The rest of the film follows Pinocchio as he succumbs time and time again to the human temptations of fame, glory, and the easy way out. Childlike and literally new to the world, Pinocchio is easily tempted, often because he is convinced that he is doing the “right thing,” which makes him easy prey for con artists like Honest John (Walter Catlett) and hucksters like the traveling gypsy Stromboli (Charles Judels), both of whom promise Pinocchio great things that never quite happen. Although not as blatantly didactic as the original story, Pinocchio’s recurrent narrative motif of temptation followed by punishment is clear enough and takes the film into some decidedly dark territory, especially when you consider that the victim of the film’s violence is, for all intents and purposes, a child.

Chief among these is the disturbing, uneasy sequence in which Pinocchio is lured to a place call Pleasure Island along with countless other young boys. At first, it is darkly comical, as the young boys are given free reign to do whatever they want, which, for young boys, involves eating cake, drinking beer, smoking cigars, and destroying things (perhaps the most unsettling thing about the sequence is what it suggests about fundamental human nature freed from any restraints). Directors Hamilton Luske and Ben Sharpsteen (who worked separately on many of Disney’s other animated classics, including Fantasia, Dumbo, Cinderella, Peter Pan, and Lady and the Tramp) slowly build levels of unease, suggesting with ominous imagery that something is not right.

We finally learn the horrible truth--that Pleasure Island is an elaborate trap and the boys are being transformed into donkeys and sold to salt mines and circuses--when Pinocchio’s new friend, the obnoxious, overly confident Lampwick (Frankie Darro), is transformed into a pathetic, braying jackass in a shadowy sequence that would be perfectly at home in an expressionistic horror movie. The scene is rough and disturbing, but the most unsettling thing about it is that it is never resolved. That is, the boys of Pleasure Island are never rescued, and we are left to assume that they spend the rest of their lives unhappily slaving in the salt mines. (One might suppose that if Pinocchio were made today, the filmmakers would feel an imperative to send the hero back to rescue them at the end of the film.)

Yet, Pinocchio constantly balances its darker elements with moments of humor and wit, most of which comes from Pinocchio’s “conscience,” a thoroughly modern and wise-cracking, but ultimately humble and attentive cricket named Jiminy (Cliff Edwards), who implores to the audience at the beginning of the film that we should believe in the magic of wishing upon a star. Jiminy is one of Disney’s more memorable creations--far from just a sidekick, he is the story’s narrator and the crucial link between the film and the audience (he often breaks the fourth wall by speaking directly to the viewer, something that was quite rare in 1940s cinema).

Of course, part of the film’s pleasure is its visual appeal, having been brought to life with some of the most beautiful animation ever committed to film. Completely hand-drawn in the days before computer effects, Pinocchio is dazzling mixture of realism and impressionism, replete with striking colors and exquisite characterizations. The artists play with elements of light and shadow, and they create vivid, three-dimensional landscapes in which the animated characters interact. One of the film’s most striking innovations was a multiplane camera that allowed the artists to create a shifting three-dimension space, best exemplified in a stunning tracking shot early in the film in which the camera moves through Gepetto’s small town, slipping under arches and winding down streets, which are populated with dozens of individual characters. It’s the kind of sequence that makes it easy to forget you’re watching an animated film.

Pinocchio ends with a particularly memorable action sequence, with Pinocchio and Jiminy Cricket venturing into the ocean to save Gepetto from the belly of Monstro, an enormous and menacing whale. Watch the sequence carefully, and note all the loving attention the artists have given to the way in which waves and ocean currents move and the manner in which they render sunlight dancing on the ocean floor. This is a film that was put together with care and loving attention to detail, and not a single frame fails to captivate.

Pinocchio 2-Disc Platinum Edition Blu-Ray
This two-disc Blu-Ray set also includes a bonus third disc of the movie on DVD.
Aspect Ratio	1.33:1
Audio	English DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1 surround English Dolby Digital 1.0 monaural
Subtitles	English, Spanish, French
Supplements	Audio commentary with Leonard Maltin, Eric Goldberg and J. B. Kaufman. Cine-Explore multi-screen option “Pinocchio’s Matter of Facts” trivia track “Disney Song Selection” No Strings Attached: The Making of Pinocchio retrospective documentary Three deleted scenes “The Sweat Box” featurette Live Action Reference Footage Pinocchio Art Galleries Deleted songs Three theatrical trailers “Gepettos Then and Now” featurette “Pinocchio Puzzles” “Pleasure Island Carnival Games” Disney BD-Live Network features only available in the U.S.
Distributor	Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment
SRP	$35.99
Release Date	March 10, 2009
VIDEO & AUDIO
Presented in full 1080p high-definition, Pinocchio looks absolutely fabulous--light years ahead of the previously available DVD. Restored to a pristine condition but without losing any of the filmlike appearance of the animation, the image is sharp and impressively rendered, which allows you to fully absorb all the nuances and fine detail that went into the animation. The Technicolor color scheme is appropriately bright and heavily saturated, and the contrast brings real depth to the image. The film is presented in its original 1.33:1 aspect ratio but is anamorphically enhanced, meaning that the black bars on the side are encoded into the image for true 16:9 playback. The disc also gives you an option called “Disney View,” which fills the black bars on either side of the image with frame-like paintings by Toby Bluth. The newly created DTS-HD 7.1 Master Audio soundtrack also sounds magnificent, even though the surround effects are somewhat limited, with the real spaciousness being given to the songs and musical numbers. For purists, a restored original monaural soundtrack is also available.
SUPPLEMENTS
When Disney released Pinocchio on DVD back in 1999, it was sadly lacking any supplementary material, which was a disappointment at the time given the film’s legendary status. Ten years later, Disney has clearly rectified that problem with this two-disc Blu-Ray set, which features an excellent array of supplementary material for both adults and kids. On the first disc we have a new audio commentary by film historian and critic Leonard Maltin, Disney animator Eric Goldberg, and film historian J. B. Kaufman (who is working on a book about Pinocchio). The three of them provide a great deal of insight and detail into the film’s inner workings, and you can tell by the passion in their voices how much they love and admire the film. The disc also gives you the “Cine-Explore” option, which enhances the commentary by showing the commentators in a screen-within-the-screen that is also used to show us sketches, storyboards, models, archival footage, and interviews with the animators who worked on the film. You can also opt to watch the film with “Pinocchio’s Matter of Facts,” a trivia track that gives bits of information about Pinocchio and other related subjects as you watch the movie. There is also the “Disney Song Selection,” which turns the disc into karaoke by having the lyrics appear onscreen during the musical sequences. The second disc is divided into two major sections: “Games & Activities” and “Backstage Disney.” The first section contains “Pinocchio Puzzles,” a multi-tiered puzzle game hosted by Jiminy Cricket that contains six unique wooden puzzles, each of which forms an image from the film that comes to life once it is complete. “Pleasure Island Carnival Games” is a series of games inspired by the film’s Pleasure Island sequence. “Backstage Disney” opens with No Strings Attached: The Making of Pinocchio, a 55-minute retrospective documentary that features new and archival interviews with a host of film historians (including Leonard Maltin, J.B. Kaufman, and Russell Merritt), animation historians (including Jerry Beck and Michael Barrier), and Disney animators past and present, as well as Disney historian Brian Sibley and actor Dickie Jones, who voiced Pinocchio. The documentary shows us test animation and covers in good depth the unique contributions of each of the legendary artists who worked on the film. Also in this section are three deleted scenes (about 10 minutes total), each of which is recreated using existing storyboards from the Disney archives. These scenes include “The Story of the Grandfather Tree,” in which Geppetto tells Pinocchio about the pine tree from which he is descended; “In The Belly of the Whale,” a different version of Geppetto inside Monstro; and a slightly alternate ending. “The Sweat Box” featurette (6:30) traces the history of the titular projection room at the Disney studio where Walt critiqued story reels, rough animation, and dailies. The Live Action Reference Footage consists of about 10 minutes of footage that was shot to give the artists physical references for their animation. The extensive Pinocchio Art Galleries consist of “Visual Development,” “Gustaf Tenggren Art,” “Character Design,” “Maquettes and Models,” “Backgrounds & Layouts,” “Storyboard Art,” “Production Pictures,” and “Live Action References.” There is also a section on publicity that contains three theatrical trailers (the original 1940 trailer and rerelease trailers from 1984 and 1992), a deleted song called “Honest John” that was recorded in 1947 for promotional purposes, and “Gepettos Then and Now,” an 11-minute featurette about the art and craft of making wooden toys. The Blu-Ray disc also affords access to the Disney BD-Live Network, which contains a ton of other features and activities.

Overall Rating: (4)

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