Jumpin Jeepers! Another Pinocchio Movie

“Pinocchio” was the second fully colored theatrical film by Walt Disney and still remains a classic to this day. And back on Sept. 8, 2022,  Disney gave us another remake that we of course… didn’t ask for, and didn’t like.

2022-2023 is undoubtedly a weird year for the film industry when it comes to this story.  Last February there was “Pinocchio: a True Story.” This  December will be the release of Guillermo del Toro’s: “Pinocchio.” And Disney+, the popular streaming service that can stream any and all Disney shows and movies, has recently released its remake of Walt Disney’s “Pinocchio“ from 1940.

The Disney+ remake of “Pinocchio“ stars actors Benjamin Evan Ainsworth, Tom Hanks, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Cynthia Erivo, Kyanne Carthy and Lorraine Bracco. It retells a classic story full of adventure, comedy and suspense. As most already know, Pinocchio is the classic tale of a wooden marionette on a journey to become a real boy. Directed by Robert Zemeckis, famous for the “Back to the Future” trilogy and “Who Framed Roger Rabbit,” it is a musical combination of computer-generated imagery (CGI)/live-action hybrid film with excellent visuals. The movie brought great line delivery and memorable songs.

Like all the Disney remakes, there were lots of changes from the original. For one, there were new characters added along to Pinocchio’s journey, such as Sofia the Segal, Fabiana and her little puppet. In this movie, of course, Pinocchio is a wooden puppet given sentience and learns what it takes to be a real boy, doing puppet shows, going to a theme park, seeing children get turned into donkeys and be sold to salt mines and facing off against the whale/sea monster Monstro. The CGI was very vibrant and stylistically good, packed with very interesting visuals. The casting decision was very great and they brought brilliant line delivery and have done really great acting.

I want to take a moment to admire the soundtrack. All of the classic ones you remember are here, such as “Hi-Diddle-Dee-Dee (An Actor’s Life for Me)” which was done amazingly well by Keegan-Michel Key, “I’ve Got No Strings,” performed by the wonderful Benjamin Evan Ainsworth, and who could forget “When You Wish Upon a Star,” sung beautifully by Cynthia Erivo. But there are more songs that vary from “Pinocchio Pinocchio” to “I Will Always Dance.” The cast did an excellent job at singing and really putting on a show.

Pinocchio was critically slammed, with a 26% on Rotten Tomatoes, and a 5.1/10 on IMDb. With a 2.9/5 coming from Google fan ratings. I give it a shrug. It’s alright for what it is – a retelling of a classic and overall, worth a watch. Eventually.