Pinocchio

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 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.

After a string of live-action remakes, 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. 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.” The best reason to see “Pinocchio” is, unsurprisingly, Hanks, who brings a soulful melancholy to Geppetto. It's a corollary to Hanks' performance as another European-accented performance as Presley manager Tom Parker in “Elvis." 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. But aside from any poignant corporate lineage, the original “Pinocchio” remains about as pure an example of Disney at its archetypal best as anything.

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."

Why Is Fabiana In The Movie? Fabiana (Kyanne Lamaya) and her marionette Sabina aren't present in Collodi's book or in the Disney animated film. She shows up at ...

Anyway, Geppetto says that Pinocchio will always be his real boy, and he won’t change a single thing about him because he is proud of him, and he loves him. That brings him back to life, and he proceeds to explain the metaphor. When the giant tries to gobble them again, Pinocchio uses his feet to turn the broken dinghy into a speedboat and crash into a cave that isn’t big enough for the Monstro to enter. You’ll probably remember that in the animated film, Honest John (Walter Catlett) made a deal with The Coachman (Charles Judels) and poached Pinocchio off to him. Fabiana then appears all the way in the third act of the film to tell Pinocchio that the Carabinieri arrested Stromboli and put him in jail. They start a fire in there, causing Monstro to sneeze out of the dinghy that Geppetto, Pinocchio, Cleo, Figaro, and Jiminy are in. In the animated film, Geppetto and Pinocchio are eaten up by Monstro. Later that night, while the train on which they are riding is moving, Fabiana comes through the ceiling to tell Pinocchio that Stromboli is a “horrible, mean man” and that she’s going to help him get out of the cage. Since Pinocchio has to go find Geppetto, Fabiana tells him that she’ll be organizing a show in Siena next year, and she hopes to meet him there. And that she has started the New Marionette Family Theater and wants Pinocchio to join her. She says that she wants to leave the show because she wants to be famous, while helping Pinocchio wear his strings. Now, these Disney live-action/CGI adaptations have become about sucking the life and magic out of their animated counterparts and adding a bunch of unnecessary elements to the plot.

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.

Now, Pinocchio, the delightful story of a wooden boy who comes alive, is getting the live-action treatment with Tom Hanks starring as the puppet maker Geppetto ...

[Disney+ subscription](https://disneyplus.bn5x.net/c/256585/564546/9358?subId1=SC-&u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.disneyplus.com%2F&subId3=xid:fr1662582401815ggg) with its Unlimited plans (a.k.a. (Disney+ costs $7.99 per month, Hulu starts at $6.99 per month and ESPN Plus costs $6.99 per month for a total of $21.97 compared to [The Disney Bundle’s $13.99 per month](https://click.linksynergy.com/deeplink?id=t1ZX7*4ybQA&mid=42392&u1=SC-%7Cxid:fr1662582401815gjc&murl=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.hulu.com%2Fstart) price.) Disney+ and ESPN Plus also come free with [Hulu+ With Live TV](https://click.linksynergy.com/deeplink?id=t1ZX7*4ybQA&mid=42392&u1=SC-%7Cxid:fr1662582401815cgh&murl=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.hulu.com%2Flive-tv), which costs [$69.99 per month](https://click.linksynergy.com/deeplink?id=t1ZX7*4ybQA&mid=42392&u1=SC-%7Cxid:fr1662582401815jae&murl=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.hulu.com%2Flive-tv). The Pinocchio cast includes Tom Hanks as Geppetto and Joseph Gordon-Levitt as Jiminy Cricket, the narrator of the story who acts sort of as Pinocchio’s conscience. Please note that if you purchase something by clicking on a link within this story, we may receive a small commission of the sale. [Parade](https://parade.com/celebrities/joseph-gordon-levitt-pinocchio-interview-2022) that what he loves about the story of Pinocchio is that the lesson is about telling the truth. They of course worked together on the film Forrest Gump, for which Hanks won Best Actor at the 1995 Academy Awards. “Hard to know, I guess we have to see how this one does,” she told So there you have it—a way to watch Disney+ for free. The story of Pinocchio tells the tale of a puppet maker, Geppetto, who carves a little boy out of wood which miraculously comes alive. “I love the moral of the story, which is all about telling the truth,” he said. Pinocchio wishes to become a real boy and through a series of adventures, misadventures, and eventually good deeds, his wish comes true. Or the 1996 version starring Jonathan Taylor Thomas, a movie that scarred 90s kids for life.)

Can 'Pinocchio,' which five years ago would have been in theaters, pull Disney+ viewership on par even with theatrical bombs like 'Lightyear'?

However, I don’t know if there’s an equation for ‘losing X dollars in theaters for Y streaming viewership gains.” As for Pinocchio, it’s a disappointment, to be sure. It may not be worth spending tens of millions of dollars for a film like Pinocchio to bomb in theaters (with resultant bad press and tisk-tisking from pundits like myself) to boost its streaming potential. However, it’s also a way for Zemeckis to indulge his decades-long interest in pushing the technical envelope now that Hollywood can’t afford to spend $100 million on films like Contact and Cast Away. Disney+ is dominated by MCU television shows (whose success was predicated upon the theatrical popularity of the Marvel movies), theatrical Marvel movies (Thor: Love and Thunder debuted just today), Star Wars shows and Disney/Pixar animated films. That caused a (primarily online) kerfuffle when The Help (an Oscar-winning and Best Picture-nominated film that grossed $169 million domestic in 2011) became Netflix’s most-watched movie during a moment of intense civil protests against arguably improper (and racially motivated) police violence. Netflix gets high-end third-party films while Sony gets a cushion and a financial motivation to take the chance on the next Where the Crawdads Sing or the next Baby Driver. [just dropped for the week of August 8 through August 14](https://www.nielsen.com/top-ten/), and Lightyear earned 700 million minutes. Prey is the best Predator movie since the first Predator movie, and offhand The Harder They Fall may be the best mainstream western since Open Range. As much as any of the lesser Walt Disney remakes over the last decade, it alternates between being a redundant rehash of the 1940 animated feature and a needlessly watered-down adaptation of the same. As noted in 2019, that audiences flocked to Batman doesn’t mean they wanted a big-budget version of The Shadow. Likewise, that audiences showed up in theaters for Aladdin doesn’t mean they would do so for Dumbo. I would argue the end game has been to create the definitive live-action version of these respective oft-told tales to sit alongside their already classic animated adaptations.

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. 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.” The best reason to see “Pinocchio” is, unsurprisingly, Hanks, who brings a soulful melancholy to Geppetto. It's a corollary to Hanks' performance as another European-accented performance as Presley manager Tom Parker in “Elvis." 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. 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.

New live-action/animation hybrid fancifully dusts off the classic tale of the puppet who wants to be a real boy.

His stylish new spin on Pinocchio is a dazzling display of filmmaking, a seamless integration of hyper-realistic FX and human actors. Erivo, the Oscar-nominated British actress who’s played slave activist Harriet Tubman and musical legend Aretha Franklin, shines (literally) in her one scene as the Blue Fairy, a beacon of light belting out the memorable tune from Disney’s 1960 version that became a an Oscar winner—“When You Wish Upon a Star.” Another familiar song from the classic animated version is “High-Diddle-Dee-Dee (An Actor’s Life for Me),” and Pinocchio sings “I’ve Got No Strings” while he’s prancing on stage with a squad of can-can marionettes. How and this all wraps won’t be any surprise to anyone familiar with the tale, but one of Disney’s new tweaks is the ending—perhaps not as satisfying as a lot of people would wish, and that’s all I’ll divulge about that. Pinocchio (voiced by British newcomer Benjamin Evan Ainsworth) becomes sentient and animated, able to move without strings, but naïve to the ways of the world, its temptations and its treachery. Pinocchio purists may flinch, but hey, the 1883 novel ends with a real downer—the little puppet is hanged and executed. So just keep that in mind; even Disney-fied, this is an existential “hero’s journey” cloaked in danger and a descent into darkness.

The live-action, CGI adaption of 'Pinocchio' starring Tom Hanks, Benjamin Evan Ainsworth and more, arrived on Disney+ on Sept. 8.

[Verizon](https://www.dpbolvw.net/click-100294847-11557999?sid=--&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.verizon.com%2Fsolutions-and-services%2Fdisneyplus%2F) customers can get free access to Disney+ or the Disney+ Bundle for six months with select Unlimited plans. Disney+ is the dedicated streaming destination for must-watch content from Disney, Pixar, Marvel, Star Wars and National Geographic. The Disney+ annual plan saves you money because you only pay for 10 months of service versus 12 months. New and eligible returning subscribers can join for $1.99 for the first month, if you sign up by Sept. Hanks plays Geppetto, the woodcarver who creates Pinocchio (voiced by Ainsworth), and Cynthia Erivo plays the Blue Fairy who brings him to life. Keep reading for directions on how to join and stream Pinocchio. Want a free trial to Disney+? 8) on [Disney+](https://disneyplus.bn5x.net/Ko4K7). [Disney+ Day](https://www.billboard.com/culture/product-recommendations/disney-plus-day-deals-promotions-9656808/)! Disney+ also has annual plans for $79.99 and a bundle with Pinocchio is one of several new releases debuting for Disney+ Day. All products and services featured are independently chosen by editors.

Well, they pop out of cuckoo clocks made by woodcarver and Pinocchio's dad, Geppetto (Tom Hanks), and it's a rather blink-and-you'll-miss-it montage of Easter ...

In a nod to the first animated Disney film released in 1937 before Pinocchio in 1940, Snow White stands outside a clock resembling the cottage of the Seven Dwarfs. Jessica Rabbit picks up her husband, Roger, and gives him a big old smooch in front of a cuckoo clock with hearts all around it. Well, they pop out of cuckoo clocks made by woodcarver and Pinocchio's dad, Geppetto (Tom Hanks), and it's a rather blink-and-you'll-miss-it montage of Easter eggs. Here are the references I could see — maybe you've spotted more? But did you notice a few familiar faces, too? Maleficent, the antagonist from 1959's Sleeping Beauty, storms out of her castle clock with her staff and raven Diablo, as the camera pans up to poor ol' Aurora in the attic, touching the forbidden spindle on the chime.

The new Disney Plus movie Pinocchio is a mostly live-action remake of the 1940 Disney animated classic about a wooden boy who longs to become real, ...

Pinocchio shared some new character posters for the Disney+ movies. Tom Hanks is front and center as Geppetto, Cynthia Erivo is the Blue Fairy, ...

Gordon-Levitt added, "The important thing that I love more than anything about Pinocchio is the moral of the story, which is the importance of telling the truth, and what happens to you if you start telling lies. Tom Hanks stars as Geppetto, the wood-carver who builds and treats Pinocchio (Benjamin Evan Ainsworth) as if he were his own son. And Jiminy Cricket is sort of the ultimate guy who talks right to the camera and tells the audience what's what," Gordon-Levitt told the press. [shared some new](https://comicbook.com/movies/news/pinocchio-live-action-disney-plus-sequel-movies/) character posters for the [Disney+](/category/disney-streaming-service/) movies. Here's how Disney describes Pinocchio for all the people curious out there: "Academy Award winner Robert Zemeckis directs this live-action retelling of the beloved tale of a wooden puppet who embarks on a thrilling adventure to become a real boy. Tom Hanks is front and center as Geppetto, Cynthia Erivo is the Blue Fairy, and [Joseph Gordon-Levitt brings Jiminy Cricket](https://comicbook.com/movies/news/disney-plus-pinocchio-movie-clip-jiminy-cricket-joseph-gordon-levitt/) to life.

Disney has once again raided its treasure chest of animated classics, and its latest endeavor from the workshop is Robert Zemeckis' live-action remake of ...

In a movie crammed with scenes replicating notable ones from the original, it's interesting that these two clocks were chosen over the rest to be re-created in live action. Besides these, there are also a couple more time-checkers on Geppetto's wall that hark back to the original "Pinocchio." It makes perfect sense for a pair of them to pay homage to the film's star and director in this new take. That unmistakable outfit and dangling frame dancing around will certify a smile, just as much as seeing the wild rabbit from Toontown that Robert Zemeckis roped in back in 1988. From ducks feeding to a turkey narrowly escaping death, a wild array of animated wall accessories stand out in the classic version. Many years have passed since Disney's original take on the story of a puppet that wanted to be a real boy.

I've loved other live-action movies by Disney, especially “Cinderella” and “Beauty and the Beast,” but “Pinocchio” didn't strike me as a film on par with either ...

I thought the original was significantly better and that the new movie was overall mediocre. Take for example, the live-action “Beauty and the Beast.” Even though the plot is very similar, the dialogue is different and beyond that, Disney created an absolutely beautiful film. The mix of animation and human characters did very little to bring it to life. The live-action “Pinocchio” premiered on Disney+ on Thursday. The titular character clearly looked fake and the film suffers massively in the aesthetic department because of the inharmonious blending of these elements. I’ve loved other live-action movies by Disney, especially “Cinderella” and “Beauty and the Beast,” but “Pinocchio” didn’t strike me as a film on par with either one of them.

Why can't we stop adapting this story? And why is every single adaptation just so creepy in its own special way?

That reflection of the human condition comes through in nearly every adaptation, but to get there with Pinocchio we have to cross the uncanny valley, traveling with a character who is almost-but-not-quite human, through most of the story. If you want to dig into what it is that appeals to us about the story of Pinocchio, take a look at what all these versions have in common: there’s a moral through line that connects his adventures, and a series of hard and scary lessons he must learn on his way to becoming a real boy. This might be the one time that the creepiness works in the story’s favor. - The Erotic Adventures Of Pinocchio (1971): An X-rated version billed as “a bedtime story for adults,” this hot take involves a “virgin” named Geppetta who stumbles upon a talking log in the forest and decides to carve it into the perfect man. This one is by far the oddest of the two. Later this year, Guillermo del Toro will put his own spin on the story in a version that makes use of miniatures and stop-motion animation and sets the story against the backdrop of fascist Italy. You can even find traces of it in the popular anime Astro Boy. But it was in the 1960s and ’70s when Pinocchio adaptations really started getting strange. What is it about Pinocchio, the story of a marionette puppet who wants to become a real boy, that makes filmmakers keep coming back to it, again and again? Collodi eventually collected the stories into a single volume and published it in 1883, but that serialized origin will always be a part of Pinocchio’s DNA. The next notable adaptation came along in 1957, a black-and-white television special starring Mickey Rooney as the title character (he would have been 37 at the time). It was a 45-minute Italian silent film that shows Pinocchio—portrayed by a fully grown man in a clown costume, complete with long nose—defying Geppetto as soon as he finishes carving him and wildly rampaging through a little village square.