Geppetto builds cuckoo clocks, which brings to mind another movie directed by Robert Zemeckis: "Back to the Future.” This is a symbol of the themes in both films, as Geppetto is obsessed with the constant loss of time, and "Back to the Future" uses time travel to tell a story about the importance of days gone by.

Viewers will notice that as a forlorn Geppetto puts the final touches on the Pinocchio marionette, an old photo of a human child sits beside him on his work table. It's heavily implied that this boy is Geppetto's real son, who seems to have died in childhood at some prior point.

This latest version of “Pinocchio” suggests Geppetto is not just unhappy — it creates a clear and direct portrait of a man dealing with depression. Geppetto refuses to sell any of his clocks to an eager customer because they symbolize the happy years he shared with his departed wife.

Honest John attempts to spell the long and tricky moniker of Pinocchio and gives up halfway through. This reflects a very real fact many have faced, as it is a difficult name to get right. 

The characters' accents don't match the film's setting and don't even really match each other. A mélange of accents allows "Pinocchio" to be a movie unstuck in place and time, making it more relatable and relevant to our modern world.