I was talking to a friend about Steven Speilberg's "A.I." and that got me thinking about "Pinocchio" and I decided to re-visit this classic Disney movie. Released in 1940, this is the second full length animated film created by Walt Disney. The film was a critical triumph at the time of it's release, but was a financial failure for Disney. It cost $2.29 million to make, but by 1947 had earned only 1.43 million in ticket sales. A large part of this was caused by its delayed release overseas due to WWII.
The film continued to build in reputation and critical acclaim with each re-release to theatres. The film was shown in 1945, 1954, 1962, 1971, 1978, 1984 and 1992 bringing it's lifetime ticket sales to over $84 million. It is considered one of the best animated films of all time.
It's reputation has been enhanced by introducing the song "When You Wish Upon A Star". This is probably the best known of all the songs written for Disney films and the company has even adapted it as it's fanfare. The film received Academy Awards for Best Song and Best Scoring.
I saw this film for the first time during the 1971 re-release and I have seen it many times since. Like many earlier Disney films there is a unique charm to it. The animation is stupendous, and since my visit to the Walt Disney Family Museum, I have a much better understanding of how it was done, and that only makes me appreciate it more. There are some very dark overtones to the film. The evil coachman, the boys turning into donkeys, the monstrous whale and Stromboli the cruel puppet master are all scary figures for a child.. There are only five songs in the film and they are all in the first half. The second half of the film is more serious and deals with Pinocchio's attempt to stay out of trouble and return to his loving father, Gepetto.
I hope there never comes a day when I am too old to find the child within who likes to enjoy a Disney Animated classic.
At The Movie House Rating **** Stars. Watched on Blu-Ray.
1 comment:
This is by far my favorite Disney animated film, and I bought a copy of this release for my grandson, who is 7. I must have seen the 1962 release in the theatre when I was 9 or 10, and the whole idea of being turned into a donkey on Pleasure Island scared the hell out of me. As with the best of Disney, he never protected his young audience from the darker side of life.
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