Review by John Delia
Most all adults have seen the animated film Pinocchio, but Disney+ has now released the live-action adaptation and it does change it up a bit. Still filled with adventure and a touching drama, the movie has all the original songs and wonderful co-animation to bring it to life. However, Disney tests the 21st Century audience with some updated material that does tend to lower the family values depicted in this remake.
Just like the original we find Geppetto (Tom Hanks) working in his clock store and fashioning his puppet. Always wanting a child to join his small world, he’s just completed and named the wooden puppet Pinocchio. Overnight the Blue Ferry (Cynthia Erivo) makes Pinocchio a real boy, but still wooden. To become flesh and bone he’ll have to prove himself.
Thus the adventure begins, following the same events that we have all come to love, but a little askew. Director and screenplay Writer Robert Zemeckis brings a modern version of the film creating a darker, more invasive story. It does emulate each of the happenings in the original, but does tend to make it less youngster family friendly and sends a negative message. To mention a few incidents, the whale is more monstrous and riots are added to Pleasure Island complete with shattering store windows and stealing the contents.
Surprised by the Family Friendly Dominion of Walt Disney to bring down one of its proudest achievements, I do not recommend the film to anyone under the age of 10. For moms and dads, you may want to watch the film first before deciding on letting your youngsters watch the movie.
Additional Film Information:
Cast: Tom Hanks, Benjamin Evan Ainsworth (voice), Cynthia Erivo, Joseph Gordon-Levitt (voice)
Directed By: Robert Zemeckis
Genre: Adventure, Comedy, Drama
MPAA Rating: PG
Running Time: 1hr, 51min.
Opening Date: September 8, 2022
Distributed by: Disney+
Released in: Disney+