Fans Are Telling Disney How They Really Feel About The Live-Action Pinocchio
It's been a weird year for Pinocchio. By some bizarre bout of coincidence (and, perhaps, misfortune), the classic tale of a wooden boy come to life whose nose grows when he lies is getting three completely separate film adaptations in 2022 alone.
The first in the lineup to touch down was the Russian-Hungarian project "Pinocchio: A True Story," a movie which features a talking horse, a magical fairy, and is most decidedly not a true story in any sense of the term. This low-budget effort made waves online, largely due to an influx of memes based on comedian Pauly Shore's voice and lines for Pinocchio himself ("Father, when can I leave to be on my ownnn? I've got the whole world to see!"). Down the line in December 2022, Netflix will take their own shot with esteemed director Guillermo del Toro's own darker take on the "Pinocchio" mythos. However, right smack in between these two projects lies Disney's own new "Pinnochio" movie, freshly released on Disney+.
Rather than a new take based on the original book in the same way as the other two movies, Disney's "Pinnochio" is a live-action remake of the company's own classic 1940 animated film. As previous live-action remakes from the House of Mouse have demonstrated, such as 2019's "The Lion King" and 2020's "Mulan," it's risky territory to revisit beloved oldies in a new light. As it so happens, many Disney fans already have strong words regarding their feelings on this latest "Pinocchio" project.
The remake isn't going over that well with fans
Unfortunately, it appears that many fans aren't very keen on Disney's new "Pinocchio" installment. "Pinocchio is nothing but a soulless shot for shot retelling of an iconic tale," @BlackMajikMan90 tweeted. "Every decision made here is the worst kind of movie business practice as it reeks of laziness and discontent. There is no reason for this to exist."
While many other fans have also leveled criticisms at the movie regarding its overcommitment to mirroring the animated original, the parts that the creators did change haven't proved to be very popular either. "Unsurprisingly, Disney's remake of Pinocchio is an uninspired dumpster fire," @Saberspark tweeted. "Like its version of Pleasure Island has root beer instead of ACTUAL beer which DEFEATS THE POINT of the original scene."
The subject matter of Pleasure Island isn't the only thing that has been shifted for the movie, as the ending of "Pinocchio" also features a few revisions, including a new take on the sea beast of Monstro. But perhaps the scene that best sums up fans' feelings on the remake comes much earlier in the movie, when Jiminy Cricket is bombarded by a cacophony of clocks in Geppetto's workshop. Rather than adhering to the original's vision, the scene features clocks based on Disney's many properties, including "Toy Story," "The Lion King," and "Dumbo." @blockbustedpod addressed the sequence with a scathing message: "this might be the most blatant and forced corporate flattery-session in history."