What’s it rated? PG
When? 2022
Where’s it showing? Disney Plus
Pinocchio is having a big year in 2022, first with this live-action version from Disney and coming later this year a stop-motion film by director Guillermo del Toro. This Disney remake stars Tom Hanks as Geppetto, Benjamin Evans Ainsworth as the voice of Pinocchio, and Joseph Gordon-Levitt as the voice of Jiminy Cricket.
Unfortunately, audiences aren’t as charmed by this version as they were by the 1940s animated classic; it’s bombing pretty hard according to online reviews. While I’m happy to see Hanks in anything, his charm couldn’t save this film from falling flat. Personally, I found Gordon-Levitt’s Jiminy Cricket voice to be grating; however, Ainsworth did a good job with his voicework. Ainsworth is one to watch. He played Miles in The Haunting of Bly Manor and apparently has a part in Netflix’s very popular series The Sandman.
This version of Pinocchio is just fine to watch with the kids, though you may find yourself wandering from the room a few scenes in. While I always found the donkey-morphing scenes in the animated film to be totally frightening, this movie stays away from scaring kids into honesty. Personally, I’d skip watching this inert version again and wait for the hopefully more meaty and visually interesting del Toro film coming in December. (105 min.) Δ
This article appears in Sep 29 – Oct 9, 2022.