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''The Indian in the Cupboard'' is a 1995 film adaptation of the [[Literature/TheIndianInTheCupboard book series by the same name]], directed by Creator/FrankOz. The story follows the first book, documenting Omri's acquiring the cupboard and his initial encounters with the magic it contains.

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!! Provides examples of:

* AdaptationDyeJob: Boone is described as having red hair in the book, and is played by dark-haired Creator/DavidKeith in the film.
* AdaptationalNationality: The [[AdaptationalLocationChange setting is changed]] from London to New York City, making Omri and his family and friends American instead of British. Patrick is also of East Indian descent.
* AdaptationalNameChange: Omri's two brothers Adiel and Gillon go by the nicknames "A.D." and "Gilly," which they don't in the books.
* AdaptationalNiceGuy: Little Bear is calmer, more dignified, and less of a belligerent JerkWithAHeartOfGold than in the novel. The fact that his original [[YouNoTakeCandle broken English]] is replaced by more fluent English enhances this change.
* AdaptedOut: Bright Stars. In the book Omri brings a female Indian figurine to life to be a companion to Little Bear, but in the film Little Bear talks Omri out of it, explaining that she may already have a husband and child of her own.
* AllJustADream: Every time Omri brings [[TheMedic Tommy]] to life in order to treat wounds, he assures him that he's just dreaming.
* BrickJoke: Omri's brother A.D. begs their dad for a skylight; when Omri goes to his room later in the film [[spoiler: to confront him about the stolen cupboard]], A.D. is lying on his bed admiring his brand-new skylight.
* CaptainObvious:
-->'''Patrick:''' Don't bring [Little Bear and Boone] together. You know, cowboys and Indians?\\
'''Omri:''' Duh!
* ChekhovsGun: Gillon's pet rat. Omri already has a clear dislike for it, but it becomes a serious threat later on.
* ChekhovsGunman: Tommy the war medic. Omri brings his figurine to life in order to treat Little Bear after the latter is injured, and he's later needed in order to [[spoiler: save Boone's life.]]
* ComesGreatResponsibility: Omri learns quickly and harshly that he's actually dealing with real people. It hits him hard when [[spoiler:he accidentally scares the elderly Indian to death]]. It takes Patrick much longer to figure it out.
* CoolVersusAwesome: Why else would there be a brief scene of Darth Vader fighting a T.rex?
* {{Cute Giant}}s: Omri and Patrick, from Little Bear and Boone's perspective. Boone addresses them as "friendly giants" in parting.
* DangledByAGiant: Happens from Boone's perspective when Omri lifts him up to stop the initial confrontation between the cowboy and Little Bear.
* DreamDeception: Both times Omri transforms Tommy the British Army medic figurine into a living person with the cupboard, Omri tells him he's dreaming to avoid having to explain summoning him out of UsefulNotes/WorldWarI into a two-inch-tall body.
* DueToTheDead: [[spoiler: After the Indian chief dies, Little Bear prepares his body (well, his plastic figure anyway) in the tradition of his people and then helps Omri to give him a proper burial.]]
* EmbarrassingNickname: "Boo-hoo" Boone got his nickname for his self-attributed "soft heart".
* EndsWithASmile: The movie concludes with a slow close-up on Omri, slowly breaking into a smile. He's initially sad that he'll no longer see Boone or Little Bear again, but this gets eclipsed by the knowledge that those two men are in their rightful place, living the lives that they understand and can navigate.
* HollywoodHeartAttack: Happens to [[spoiler: an old Indian chief that Omri brings to life solely for the purpose of taking his bow and arrows for Little Bear to use.]]
* HollywoodNatives: Mostly subverted by Little Bear. However, when Omri brings to life a figurine of a World War I medic named Tommy to tend to a wound of his, he greets Little Bear with, "How!", much to Little Bear's confusion.
* IdiotBall: Patrick, just like in the books, is incredibly prone to this. Most notably when he starts bragging about the little men when he gets them at school.
* IgnoredConfession: Omri's chronicling of Little Bear in his writing class is dismissed as a product of a good imagination.
* JumpScare: After Little Bear successfully evades the escaped rat and retrieves the key from underneath the floorboards, he's barely got a few moments to catch his breath before the rat leaps out of the hole directly at him (and the ''viewer''!). Luckily Patrick catches the rat in time.
* LameComeback: Omri to a punk bully who harasses him in the street.
--> "You don't deserve that hair!"
** Makes more sense in context because the bully's hair is a ''mohawk'', and it was a Mohawk who had just died in front of him a scene ago.
* LivingToys: The cupboard turns plastic toys into the things they stand in for, real flesh and blood and fabric. Little Bear, the old Mohawk, Boone, and Tommy seem to have been summoned out of their respective time periods, and they are shocked to find themselves in a differently-scaled world. However, Omri also briefly experiments with animating action figures of [[Franchise/StarWars Darth Vader]], Franchise/RoboCop, [[Franchise/JurassicPark a T-rex]], and a [[Franchise/StarTrek Cardassian and Ferengi]], for which no explanation is offered (on account of Omri going "OhCrap" when they all stop attacking each other and turn to look at him, and slamming the cupboard door shut).
* MyGodWhatHaveIDone: Little Bear, after [[spoiler: accidentally shooting Boone during the Western the boys were watching (which showed Native Americans getting shot at).]]
* NoMoreForMe: Boone's initial reaction to ending up in Omri's room is to assume he's delirious from too much alcohol and vows never to drink again. Then he sees Omri and Patrick and [[INeedAFreakingDrink immediately changes his mind]].
* NotAGame: In two incidents, one character combines this with WhatTheHellHero toward another.
** Little Bear yells at Omri, after witnessing his carelessness [[spoiler: that caused an old Indian chief to die.]]
---> "You should not do magic you do not understand!"
** Omri, having learned his lesson, later gives Patrick a similar warning.
---> "They're people! You ''can't'' use people!"
* OutlivingOnesOffspring: It's implied that Little Bear had a wife and a child who both died of smallpox in his own time. He only overtly mentions his wife, but he speaks of longing for "another little child."
* PartyInMyPocket: Omri brings Boone and Little Bear to school in a fanny pack.
* ProductPlacement: Aside from the Star Wars[=/=][=RoboCop=] example above (it also has a Cardassian and a Ferengi from ''Franchise/StarTrek''). Aracula from ''WesternAnimation/SkeletonWarriors'' and Limburger from ''WesternAnimation/BikerMiceFromMars'' are prominently shown and used as replacements in the school's diorama. Amusingly, [[UnusuallyUninterestingSight despite Omri's best attempts to hide it, no one seems to notice the switch.]]
** Also, a Franchise/JurassicPark Tyrannosaurus toy is brought to life and briefly fights Darth Vader. Omri also is shown to have a Servo figure from ''Series/SuperhumanSamuraiSyberSquad'' in the background.
* RearingHorse: Darling, Boone's horse, is positioned like this as a plastic figurine. When brought to life, she leaps out of the cupboard as soon as it's opened.
* TemptingFate: Patrick says the word "Indian" in front of Boone. This causes Boone to become aware of Little Bear's presence, and they start attacking each other.
* TitleDrop: One of the very first lines in Omri's story contains this.
--> '''Omri (reading aloud):''' I put a plastic '''Indian in the cupboard'''...
* TookALevelInKindness: Boone, after he and Little Bear get to talking with each other.
* YouDirtyRat: Gillon's rat, which Omri hates with a passion.
* YouNoTakeCandle: {{Averted}}: unlike in the original novel, Little Bear's English is almost perfect.
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