Review of Pinocchio (1940) by Brady L — 29 Jan 2018

Despite the age of this Disney animated classic, it still holds up today and can continue to endear itself to a whole new audience. Watching this film as a child, you see one movie. Watching as an adult and a parent, you watch a significantly different film then the one you remember.

The story is classic, a lonely carpenter builds a wooden marionette, names the puppet Pinocchio and wishes upon a star for said marionette to be a real boy. The tale that unfolds is true fantasy. The blue fairy semi grants this wish, bringing the marionette to life with the caveat that he can become a real boy by being brave, truthful and unselfish.

He is given a conscience in the form of Jiminy Cricket and set upon the world. We get to witness Pinocchio get put through some intense situations, from being imprisoned by a greedy gypsy puppeteer to being taken to Pleasure Island and witnessing his best friend turn into a jackass and finally being swallowed by a gargantuan whale and escaping from said whale.

These brave and unselfish actions are enough to overshadow the severe lying he does earlier in the movie and he is subsequently transformed into a real boy. My biggest criticism of this film is of the conscience Jiminy Cricket.

He begins the movie as a homeless, wandering insect who happens upon Geppetto's shoppe. Seeking shelter and warmth, he notices the ornate clocks and other wooden masterpieces. He evolves quickly into the conscience of Pinocchio at the behest of the blue fairy and is given the responsibility of helping Pinocchio navigate the complex and sometimes terrifying world he is now a part of.

He then sleeps in the following morning, leaving Pinocchio vulnerable to the musings of Honest John. He does try to redeem himself by letting Pinocchio that Honest John is not a good person and that he should move on from becoming an actor.

This backfires as the very impressionable Pinocchio continues on his journey to the stage. Once viewing the stage show that happens later on, Jiminy abandons his friend, stating he does not need him anymore.

This of course leads to the trapping of Pinocchio in a large cage and the hilarious lying sequence with the blue fairy. Instead of learning his lesson, Jiminy repeats this behavior on Pleasure Island.

Once he finds Pinocchio, he berates the young man savagely before confronting the other person in the room. After being thoroughly embarrassed, he simply storms off, once again abandoning Pinocchio mere moments before tragedy strikes.

This time, we watch Pinocchio and his friend begin transforming into jackasses. Jiminy Cricket may actually be the villain of this film as his negligence and temper get Pinocchio involved in more shenanigans then simply Pinocchio's naivete.

Despite these criticisms, this film is amazing and I definitely recommend everyone young and old watch this film at least once in their lifetime. As a side note, the Signature edition of this film gives you a ton of special features and insight into the mindset of Walt Disney during the late 30s after the success of Snow White.

Must buy if you can.