I’ve got no strings
To hold me down
To make me fret, or make me frown
For as long as I can remember Pinocchio has always been one of my favorite classic Disney animation films. It’s one of the first ones I ever saw and I watched it a countless number of times when I was a kid. I loved it so much that one of my earliest memories of visiting Disneyland is directly tied to this film. I’m not sure if Disneyland still does this but when I was younger you used to be able to have breakfast with a bunch of the Disney characters. Basically you would show up early for breakfast and various characters would come and joy you throughout your meal to sign autographs, take pictures and so on.
We had breakfast with the characters a number of times when I was younger but this one time in particular has always stuck with me. While eating breakfast “Honest” John Worthington Foulfellow and Gideon the Cat stopped by our table to see how things were going. They offered to takes pictures and just hang out with but I would have none of it. Why? Because these were the two jerks, especially “Honest” John, that were responsible for leading poor, innocent Pinocchio astray! Had they just let him go to school he never would have gotten into all the trouble he did.
Needless to say, Pinocchio was near and dear to my heart.
It had been years, however, since I last watched the film. Not sure exactly when I last watched it but probably sometime when I was a teenager, so roughly 15 years ago or so. My memory of that viewing was that I still loved it very much. Now with this masterpiece getting another Blu-ray release from Disney – it’s third I believe – I was able to re-visit it once more.
Spoiler alert – Pinocchio is as great as it’s ever been.
It’s fascinating as an adult to go back and watch Disney films that you saw as a kid and noticing new things. It’s doubling fascinating when the film you’re getting re-acquainted with is almost 80 years old. It allows you to really appreciate how much cinema has changed over the years and what was suitable for a children’s movie back then as opposed to now. The most fascinating aspect of it all though is that the best children’s films being made today hit on all the same points those classics hit on decades prior.
The very best children’s movies, and really movies in general, deal with some type of adversity or conflict. There’s always some sort of dark element at play, whether it be death or fear or sadness, there’s something grim at play. Pinocchio has plenty of this throughout.
With “Honest” John the movie tackles stranger danger, which typically is a fear that is more commonly associated with parents rather than kids but kids are certainly aware of it. That’s why a six-year-old me didn’t want “Honest” John hanging around our breakfast table. I knew he was bad even if I didn’t fully understand why he was.
That’s just scratching the surface when it comes to Pinocchio. There’s plenty more than is genuinely scary and quite dark throughout the movie. Stromboli is pretty terrifying, so much so that his theme song is titled ‘Sinister Stromboli.’ The scene of him holding Pinocchio captive is genuinely frightening. Plus there’s that whole getting eaten by a whale bit.
It’s important to have these darker elements because they create a bigger payoff when you get to the happier moments of the film. Children’s films that are happy from the jump just aren’t very good, at least when compared to the best of the best. Of course this logic applies to all genres of film but I think it’s sometime forgotten when it comes to movies targeted towards kids. Fortunately the best Disney has to offer, then and now, absolutely understand this point. Pinocchio transforming into a boy means so much more after he goes through his journey.
The new Blu-ray, which is part of Disney’s Signature Collection is just stunning. The hand drawn animation in this film is beautiful and it’s all fully highlighted here. Of course this transfer is the same as the previous Pinocchio Blu-rays because those were already top notch.
What’s new with this Signature Collection release is some additional bonus content and the film comes with a digital copy, a first for Pinocchio. Personally digital isn’t for me, but this is the digital I like to see, a bonus that comes with a physical release.
There’s 4 brand-new special features that are making their debut on this newest Blu-ray and all total they run about 20 minutes. The new stuff is as follows:
-The Pinocchio Project: When You Wish Upon A Star
-Walt’s Story Meetings: Pleasure Island
-In Walt’s Words – Pinocchio
-Oswald The Lucky Rabbit In “Poor Papa”
And the features returning from past releases are:
-Song Selection
-Audio Commentary By Leonard Maltin, Eric Goldberg, and J.B. Kaufman
-No Strings Attached: The Making of Pinocchio
-Deleted Scenes
-The Sweatbox
-Geppettos Then and Now
-Live-Action Reference Footage
-Original Theatrical Trailer (1940)
-Theatrical Trailer (1984)
-Theatrical Trailer (1992)
-When You Wish Upon A Star Music Video by Meaghan Jette Martin
-A Wish Come True: The Making of Pinocchio
-Storyboard-To-Film Final Comparison
The new content may not look like much when compared to the old stuff but this new stuff is quality. The two things I love the most when it comes to bonus content on the classic Disney films is Walt discussing the film and an old animation short. Luckily this newest releases includes both of those.
This new release is available I now a few different editions. The standard Signature Collection is available everyone and that includes every thing listed here. Target and Best Buy also have their own exclusive editions that are available in limited quantities. The only difference with the Best Buy release is that it comes in special lenticular packaging with everything else being the same.
The Target exclusive is the release I’m most fond of. It’s similar to the mediabooks you see come out of Germany. It’s what’s known as a 28-page storybook edition and what that means is that the packaging for the film is basically a hardcover book. Inside you have 28 pages of pictures and notes about the film. This is a gorgeous release and if you’re a die-hard Disney fan this is the release for you.
Disney continues to treat their films with the respect they deserve by putting out these wonderful releases, something other major studios should really pick up on. Anyone of the three editions of this new release is sure to satisfy any fan of the film.
It may be pushing 80 but Pinocchio is just as enchanting and magical as it ever was. There is no doubt in my mind that it will continue to entertain people of all ages for decades to come.
