Like many of Disney’s live-action/computer-animated updates of its traditionally animated classics, 2022’s Pinocchio seems to be driven by the existence of available technology more than any sense of artistic vision (which is perhaps the Achilles’ heel of director Robert Zemeckis in the later stages of his career). Still, Pinocchio manages enough charm, inventiveness, and—yes—technical innovation to be worth the effort. Joseph Gordon-Levitt amusingly nods to Cliff Edwards’ iconic vocal performance as the voice of Jiminy Cricket, while the visual design of Jiminy and Honest John (Keegan-Michael Key) has an astonishingly tactile nature, rare for CGI imagery. (As for Tom Hanks, in the flesh as Geppetto, let’s just blame his turn here and in 2022’s Elvis on long COVID. I’m not sure the timing works out, but we can pretend.) As co-writer, with Chris Weitz, Zemeckis does offer a few interesting tweaks to the 1940 Pinocchio, including the choice to have Pinocchio remain a puppet, rather than a “real boy,” at the end of the story. For a tale that traditionally emphasizes earning your existence, that’s a lovely nod to unconditional love.
(11/10/2022)
