Disney continues their plan to make all their classics into live action films which seems to be a mixed bag on either being really good or awful. Pinocchio walks the line on being bad but more so just boring almost.
Following the story rather closely we see Geppetto wish upon a star to bring his puppet Pinocchio to life. Told to be brave, truthful and unselfish by the fairy who brings him to life, Pinocchio sets off on a journey to become a real boy with Jiminy Cricket, our films narrator, to act as his conscience and guide.
The story stays pretty straightforward with Pinocchio meeting less than favorable characters for short periods throughout before moving to the next one. It never gets too heavy or deep into anything nor does it attempt to make you think much into it.
Sadly though our main character, while adorable looking, is a paper thin near emotionless bland mess for most of it. While he is made to be naive, he also has almost no personality or mind of his own throughout. While he mostly blindly follows whatever is said to him, even his desire to be a real boy is often overlooked in his mind. His most interesting moment is when he discovers his nose grows when lying and has to use that to help Jiminy. Instead of watching Pinocchio learn what it is to be real and human instead we get a puppet who is so good in his own mind that he blindly enters into trouble endlessly.
Thankfully our few other side characters are much more rounded. Jiminy is well rounded and witty to listen to while he embarks on an adventure much larger than he is. Geppetto, while Tom Hanks accent is questionable at best, he comes across as a passionate father and pleasure to listen to. Fabiana, a ballet dancer in a mechanical device for her foot, is a lovely addition to this as a kind hearted character for Pinocchio to befriend.
The main positive to the movie is that visually its stunning. Pinocchio and Jiminy are vibrant and detailed. The world is beautiful and areas such as Pleasure Island are a joy to see with their various colorful scenes. They even try to update some things with few easter eggs and modern one liners thrown into the mix.
Sadly the film itself mostly just feels lifeless (no pun intended). We watch this ultimately clueless puppet wander through scenarios with no peril involved really and while its a fun journey it is never rewarding. Pinocchio ends up being a decent one time watch that doesn’t involve much thinking.
Score :
2 / 5
