Pinocchio

2022 - 9 - 8

Post cover — Image courtesy of "Los Angeles Times"

'Pinocchio' review: Robert Zemeckis' lifeless update of a classic (Los Angeles Times)

Director Robert Zemeckis and star Tom Hanks reunite for "Pinocchio," a live-action update of the Disney animated classic.

Zemeckis’ “Pinocchio” prompts one to wish upon a star that Disney would stop diluting the legacy of its beloved animated features with these soulless knockoffs. In an incredible feat of time mismanagement, this “Pinocchio” is about 20 minutes longer than the 1940 version and still manages to blatantly sidestep having a poignant and magical ending. There’s a clear through line connecting Zemeckis’ longstanding affinity for animation and the utilization of technological advancements in storytelling. This unadventurous pursuit entails imitating its characters’ details, costumes and color palette to mimic, as closely as possible, what the audience is already familiar with. She deputizes Jiminy as the newly born figure’s voice of reason. But with Robert Zemeckis’ new hybrid incarnation — which combines live-action elements and 3-D CG animation — the Oscar-winning director has carved a lackluster replica.

Pinocchio movie review & film summary (2022) | Roger Ebert (Roger Ebert)

Like the titular puppet at its center, “Pinocchio” lingers in an existential purgatory. The latest live-action remake of an animated Disney classic occupies ...

As always, the moral of the story is the importance of being honest. The Blue Fairy whooshes into the workshop and, with a sprinkling of magic dust, tells Pinocchio (voiced by So yes, you get “When You Wish Upon a Star” (which powerhouse [Cynthia Erivo](/cast-and-crew/cynthia-erivo) now sings as the Blue Fairy), but you also get little meta bits about education, parenting, and the perils of fame. Just as the original “Pinocchio” was groundbreaking in its artistic complexity, Zemeckis has always pushed the possibilities of animation and visual effects, from the dazzling hybrid of “Who Framed Roger Rabbit?” to his pioneering use of motion capture in “ [The Polar Express](/reviews/the-polar-express-2004).” (And, thankfully, technology has evolved since 2004 to keep human characters from looking so terrifyingly rubbery.) This is especially true toward the end of the perky puppet’s journey when he ends up in the mouth of a ferocious sea monster. But we’re getting ahead of ourselves, and clearly need the sunny narration of Jiminy Cricket (

New movies this week: Stream Tom Hanks' 'Pinocchio' on Disney+ ... (USA TODAY)

New movies streaming or in theaters this weekend: Tom Hanks stars in a new "Pinocchio," while "Thor: Love and Thunder" arrives on Disney+.

[Colonel Tom Parker](https://www.usatoday.com/story/entertainment/movies/2022/06/21/elvis-review-austin-butler-rules-king-over-musical-mess/7652227001/) in "Elvis," Hanks is back in ["America's Dad"](https://www.usatoday.com/story/entertainment/movies/2020/03/16/tom-hanks-10-essential-roles-coronavirus-crisis/5056649002/) mode as kindly Italian woodcarver Geppetto in a decent revamp of the 1940 cartoon. [Tom Hanks](https://www.usatoday.com/story/entertainment/movies/2022/06/26/tom-hanks-colonel-tom-parker-favorite-elvis-song/7688237001/), while the Mouse House also releases a bonkers horror movie probably not for kids, wooden or otherwise. In director Zach Cregger's head-scrambling chiller, a researcher (Georgina Campbell) rents an Airbnb in suburban Detroit and finds it's been double-booked when she meets a strangely polite guy (Bill Skarsgård) already staying there. 15) The houseguests feel something's wrong but stick around instead of escaping, leading to an unbelievably brutal third act. Joseph Gordon-Levitt is a so-so choice for Pinocchio's dapper insect conscience Jiminy Cricket, but as the Blue Fairy, [Cynthia Erivo](https://www.usatoday.com/story/entertainment/music/2021/09/17/cynthia-erivo-debut-album-ch-1-vs-1-emmys-aretha-franklin-childrens-book-disney-role/8363326002/) sings a stellar "When You Wish Upon a Star" that dares you to stop the waterworks. [Where the Crawdads Sing](https://www.usatoday.com/story/entertainment/books/2022/07/16/where-crawdads-sing-movie-biggest-changes-from-book/10037952002/)," an adaptation of the Delia Owens novel, is now streaming on [Apple TV](https://tv.apple.com/us/movie/where-the-crawdads-sing/umc.cmc.4jxbvck9zakqjsb34ccw09mub), [Vudu](https://www.vudu.com/content/movies/details/Where-the-Crawdads-Sing/2064554)and [Google Play](https://play.google.com/store/movies/details/Where_the_Crawdads_Sing?id=M1pP5Ex6sPA.P&hl=en_US&gl=US). Wilson and fellow Brit Tom Burke have a winning chemistry in this immersive, mature character study. [Marcel the Shell With Shoes On](https://www.usatoday.com/story/entertainment/movies/2022/06/25/marcel-shell-movie-jenny-slate-interview/7696547001/)," starring Jenny Slate as the voice of an adorable, sneaker-clad shell, is on [Apple TV](https://tv.apple.com/us/movie/marcel-the-shell-with-shoes-on/umc.cmc.23mlvs843dhgo7ir7bk727xm2)and other on-demand platforms. [on demand](https://tv.apple.com/us/movie/mack--rita/umc.cmc.6z0mzebv8x0hjpju062hwdp8z)is the body-swap comedy "Mack & Rita," with Elizabeth Lail as a 30-year-old who wishes she was more like her grandma and [Diane Keaton](https://www.usatoday.com/story/entertainment/movies/2022/08/11/mack-and-rita-movie-diane-keaton/10281391002/)as her 70-year-old wish-fulfilled self. [Queen Latifah](https://www.usatoday.com/story/entertainment/celebrities/2022/06/08/queen-latifah-red-table-talk-discusses-weight-journey-obesity-stigma/7539334001/) hits the road with ["Fast and Furious"](https://www.usatoday.com/story/entertainment/movies/2019/08/01/every-fast-and-furious-film-definitively-ranked-best-worst/1856145001/) regular [Chris "Ludacris" Bridges](https://www.usatoday.com/story/entertainment/music/2020/07/28/ludacris-starts-education-through-music-kids-new-kidnation-site/5524968002/) for a Netflix thriller, and British actress [Ruth Wilson](https://www.usatoday.com/story/life/entertainthis/2018/08/28/why-little-stranger-and-affair-star-ruth-wilson-always-delight-amid-darkness/1122483002/) ("The Affair") plays a woman looking for love – and finding a flighty boyfriend – in an English drama. [fall movie season](https://www.usatoday.com/story/entertainment/movies/2022/09/06/fall-movies-2022-most-anticipated-releases/7894249001/) out with a new take on a classic.

'Pinocchio' review: Tom Hanks plays Geppetto in a lifeless Disney+ ... (CNN)

Even taking it as a given that Disney's animated classics will all receive live-action makeovers eventually, "Pinocchio" feels like an unnecessary exercise ...

Mostly, "Pinocchio" itself washes ashore into a kind of no-man's land -- too uninspired to bring anything fresh to the material, dutifully playing like a pallid redo of the 1940 classic, arguably one of Disney's most beautiful animated films from that pivotal stretch in its early history. They build toward his encounter with the seafaring Monstro, upgraded to "sea monster" status, having maligned whales quite enough. But "Pinocchio" unfortunately mirrors the lifelessness of Zemeckis' early experiments with animation and doesn't much augment the well-known story with the snippets of music added, other than Cynthia Erivo, as the Blue Fairy, belting out "When You Wish Upon a Star."

Pinocchio film review — Disney's boy goes digital but Tom Hanks ... (Financial Times)

Prepare to lose your bearings in Pinocchio, Disney's regeneration of its 1940 animated landmark. The movie is being sold as live action, or thereabouts at ...

[Purchase a Print subscription for 11,12 € per week You will be billed 107,91 € per month after the trial ends](https://subs.ft.com/spa3_uk3m?segmentId=461cfe95-f454-6e0b-9f7b-0800950bef25&utm_us=JJIBAX&utm_eu=WWIBEAX&utm_ca=JJIBAZ&utm_as=FIBAZ&ft-content-uuid=4d7389be-bcfa-4fc5-9d0b-e7873d12b0dc) [Purchase a Digital subscription for 6,64 € per week You will be billed 39 € per month after the trial ends](https://subs.ft.com/spa3_digital?ft-content-uuid=4d7389be-bcfa-4fc5-9d0b-e7873d12b0dc) [Purchase a Trial subscription for 1 € for 4 weeks You will be billed 65 € per month after the trial ends](/signup?offerId=41218b9e-c8ae-c934-43ad-71b13fcb4465&ft-content-uuid=4d7389be-bcfa-4fc5-9d0b-e7873d12b0dc)

'Pinocchio' review: One of Disney's darkest films lightens up (a little ... (Mashable)

Disney's live-action remake of 'Pinocchio' from director Robert Zemeckis sees Tom Hanks give Geppetto more backstory. Review.

At its core, Disney’s Pinocchio is a moral parable encouraging boys to behave, to ignore the supposedly "sinful" temptations of the world, and to tell the truth lest their noses grow. The film’s bonkers storyline allows for no-holds-barred creativity — if your brief is to get Tom Hanks into Cast Away mode while rowing a puppet boy, goldfish, and a kitten out of a sneezing whale, the sky’s the limit. I'd add the importance of [speaking out against misogyny](https://mashable.com/article/what-can-men-do-male-violence) and [working to dismantle systems of oppression](https://mashable.com/article/how-men-can-help-sophie-gallagher-extract) to that list as key values for boys to learn early, but anyway. It’s an interesting time for Disney to be releasing a film that hinges around the concept of what makes a "real boy," according to a film released in the '40s. The film's surrealist underwater sequences are still magical to watch today, and the escape from Monstro is a stunning blend of fluid, hand-painted waves amid the bold character animation. Booming lines from the already-snappy original script while throwing in modern references to influencers and dropping a truly perfect [Chris Pine](https://mashable.com/article/dont-worry-darling-drama-harry-styles-spit) joke, Key's Honest John is a spectacularly fun highlight of a film weighed down in conversations around morality. [Cynthia Erivo](https://mashable.com/article/wicked-movie-cast-ariana-grande-cynthia-erivo), who thankfully doesn't waste a minute of her limited screen time. Darbus](https://high-school-musical.fandom.com/wiki/Ms._Darbus) energy to this anthropomorphised foxy thespian, Key voices the character as if he were standing miles from the microphone, throwing dramatic gestures and possibly wearing a cape in the sound booth. The script makes a tweak here to the original storyline to give Pinocchio a little more moral credit early on. [Beauty and the Beast](https://mashable.com/article/beauty-and-the-beast-movie-review), the narrative, dialogue, set and costume design, and even framing attempts to replicate the original. Notably, her character is part of the Marionette Traveling Theatre troupe run by Stromboli (Giuseppe Battiston), a problematic character associated with a Luckily for longtime Zemeckis collaborator Hanks (Forrest Gump, Cast Away, The Polar Express), this new Pinocchio expands Geppetto's backstory by giving context as to why this Italian woodcarver creates a wooden boy in the first place, what he really wishes for upon a star, and why exactly he's filled his home with elaborate (Disney-themed) cuckoo clocks.

Review: Jiminy Cricket! A live-action 'Pinocchio' (Associated Press)

After a string of live-action remakes, from "Beauty and the Beast" to “The Lion King," the Walt Disney Co. has finally gotten around to “ Pinocchio.

“Pinocchio,” a Disney+ release, is rated PG by the Motion Picture Association of America for peril/scary moments, rude material and some language. The best reason to see “Pinocchio” is, unsurprisingly, Hanks, who brings a soulful melancholy to Geppetto. Or when Pinocchio’s nose shoots out and Jiminy teeters on it like how Gordon-Levitt, as high-wire artist Philippe Petit, did at a higher altitude in “The Walk.” Certainly, “Hi-Diddle-Dee-Dee (An Actor’s Life For Me)” has a different resonance in a movie where actors compete with CGI creations for oxygen. As the familiar castle logo plays with “When You Wish Upon a Star,” Jiminy Cricket (voiced by Joseph Gordon-Levitt) floats down under an umbrella to stake claim to the studio theme song. Alongside some live performers (Tom Hanks, Cynthia Erivo) and some CGI characters, director Robert Zemeckis has used computer imagery to render Pinocchio (voiced by Benjamin Evan Ainsworth) much in the style and vocal pitch of the 1940 cartoon.