biggest adventure of his childhood , the magical cupboard brings his toy action figures to life and Omri watches him become flesh and blood ; there also appear a soldier (Steve Coogan) from WWII . Three-inch plastic Indian named Little Bear (Lifefoot) undertaking several adventures and teaching him important lessons . Thing go worse , however , when the boy's best friend brings a toy gunfighter (David Keith) to life and pursuit starts . Events turn nasty and might be frightened for young children , by some scenes involving a rather vicious mouse .
Enjoyable and well-intentioned film plenty of good feeling , marvelous adventure , fantasy and sense of wonder . This is a nice movie with heart that amuses and has something to tell . The picture is pretty good but suffers of claustrophobic scenario , as it is mostly set in room , exception some brief scenes in courtyard . Intelligent as well as sensitive screenplay by Melissa Matheson , Harrison Ford's real-life first wife , based on the best-selling children's book by Lynne Reid Banks who wrote her original novel as a bedtime story for her son , Omri . Cool special effects , as blue screen techniques allow them to appear together-on-screen although they were really filmed together only once . Emotive as well as evocative musical score by Randy Edelman . Colorful and adequate cinematography by Russell Carpenter .
The motion picture well produced by Kathleen Kennedy and Frank Marshall was professionally directed by Frank Oz , though he stated he was reluctant to direct this movie, as he doesn't think he's a children's director. Frank began forming team with the great Jim Henson filming known titles such as ¨The Dark Crystal¨ and ¨Muppets take Manhattan¨. Frank subsequently directed a lot of comedies as ¨Little shop of horrors¨, ¨Dirty rotten scoundrels¨, ¨What about Bob?¨, ¨House sitter¨, ¨In and out¨, ¨Bowfinger¨and a thriller titled ¨The score¨. And this ¨Indian in cupboard¨, it results to be one of his most sensitive films . Rating : 6'5/10 . Better than average . Well worth watching .

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This film was special. It's not to say it ranks high amongst the worlds films technically (which is not to say it fails in this regard – it simply does not depend upon special effects), but the underlying theme is gentle and beautifully presented. The child actors' performances are solid. Especially the lead 'Omri', and his friend (whom I really liked and really disliked respectively - (hence his acting ability)). It's an innocent story with great imagination, and doesn't take itself too seriously. The relationship and growth that the main character develops with Little Bear (the Indian in the cupboard) is special. It eventually takes on a father/son dynamic after a role reversal or sorts from the Creator/created dynamic the boy has with Little Bear at first. I was touched by this relationship and by Omri's innocence. Frank Oz imagination is conveyed well through this work. I can easily imagine being in Omri's shoes and enjoy this film each time I watch it. Whether you watch this with kids or not, odds are you'll enjoy it.

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I'll admit...when I first saw the movie, I thought it was the best movie ever. Then, I read the books. This movie strays very far from the book. The big problem is the fact that the books take place in England. And if you read the rest of the books, you'll know how important the location is to the entire story. The movie Americanizes Omri. The movie cuts out and replaces a lot of scenes as well. For instance, in the movie, Boone never sits in the art class drawing his microscopic sketch of his town...a scene that would play an big role in a book to come. Another scene they cut was the principal seeing Little Bear and Boone the way Omri and Patrick do...another big scene that follows them throughout the series. Perhaps they did this because there were no plans for sequels. However, it makes for a huge disappointment for viewers who had read the books before or ran right to the books afterward. The acting and casting for the time travelers, however, was wonderful. As I read the books, I picture Litefoot speaking all Little Bear's lines, Steve Coogan speaking all Tommy's lines, and David Keith speaking Boone's lines. I loved the special effects throughout the movie. The fact that all the others were Americanized causes me to realize they don't fit the Omri, Patrick, etc in the books. Overall, I say that if you enjoy it, then you enjoy it. But chances are, when you read the books, you'll find it a definite disappointment, as it is with so many other book-based movies.

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I have just to take a look at the face of my children (5 and 3 years old) each time we watch the film together to see the magic of the movie. Friendship and responsability are esential in our Society, and of course as we can see every day, are not very common. Personally I find nice the english soldier performance, and one of last scenes when Little foot turns big and is looking at Omri. The music is also great.

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This is one of those movies you watch as a child, and you love it, and when you watch it as an adult, you hope it will live up to your memory. A little boy receives a few unique gifts for his birthday: an old cupboard, an old key, and an old Native American Iroquois toy. When combined, something magical happens. The toy becomes a living man. The young boy is at first excited about being able to make his toys come to life, until he learns that with the people being truly alive, it also means they can die. He learns a lot from the Native American about the man's culture, and brings the information to school. But when the boy's friend learns the truth, he decides to bring an old cowboy to life, which causes fights between the toys. This is a heartwarming tale of friendship, love, and the meaning and consequences of life. For that reason, this movie is sweet, and good. However, from a technical standpoint, this movie is terrible. Therefore, I must say, if you have kids then this would be a sweet movie to watch with them. Otherwise, never see this film.
Soundtrack: 4- There were moments of soundtrack that worked, usually when putting in bits of Native American chants, but for the most part it was just bad.
Script: 4- There are so many plot holes. Not only that, but the script sounded choppy, and not well thought out. However, there were some moments that seemed to try to be character development, and for the sake of what the script had to offer, it was OK.
Originality: 10- This was definitely an excellent idea, and might even work if redone better.
Cinematography: 5- The cinematography was not spectacular. There were some strange camera choices. However, the special effects blended pretty decently, giving this an average score.
Casting: 2- There were a couple people that worked, but for the most part the cast just wasn't right.
Acting: 1- The man playing the Native American was decent, and the only reason the acting is not a zero. No one else in this film could act at all.
Overall: 4.3

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The Indian in the Cupboard is a delightful movie. The sweet and adorable Omri (played by Hal Scardino) is great to go along with on this fascinating adventure. The character Omri is a perfect portrayal of a sensitive and thoughtful 9 year old boy. This movie is most enjoyable in that aspect, above and beyond the story of the strange abilities of the cupboard.

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I loved this movie almost as much as Hal Scardino, who plays Omri, had me believing he loved Little Bear. As life's lessons go, Indian in the Cupboard teaches many of the best about friendship and responsibility while providing spirited entertainment for young and old.

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Underrated and highly involving movie for kids. A young boy finds out that his cupboard has magical powers and can turn plastic into reality. He first turns a plastic Indian into a real human being. The movie teaches about responsibility but in an understandable way. It isn't patronizing nor childish, which means older audiences should relate to it also. It also mediates on life and death at certain points, and was the first film in a long time to be genuinely emotionally shocking. The relationship between the Indian and the cowboy was very well developed as they started to bond over their tragedies. The film does have a number of loose edges. Rishi Bhat was particularly annoying at times, but in a way he was necessary to play off Scardino. Even Scardino wasn't always a lovable protagonist. In one scene he kicks his brother's pet rat down the stairs, in an event where the rat clearly would have died. As the film hadn't relied on cartoon logic up until that point it was a bit out of place. Great effects, and seeing Darth Vader vs. a T-Rex kind of made up for those moments. A more innocent time when children's movies didn't have to be loud and crass.

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I remember reading Indian In The Cupboard, and then six months later going to the movie theaters to see the movie. Personally, I think the movie was a poor adaptation of a great children's book. My advice is to get the book, because it is better than the movie. Don't get me wrong, there are some movies that were adapted from books that turned out to be great. Unfortunately, this one is not one of them. It is a waste of film. ONE LINE: GET THE BOOK!

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I'll totally exclude the fact that they raped the book. The book is delightful, enchanting and enthralling.
The movie is the total opposite of all these things. The acting is awful on all fronts. Terrible directing from Frank Oz, terrible casting, terrible everything. I only revisited this disaster to put myself to sleep last night.
There are only a few circumstances for anyone to be seeing this.
Dodge at all costs unless you're curious about the book comparison or if you have a kid that you need to distract for 90 minutes or so. Horrendous adaptation, horrendous film-making.

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When I was 9 years old someone brought over this movie and we watched it. I sat through the entire thing.
At the end the credits rolled up and in my innocent 9-year old voice, I proclaimed that this was the 'Worst Movie Ever Made!'
I am now 17 I have never seen the movie again I stand by that assessment.
Stupid, poorly acted, poorly directed, destroyed a reasonable book Highly unrecommended

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Now that I've grown and educated myself, I can't stop thinking about how politically incorrect the title is. People say it should be called 'the Native American in the cupboard'. This is a very very common misconception in America. Yes, for a while they were called Indians. Christopher Columbus did not call them Indians because he thought they were from India. He called them 'Gods people'. The word in his language for 'God's people' sounds very similar to the word Indian that we use today. It's just that the pronunciation we use now has changed a little after all this time. As for people saying that the 'correct' term is 'Native American' is highly offensive and frankly kind of stupid. How is it that taking the name from which the conquerors's gave them(American) supposed to be the correct term? That makes absolutely no sense. The word American has no relation whatsoever to Indian culture. Therefore 'Native American' is utterly ridiculous, as well. If there is to be a title, it's should be call 'The Iroquois in the Cupboard'. No matter, what it is, call. The movie and book is not racist. The movie and book is trying to show tolerance through it's metaphor for how ignorant people have subjugated and marginalized the Indian populations of America by refusing to understand, listen to, or accommodate Indian heritage. The film opens up, a lot of things that people rarely knew about Native Americans. The film starts with a young boy, Omri (Hal Scardino), receives a cupboard. He uses a 'magical' key, which belonged to his great-grandmother, to bring a plastic 18th century Native American figurine to life with the cupboard. The now-living Iroquois reveals his name as Little Bear (Litefoot). Litefoot, a real rapper does a great job in teaching role, not only in teaching the child about Iroquois's culture, but also the morality of playing God. There is a Frankenstein feel to the film. My favorite line in the film 'God does play with little men'. Author Lynne Reid Banks and Director Frank Oz did an excellent job conveying the worry and angst the young boy felt for for his little toy come to life. I appreciate how the author had the boy evolve from seeing the Indian as a plaything to realizing that, regardless of his size, the Indian was a person with needs, feelings, and a right to live his life. What struck me about it was not that it was racist, or dated (it didn't feel so as much as you'd think,) but that it is a deconstruction of the idea that magical toys would be fun to have, and possibly of imagination as well. Omri seem just the typical kid protagonist, kinda generic if you ask me. But I still think his acting was unintentionally funny. Just weird out with all the close ups on Omri's face, the odd relationship between him and Little Bear, the weird fears, and how he reacts to others. Examples when Omri's dad confronts him about the saw blades, and Omri says he buried them. Odd lying by him and his parent accept that lame excuse. What kid can cuss to his mom as well? What is with his relationship with brothers being super cool in the beginning of the film and then for no reason Omri turns into a complete jerk with him? The worst thing, the kid does is abuse an animal. That poor thing was abused through the whole film. Whether it was real or not, it was still animal abuse and shouldn't be shown in this movie. The treatment of that rat was appalling. Omri still wasn't nearly as annoying as his friend, Patrick. One minute he's Omri's best friend, and all docile and quiet, and then like a switch, he's evil and defiant with seeing them as nothing more than animated toys. He brings in Boone (David Keith), a bigot Injun hating cowboy whom at first conflict with Little Bear, but grows to be friends with him, once they got to know each other. One of the odd things about the film is scenes that go nowhere or has nothing to do with the story like the Mohawk bully. Another thing is the degrading of women in the film, from the kids watching Montley Crue 'Girls' music video (it's the 1990's, why were they watching it anyways?) to Bear demanding a wife so she can cook. I put aside my critiques and squelched my inner squirming and found much to like about the film. The special effects were top notch, and it was really neat to see Little Bear, Boone and Tommy (Steve Coogan) the medic brought to life on the screen. It was pretty cool to see the Star Wars, Jurrasic Park, G.I Joe, and Robo-Cop reference. The movie is pretty close to the book, minus little changes such as the toy shop. I laugh at the kid that loves JFK. While the movie isn't that bad, it's not going to hurt the kids watching it. I like it when I was a kid and still kinda do.

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Kids will love it, adults will think it has good parts and has a lovely idea, but in the end is maybe not fully complete.
I watched the movie as a kid and always somewhat remembered it and recently watched it again to see what it actually was about and to get the whole plot. I definitely like the idea and it is similar to Toy Story, but in the end it felt like something was missing or it was just too much of a movie for kids.

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On this one, I am surprised that viewers are so critical as to miss the big picture of the magical moments and concepts of the movie. I agree, there are quite a few flaws overall, but some are just direction or editing oversights. However, this film deserves to be recognized as a really good family film as is. There are so many good 'teaching moments' for parents regarding what kids go through growing up. The effects were well done for the time, playing the small vs. big people visuals. I was absorbed in the story well beyond picking on every detail. Omri was decent, not great, but believable as the kid star; the casting and scripting both for Little Bear are compelling, fascinating, and wonderful. I would recommend this film to almost anyone, if their reality can be suspended for 96 minutes. It is a great story, if only a good film. Entertaining and more gripping than many films since.

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The movie about a boy who finds a cupboard, that once you put in an action figure or doll, they came to life. I searched high and low for one, and darn it, I never found it. I gave up, or did I? Lol, don't think I'm being serious. I use to love this movie. I still do. Sadly, our copy was sold at our garage sale when we moved out of our home in Canby. But, I'm not getting the DVD. Want to know why? Well, I saw it for the last time when I was 10, or so. I had to cover my mouth from restraining my laughter. I had never realized how bad the acting is. There is one scene where the lead character is panicking because his secrete is about to be exposed. I laughed. I laughed hard. I said goodbye to my copy, and I haven't looked back. I loved it, but I may only get it for when I start teaching. It's not really a movie I would want to watch by myself. At least, not anymore.

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The only redeeming part of this movie is after he rescues the Indian from under the floorboards with the key, and then the rat jumps out, as if from nowhere!! I always rewind it at least 4 times. But only that part. This movie is very strange though, because this would never happen. I did always like the movie box when i was a child though, because you could switch it from the picture of the little boy to the fake cupboard door, and i got a key with it. How delightful. All in all, I would not recommend this movie for you to watch, because there are many better movies available for your viewing pleasure. A movie that I would recommend that still has a magical feel to it would be the 1976 version of Freaky Friday. Because magical things happen in this movie as well as that movie, but the Freaky Friday movie is much more enjoyable.

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SPOILERS PROBABLE - I'm well past my childhood, but I really liked this movie. It may not follow the exact story of the Lynn Reid Banks story, but it almost definitely captures the spirit of it as Hal Scardino as Omri (where did such a name come from ?) learns the trials and tribulations of self-discovery, tolerance and life and death. Litefoot plays a wonderful role as the Indian brought to life, but I also suspect he may have had a little hand in the production guiding and eliminating several Native American stereotypes from the production. I do admit being quite a bit intrigued by the power of the cupboard and/or key as by some of the toys brought to life seem to actually hold the consciousnesses of actual individuals returned to life. If so, then the cupboard is merely a time machine of sorts, but there is a very cute, albeit brief scene where Omri brings to life a few of his action figures and discovers how dangerous they are with their phony weapons transformed into their real life equivalents. Among which is a dinosaur possibly from his Jurassic Park collection. He could have kept the creature alive and sold it for a million at his local Natural History Museum. He also doesn't have any comic book superheroes to bring to life; what a chance he missed ! I can only wonder if a barbie doll would have come out looking like Anna Nicole Smith ! Despite infinite possibilities, the movie is really better centered on Omri's self-discovery through the Indian than several experiments with the cupboard. Little Bear (Litefoot) explains it all so well: 'You should not play with magic you do not understand !'

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A horrible horror movie. And don't let that publicity fool you (the poster, the tagline, etc..). Aside from being the ultimate BORE, what possibly this could be? A philosophical flick about the deep brotherhood between humans, the greatness of philanthropy, the acceptance of fate's decisions, and the stupidity of making all of that cinematically too ! (Frank Oz) used to be the creative comic voice at the immortal (Muppet Show) and a good comedian occasionally as well, so what in god's name had happened ??? I've never felt of such suppressed provocation while watching a movie before; it's like bad flu, being imprisoned, or forced to be with the silliest creatures at all. On the poster, you'll read (An Adventure Comes to Life), well, apparently it dies again so fast. I think it's too gloomy and deadly slow (believe me it's one of the slowest) to be meant for children or else. Not to mention the scarily tasteless mood all over it. I still remember how the leaden sense of it bothered me for the whole day after watching. What could be more embarrassing than making a movie with good meanings that has no enjoyment, so wooden, and forces you to hate it? It might be useful only to punish your kids if they did something really wicked, however on second though that could be a little bit sadistic ! (The Indian in the Cupboard) ranks proudly as one of the worst 10 movies I've ever seen. And it's so sad that it's written by Melissa Mathison, the lady who wrote once E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982).

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The Indian in the Cupboard has always been one of my favorite books. I was thoroughly disappointed with this adaptation. I can't remember any of the specifics of why I was so disappointed with the movie because I only watched once about 4 years ago. I guess I couldn't help being disappointed since I had a vision of the characters and plot from the book for 5 years and the movie didn't match.

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