The Adventures of Pinocchio
Theatrical release poster
Directed bySteve Barron
Screenplay by
  • Sherry Mills
  • Steve Barron
  • Tom Benedek
  • Barry Berman
Based onThe Adventures of Pinocchio
by Carlo Collodi
Produced by
Starring
Narrated byDavid Doyle
CinematographyJuan Ruiz Anchía
Edited bySean Barton
Music by
Production
companies
Distributed byNew Line Cinema (United States)
Barrandov Biografia (Czech Republic)[1]
Metropolitan Filmexport (France)[1]
Warner Bros. (Austria and Germany)[1]
PolyGram Filmed Entertainment (International)
Release date
  • July 26, 1996 (1996-07-26)
Running time
96 minutes
Countries
LanguageEnglish
Budget$25 million
Box office$15,094,530

The Adventures of Pinocchio is a 1996 fantasy family film, directed by Steve Barron and based on the original 1883 novel of the same name by Carlo Collodi. Barron collaborated with Sherry Mills, Tom Benedek and Barry Berman on the screenplay. It was an American, British, French, Czech, and German[2] venture produced by New Line Cinema, The Kushner-Locke Company, Savoy Pictures, Pangaea Holdings and Twin Continental Films. It stars Martin Landau and Jonathan Taylor Thomas. It was a critical and commercial failure which led the sequel, The New Adventures of Pinocchio, straight to video.

Plot

In a forest, Italian woodcarver Geppetto carves a heart into a pine tree, expressing his secret love for a woman named Leona. Years later, Geppetto finds the remains of the tree and carves a marionette out of it, naming him Pinocchio. Due to the heart's magic, Pinocchio comes to life.

Pinocchio meets a pair of thieves, Volpe and Felinet, who work for Lorenzini, a sinister theater director and puppet master. Lorenzini tries to purchase Pinocchio, but Geppetto refuses to sell his son.

Pinocchio gets into a fight with the rowdy Lampwick and when he lies about it, his nose grows longer and he is kicked out of the class. Pinocchio ends up causing damage to a local bakery, and Geppetto is arrested as a result. Pinocchio flees home, meeting a talking cricket, Pepe, who tells Pinocchio to behave and stay out of trouble to become a real boy. The next day, Pinocchio and Geppetto are put on trial at court. Lorenzini enters, offering to pay off the debt if Pinocchio is given over to him. Geppetto reluctantly agrees.

Pinocchio becomes the star of Lorenzini's productions, and is given gold coins as payment. Pinocchio rescues several of Geppetto's puppets from being burnt by Lorenzini, unintentionally setting the theater on fire.

Pinocchio spots a stage coach passing by, carrying Lampwick and other boys, travelling to Terra Magica, a hidden fun-fair for boys to do as they please. Drinking the water of Terra Magica turns them into donkeys. The fun-fair turns out to belong to Lorenzini, who sells the donkeys off to circuses and farms. Pinocchio has Lampwick kick Lorenzini into the cursed water, transforming him into a whale and forcing him to flee into the ocean. The boys and donkeys escape the fun-fair, and Pinocchio reunites with Leona at the beach, as he sets out to find his father at sea.

Pinocchio and Pepe are consumed by the whale, reuniting with Geppetto inside his stomach. Pinocchio lies to extend his nose and make the passage larger, causing his nose to break. The whale starts to choke, spitting Geppetto and Pinocchio out, before suffocating and sinking to the depths. On land, Pinocchio and Geppetto embrace. Pinocchio's tears flow, the tears landing on the heart carving, the same magic force from before transforming him into a real boy. Geppetto and Leona marry, and Pinocchio gives his father a log he found, to carve into a girlfriend for him.

Cast

Live action

  • Martin Landau as Geppetto, an impoverished Italian puppet maker who accidentally gives Pinocchio life after carving him from an enchanted log.
  • Jonathan Taylor Thomas as Pinocchio, the eponymous character and main protagonist of the film. He seeks to learn about right and wrong so that one day he will become a real boy.
  • Geneviève Bujold as Leona, a friend of Geppetto with whom he is secretly in love.
  • Udo Kier as Lorenzini, a puppeteer who takes custody of Pinocchio and later turns into a sea monster.
  • Bebe Neuwirth as Felinet, a scheming con artist always looking for the next profit. She is based on the Cat from the original novel.
  • Rob Schneider as Volpe, Felinet's dim-witted partner and sidekick. He is based on the Fox from the original novel.
  • Corey Carrier as Lampwick, Pinocchio's troublemaking friend.
  • Dawn French as the Baker's Wife.
  • Richard Claxton as Saleo, Lampwick's companion and friend who kicks Pinocchio in class at school.
  • John Sessions as the Professor, an irritable teacher who Pinocchio inadvertently annoys while attending one of his classes.
  • Jerry Hadley as the Judge, a court official who threatens to send Geppetto to a debtors' prison for Pinocchio's irresponsible behavior.
  • Jean-Claude Dreyfus as the Foreman.
  • Michael Gregory as Capone, Lorenzini's henchman at Terra Magica.

Voice

Puppeteers

  • Mak Wilson (principal puppeteer and puppet performance coordinator)[3]
  • Robert Tygner (principal puppeteer)
  • Michelan Sisti (principal puppeteer)
  • Bruce Lanoil (principal puppeteer)
  • William Todd-Jones (principal puppeteer)
  • Ian Tregonning (principal puppeteer)
  • Peter Hurst (assistant puppeteer)
  • Gillie Robic (assistant puppeteer)
  • Susan Dacre (assistant puppeteer)
  • Phil Woodfine (assistant puppeteer)

Reception

Critically, the film received a 35% rating on Rotten Tomatoes from 26 reviews with the consensus: "The Adventures of Pinocchio is an admirably faithful adaptation of the source material, but it may be too frightening for younger viewers - and too dull for older ones."[4]

On the television review series Siskel & Ebert, Roger Ebert expressed disappointment with the film, while Gene Siskel praised the special effects, and remarked that he believed the film to be a faithful adaptation of the book, as opposed to Disney's interpretation, which strayed significantly from it.[5] Ebert gave the film a two out of four stars and said, "The story is told with visual grace, but lacks excitement. Even Pinocchio's little cricket friend seems more like a philosopher than a ringmaster. Smaller children may be caught up by the wonder of it all, but older children may find the movie slow and old-fashioned."[6] Joe Leydon of Variety gave the film a mostly positive review, writing "The Adventures of Pinocchio is a well-crafted and gently charming version of the classic 1883 novel by Carlo Collodi. Unfortunately, this live-action, non-musical adaptation must compete with vivid (and, in many cases, video-enhanced) memories of Disney's beloved 1940 animated feature."[7]

In her seminar "The Persistent Puppet: Pinocchio's Heirs in Contemporary Fiction and Film", Rebecca West found The Adventures of Pinocchio to be relatively faithful to the original novel, although she noted major differences, such as the replacement of the Blue Fairy by the character of Leona.[8] Lawrence Van Gelder of The New York Times, gave the film a negative review, writing "Despite the interesting differences between the latest Pinocchio, which mixes animated and live characters, and the wholly animated Disney version, the new film simply doesn't generate much magical enchantment."[9]

Soundtrack

No.TitleWriter(s)Performer(s)Length
1."II Colosso"Brian May, Lee HoldridgeJerry Hadley, Sissel Kyrkjebø, Brian May, (from Queen) Just William7:36
2."Luigi's Welcome"Spencer Proffer, David Goldsmith (lyricist), HoldridgeHadley2:33
3."All for One"Craig TaubmanThe Morling School Ensemble with Jonathan Shell2:27
4."Kiss Lonely Good-Bye (with orchestra)"Stevie WonderStevie Wonder4:39
5."Hold On to Your Dream (with orchestra)"WonderWonder4:21
6."Theme from Pinocchio"Rachel Portman 7:17
7."Lorenzini"Portman 3:22
8."Terra Magica"Portman 3:56
9."Pinocchio Becomes a Real Boy"Portman 5:10
10."Kiss Lonely Good-Bye (Harmonica with orchestra)"WonderWonder4:39
11."Pinocchio's Evolution"WonderGeppetto's Workshop3:46
12."What Are We Made Of"MayMay, Sissel3:41
13."Hold On to Your Dream"WonderWonder6:00
14."Kiss Lonely Good-Bye"WonderWonder5:02
Total length:64:38

Sequel

A sequel was released in 1999 called The New Adventures of Pinocchio. Landau reprised his role as Geppetto, while Kier was recast as Lorenzini's estranged wife, Madame Flambeau. Gabriel Thomson played the title role, replacing Jonathan Taylor Thomas. It was shot in Luxembourg City, Luxembourg.

References

  1. 1 2 3 "The Adventures of Pinocchio (1996)". UniFrance. Retrieved 1 July 2021.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "The Adventures of Pinocchio (1996)". British Film Institute. Archived from the original on May 12, 2018. Retrieved May 1, 2017.
  3. ↑ "Martin Landau's Father Role Is Unlike Any Other". Csmonitor.com. Retrieved 27 November 2021.
  4. ↑ "The Adventures of Pinocchio". Rottentomatoes.com. Retrieved 27 November 2021.
  5. ↑ "Siskel & Ebert - The Adventures Of Pinocchio (1996)". At the Movies (U.S. TV series). YouTube. Archived from the original on 2021-12-22. Retrieved 2011-05-12.
  6. ↑ Ebert, Roger. "The Adventures of Pinocchio movie review (1996) | Roger Ebert". Rogerebert.com/. Retrieved 27 November 2021.
  7. ↑ Leydon, Joe (22 July 1996). "The Adventures of Pinocchio". Variety.
  8. ↑ West, Rebecca. "The Persistent Puppet: Pinocchio's Heirs in Contemporary Fiction and Film". Fathom Archive. The University of Chicago Library: Digital Collections. Retrieved 2008-09-30.
  9. ↑ AP (July 26, 1996). "FILM REVIEW;That Boy of the Telltale Nose Who's Too Good to Be Wood". nytimes.com. Retrieved August 10, 2020.
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