Originally written November 1, 2017

Pinocchio is an under-appreciated classic. I think that when most people think of a Disney movie, it’s usually one of the Disney princess movies that comes to mind, or something more along the lines of the more recent classics like Aladdin or Lion King. However, following Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Disney’s second major feature-length animated film, Pinocchio, came onto the scene. I’d argue that this movie speaks more about human nature and experience than almost any other Disney movie out there, and for that reason alone it’s one of my all-time favorite Disney movies.

Of course, as expected in a Disney movie, the grand ideas in Pinocchio are presented through a simple story that’s easily accessible to kids. The movie begins with a toymaker named Geppetto that has created a wooden puppet named Pinocchio. As he’s going to bed, Geppetto wishes upon a star that Pinocchio could be a real boy. Pinocchio is brought to life by a fairy, but is still in puppet form. The fairy explains to Pinocchio that if he wants to become a real boy, he has to prove himself to be “human.” That is, he must conduct himself with honesty and integrity, resist temptations, and let his conscience be his guide. In a brilliant move, a cricket named Jiminy Cricket is assigned to be Pinocchio’s conscience, so that we have a physical manifestation of it to follow throughout the movie. And so, Pinocchio begins his journey to try to become a real boy.

The brilliance of the movie is that it’s so true to life in how it depicts how humans act. Almost immediately after venturing out into the world, Pinocchio encounters some shady con artists that entice Pinocchio with promises of fortune and fame. Pinocchio is led into betraying his mission and ignores his conscience, seeking the rewards that have been promised to him. Of course, this doesn’t work out well for Pinocchio, and so he begs the fairy for another chance, saying how “this time will be different.” Then, almost immediately after being granted a second chance, Pinocchio gets enticed again to pursue hollow temptations, and he’s back into ignoring his conscience to go off the righteous path. At its core, Pinocchio is truly a story of how easy it is to continuously fall off the path, even after experiencing the consequences that follow. I think it’s absolutely incredible and understated how perfectly Pinocchio is able to present such a powerful message in such a simple way.

Now, I’ve only been talking about how amazing Pinocchio is for adult audiences, but of course the movie is perfect for kids too. There are plenty of hilarious side characters (such as Geppetto’s cat Figaro) that provide many comedic moments throughout the movie. In fact, it’s interesting how Pinocchio manages to tell its powerful story so effectively in under 90 minutes when a lot of that runtime is actually just filled with silly gags for families to laugh over. There’s also a fair number of songs in the movie, and some of them are pretty memorable. Perhaps not some of the best that Disney movies have offered, but I think that the movie gets a pass on this. Also, the animation style is very impressive, and it’s crazy how much detail was able to go into these movies so early on. All in all, I just think that Pinocchio is a movie that can truly be enjoyed by people of all ages. I think it’s an incredibly underrated Disney movie, and deserves a ton of praise.

5/5