DVD Review: Pinocchio 70th Anniversary Edition
Walt Disney's Classic Film Adapted Carlo Collodi Novel
Mar 16, 2009
In what could only be an excess of hubris, Walt Disney had his 2nd animated feature ready to go even before his first, 1937's Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, had even hit theatres. Many Hollywood insiders thought Walt was insane, because common knowledge dictated that no audiences were willing to sit through an entirely animated feature film.
Walt had the last laugh. Not only did Snow White make history (and a lot of money) but its follow-up, 1940's Pinocchio, broke the dreaded 'sophomore jinx' to become a classic in its own right.
In fact, the film became such a benchmark of brilliance that, in 2007, former Disney animator Victor Haboush raised eyebrows when he told Cartoon Brew's Jerry Beck that Disney/Pixar's Ratatouille was “the best animated film since Pinocchio.”
Celebrating Pinocchio's upcoming 70th anniversary, Disney has released a special edition Blu-Ray/DVD combo that honours the film as the classic it is.
Walt Disney's Pinocchio: Carlo Collodi Novel Brought to Silver Screen
By now everyone knows the story of the wooden puppet brought to life by the Blue Fairy (Evelyn Venable, mime by Marge Champion) and told, that if he is brave, truthful, unselfish and able to tell right from wrong, that he may someday become a real boy. Walt Disney and his team of writers significantly softened Carlo Collodi's hard-edged morality tale, turning the naughty marionette into a happy-go-lucky naïf who doesn't always listen to his conscience.
This film has so many brilliant moments, it would take another article to list them all. Whether it's the opening swoop down to Geppetto's toy shop (later built on by Orson Welles for 1958's Touch of Evil), the villainous Coachman menacing Honest John and Gideon, Lampwick's silhouetted transformation into a donkey, or Jiminy Cricket slowly floating past Monstro's bloodshot eye, these sequences take the flick into the realm of high art.
As celebrity film critic Leonard Maltin later observed: "with Pinocchio, Disney reached not only the height of his powers, but the apex of what many critics consider to be the realm of the animated cartoon."
While the movie as a whole is brilliantly conceived, the standout has to be Ward Kimball's animation of Jiminy Cricket. Originally a character introduced and killed off in a single scene, Kimball transformed the talking insect into the first great Disney sidekick. Whether giving well-timed comic relief or offering pungent commentary on Pinocchio's excesses, Jiminy acted as Greek chorus for the audience, and added lightness to the film's darkest moments. It's a bravura performance for both Kimball, and voice actor Cliff "Ukelele Ike" Edwards.
And who can resist Edwards' rendition of "When You Wish Upon a Star" that bookends the film? Certainly not Disney, which still uses that melody as the studio's theme music nearly 70 years later.
DVD Extras
As befitting the flick's classic status, Disney didn't stint on the extras. The digital restoration is stunning, showing modern audiences what it must have been like to see this film.
Critics Leonard Maltin, Eric Goldberg and J.B. Kaufman give a very informative audio commentary, featuring vintage recollections from animators Ward Kimball and Ollie Johnston, among others. Although a more even-handed analysis would've been appreciated, the three clearly love the film and it's easy to see why.
There are also deleted scenes, an alternate ending (fun, but it's understandable why they ended up on the cutting room floor), a "making of" featurette, games, a pop-up trivia track, a trivia challenge, and a run-through of various cinematic Geppettos throughout the years. All worth a quick browse, if nothing else.
But a music video, featuring Meaghan Jette Marlin's dance remake of "When You Wish Upon a Star," is simply vile.
The Final Analysis
Pinocchio is not a great animated film. It's a great film, period.
Whether you're a Disney fan, a parent who wants to introduce your child to the good stuff, or a lover of great movies, you owe it to yourself to get Pinocchio 70th Anniversary Edition. It gets a 9/10.
 |
