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Tag: Pinocchio

  • ‘Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio’ Wins Best Animated Picture at Golden Globes

    ‘Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio’ Wins Best Animated Picture at Golden Globes

    The Guillermo del Toro co-directed adaptation of Pinocchio has won Best Picture – Animated at the 80th Golden Globe Awards. Del Toro, of course, previously won a Best Director Golden Globe for his work on The Shape of Water in 2018. Other nominees in the Best Animated Picture category included:

    • Inu-Oh
    • Marcel the Shell with Shoes On
    • Puss n’ Boots: The Last Wish
    • Turning Red

    This adaptation of Pinocchio comes after Disney had its own version of the classic children’s fantasy novel released this year by director Robert Zemeckis. The Disney+ exclusive film starring Tom Hanks was critically panned and labeled as a poor recreation of Disney’s 1940 animated film.

    Meanwhile, the Netflix-exclusive adaptation has been met with widespread acclaim. Guillermo del Toro and Mark Gustafson‘s direction and usage of stop-motion were greatly lauded, as was the notion of tying the film historically to interwar, fascist Italy. It ultimately isn’t much of a surprise to see the film being awarded this Golden Globe.

    Pinocchio follows carpenter Gepetto creating a wooden puppet named Pinocchio that magically comes to life through the power of a Wood Sprite. From there, the story tells the tale of the young puppet in his journey to find morals and develop a familial relationship with his pseudo-father, while Gepetto also comes to terms with the puppet being his son.

    Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio stars Gregory Mann, Ewan McGregor, David Bradley, Christoph Waltz, Tilda Swinton, and Cate Blanchett, among other notable Hollywood stalwarts. The film is currently available to view on Netflix.

  • The Top 10 Worst Movies of 2022

    The Top 10 Worst Movies of 2022

    It’s that time of year – time to cringe at the top cinematic disasters that disappointed us the most in the last 12 months. These are the films that made us want to burn down the movie theatre and never look back. We highly recommend avoiding these at all costs, unless you’re a psychopath with a fiery love for burning money. 

    10- Jurassic World Dominion ★★½☆☆

    Four years after Isla Nublar was destroyed, dinosaurs now live—and hunt—alongside humans all over the world. This fragile balance will reshape the future and determine, once and for all, whether human beings are to remain the apex predators on a planet they now share with history’s most fearsome creatures.

    Review: The movie is a lifeless corporate excuse for a poorly written nostalgia comeback of the original cast. Filled to the brim with worthless exposition and failed stabs at building ANY emotion. The dialogue is atrocious, the characters are shallow and the plot is boring.

    9- Uncharted ★★½☆☆

    A young street-smart, Nathan Drake and his wisecracking partner Victor “Sully” Sullivan embark on a dangerous pursuit of “the greatest treasure never found” while also tracking clues that may lead to Nathan’s long-lost brother.

    Review: The film adaptation of Uncharted seems like it should be a no-brainer – full of action, adventure, and treasure-hunting. However, the execution of this movie leaves much to be desired. The CGI is unrealistic, the dialogue is uninspired, and the action scenes feel cheap. It’s a shame that this attempt at a movie is now attached to such a loved franchise.

    08- The Menu ★★☆☆☆

    A couple travels to a coastal island to eat at an exclusive restaurant where the chef has prepared a lavish menu, with some shocking surprises.

    Review: I had high expectations for this film, but it ultimately fell short. While it had a fresh premise, the execution was flawed and the events depicted made no sense. Luckily Anya Taylor Joy and Ralph Fiennes’s performances made this pretentious mess tolerable. Honestly, I was really disappointed by the lack of effort put into the horror aspect of this thing. It was like they were too afraid to go all in and just ended up with a tame and unimpressive result. After almost two hours, it just fell flat and left me feeling underwhelmed.

    07- Amsterdam ★★☆☆☆

    In the 1930s, three friends—a doctor, a nurse, and an attorney—witness a murder, become suspects themselves and uncover one of the most outrageous plots in North American history.

    Review: This film is a mess from start to finish. The plot is confusing and the director’s attempts to address serious themes like racism and fascism are shallow and misguided. The film can’t even decide what genre it wants to be and fails to deliver. The only redeeming factor is the strong performances from the cast that make this movie barely watchable.

    06- Don’t Worry Darling ★★☆☆☆

    A 1950s housewife living with her husband in a utopian experimental community begins to worry that his glamorous company may be hiding disturbing secrets.

    Review: I don’t know what I was expecting from this film, but it certainly wasn’t a complete disaster. It was like a white-washed live-action of an Isekai anime. Florence Pugh seemed to be the only one trying to salvage this mess, but even her performance couldn’t do shit. The cinematography was probably the only redeeming factor, but it’s not enough to make up for the incoherent plot and completely ridiculous character motivation.

    05- Samaritan ★½☆☆☆

    Thirteen-year-old Sam Cleary suspects that his mysteriously reclusive neighbor Mr. Smith is actually the legendary vigilante Samaritan, who was reported dead 20 years ago. With crime on the rise and the city on the brink of chaos, Sam makes it his mission to coax his neighbor out of hiding to save the city from ruin.

    Review: While this superhero film may try to present itself as deep and introspective with its themes… the execution is a complete disaster. The storyline is twisty for the sake of being twisty, and the acting is barely tolerable. The cinematography may be well-oriented, but the editing is messy and the visual effects are laughably bad. The dialogue feels like it was taken from 8-mile and the antagonists are one-dimensional and annoying. To top it off, the conclusion is lacking and makes little sense. All in all, this film is a complete mess and a complete waste of Sylvester Stallone‘s talent.

    04- Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore ★☆☆☆☆

    In an effort to thwart Grindelwald’s plans of raising pure-blood wizards to rule over all non-magical beings, Albus Dumbledore enlists his former student Newt Scamander, who agrees to help, though he’s unaware of the dangers that lie ahead. Lines are drawn as love and loyalty are tested, even among the truest friends and family, in an increasingly divided wizarding world.

    Review: This is just another example that we can’t have nice things, this feels like an insult to what the source material established years ago and a slap to the fans of the Harry Potter franchise. One can only hope that Warner Bros. stops milking the franchise and that JK Rowling stops pretending that she cares about her creation as both parties seem keen to green-light projects that have no care nor love for what they’re part of.

    03- Spiderhead ★☆☆☆☆

    A prisoner in a state-of-the-art penitentiary begins to question the purpose of the emotion-controlling drugs he’s testing for a pharmaceutical genius.

    Review: Two hours of pure chaos, filled with poor writing and even more subpar acting. It disappoints me that such a growing and talented actor like Miles Teller would dive head first to be the protagonist in this mess with Chris Hemsworth whose acting has been decaying in recent years by just doing the same character over and over again… at least this time he managed to portray a less annoying version of Thor. This is just a reskin low-budget-looking copycat of Black Mirror.

    02- Pinocchio ★☆☆☆☆

    A wooden puppet embarks on a thrilling adventure to become a real boy.

    Review: It’s just another soul-sucking attempt of Disney to rehash the Disney Vault classics to a fresh and younger generation with nightmare-inducing CGI that would make the frozen head of Walt Disney actually cringe.

    01- Thor: Love and Thunder ★☆☆☆☆

    After his retirement is interrupted by Gorr the God Butcher, a galactic killer who seeks the extinction of the gods, Thor enlists the help of King Valkyrie, Korg, and ex-girlfriend Jane Foster, who now inexplicably wields Mjolnir as the Mighty Thor. Together, they embark upon a harrowing cosmic adventure to uncover the mystery of the God Butcher’s vengeance and stop him before it’s too late.

    Review: Being a big Taika Waititi fan, this movie really broke me. Love and Thunder is not only a clear step down from Thor: Ragnarok but also a painfully mid experience. On paper, this seemed like a good idea but it ended up being a complete mess with some ok moments tossed in. They literally wasted Christian Bale acting skills for no reason.

    –

    These movies left a lot to be desired. However, as we move into the new year, we can only hope for better and more enjoyable films in the future. Happy New Year to all, and here’s to a brighter and more successful 2023 in the world of cinema!

  • REVIEW: Guillermo del Toro and Mark Gustafson’s ‘Pinocchio’

    REVIEW: Guillermo del Toro and Mark Gustafson’s ‘Pinocchio’

    Pinocchio, once a beloved animated classic from Disney, was given new life this year thanks to a hybrid live-action film from Disney and director Robert Zemeckis and a stop-motion take from Guillermo del Toro and Mark Gustafson. Disney’s take, which starred Tom Hanks as Geppetto, was considered a misfire by both audiences and critics alike. While featuring an all-star cast, the movie itself often felt wooden. There was no charm to it, no spark, so it’s not entirely surprising then that many have been curious about Del Toro’s take on the legendary tale, especially given he has called the fable one close to his heart. While it’s often uneven, Del Toro and Gustafson have crafted a visually stunning adaptation that is incredibly emotional and worthy of a watch.

    When it comes to the tale of Pinocchio, the story basics of the story are well-known. A boy puppet eager to become a real boy, and who must prove himself worthy of doing so. That story is still at the center of this take, but Del Toro and Gustafson manage to craft an even more compelling tale around it. While the Disney remake suggested Geppetto had a son, we never really learned much about him or what happened to him. In this version of Pinocchio, though, we get to see Geppetto and his son, Carlo, and their relationship before a tragedy cuts their time together short. It’s an incredibly heartbreaking moment that is handled with such care. It’s this particular scene that separates this version of Pinocchio from those before it – this isn’t a sugar-coated child’s tale. The emotion radiates off the screen thanks to the beautifully done stop-motion and the agony in the voice work.

    That isn’t to say this adaptation of Pinocchio is without its flaws. This stop-motion take often feels like it drags, while somehow also managing to jump all over the place. It can be incredibly off-putting, but those able to make it beyond those moments will find that the uneven journey results in a beautifully told story. In a letter to the press, Del Toro explained that when crafting this take on Pinocchio, he wanted to showcase just how “brief and significant we are in our time with each other.” And although the film sometimes stumbles over its handling of death, it ultimately does highlight the heartbreaking reality of life and death.

    I longed to do a film full of light, that would explain how brief and significant we are in our time with each other – and I wanted to do it with heartbreaking beauty and rendered by the most human craftsmanship. So, I chose one of the most delicate, artisanal forms of our art form – stop motion animation – and pushed it as much as possible.

    Del Toro

    The classic Disney songs will, obviously, not be present in this take. And that does, unfortunately, hurt the movie as the songs introduced in their place are forgettable and don’t really add much to the film overall. In fact, most of them go on far longer than necessary. Much like the film itself. While a visual feast packed with an emotional story, the movie’s nearly two-hour runtime is definitely felt by the end.

    All in all: Pinocchio is a heartfelt movie that welcomes its viewers to reconsider what we leave in our wake upon death. It’s a heartbreaking tale meant to remind us to live.

  • REVIEW: ‘Pinocchio’ is Visually Stunning but Unnecessary

    REVIEW: ‘Pinocchio’ is Visually Stunning but Unnecessary

    Over the past decade, Disney has made it a habit of remaking some of its biggest animated classics in live action. Sometimes the decision to remake these films works out well (Cinderella), but oftentimes, audiences are left feeling as though the remakes don’t live up to par (Dumbo). Unfortunately, while visually stunning, Pinocchio seems likely to fall in the latter category. It feels like a lifeless remake that does a poor job at adapting such a beloved animated classic.

    Disney’s animated Pinocchio was released on February 23, 1940, and was based on the novel The Adventures of Pinocchio by Carlo Collodi. The animated movie told the story of the living puppet, Pinocchio, and the cricket that serves as his conscience to help Pinocchio as he seeks to become a real boy. The live-action remake, of course, follows the same path. Unfortunately, though, it lacks the same charm and care as its predecessor. Sure, Tom Hanks‘ casting as Geppetto is fantastic. He captures the oddities of the character and easily steals every moment that he appears on the screen. The problem, however, is Hanks’ time as Geppetto is short, and when he isn’t around? This take on Pinocchio struggles to find its footing.

    Benjamin Evan Ainsworth does an excellent job voicing Pinocchio. He captures the emotions wonderfully, from confusion, to love and sadness – his vocal performance is up there with Hanks’ take on Geppetto. But as great as the two leads are, the secondary cast is forgettable – albeit not through any faults of their own. Giuseppe Battiston‘s Stromboli isn’t given much to work with and fails to be as imposing of a character as he should’ve been. And Honest John and Gideon feel underused despite essentially serving their purpose. It’s frustrating because, by the end of the movie, it’s hard to recall what should’ve been a noteworthy performance by Keegan-Michael Key (Honest John). And while Luke Evans does get to shine in the few moments he’s on screen as the Coachman, this is mainly due to the iconic numbers he gets to belt out. Ultimately, for such a stellar cast, the film fails to truly use any of them properly and it’s frustrating.

    The fact of the matter is this take on Pinocchio never truly feels necessary. Yes, there are good moments, and there’s no denying the visuals are stunning. Outside of that, though, there’s truly nothing new that the animated classic doesn’t already have to offer audiences. To remake something, there needs to be a good reason to do so, but that special charm and wonder provided by the animated film does not exist in this remake. The musical numbers are still catchy – and Cynthia Erivo‘s brief musical moment as the Blue Fairy is stunningly done – but outside of that? There’s nothing truly memorable here.

    That isn’t to say families won’t find joy in this film. For audiences not yet introduced to the animated film, Pinocchio will probably delight. Those that grew up on the classic, however, will struggle to find anything of note in this live action remake. Well-done visuals does not a great movie make. Pinocchio needed a bit more room to breathe. While the movie does a good job modernizing certain scenes – Pleasure Island, mainly – it often falls short elsewhere because it omits scenes that help to make the animated film the classic that it has become.

    Perhaps Netflix’s version, coming later this year, will offer an exciting new take on a beloved classic. For now, fans can check out Pinocchio only on Disney+.

  • First Look and Details on Guillermo del Toro’s ‘Pinocchio’

    First Look and Details on Guillermo del Toro’s ‘Pinocchio’

    Guillermo del Toro‘s upcoming Pinocchio has been a passion project for the director for years. He’s been trying to get it made for a while and now has found a home with Netflix that is willing to let his artistic venture come to life. The stop-motion storyline from the director of Labyrinth and Hellboy promises something special, and in a new piece by Vanity Fair, he gets to talk about how he’s approaching a more gothic take of the tale.

    I’ve always been very intrigued by the links between Pinocchio and Frankenstein,” del Toro tells Vanity Fair for this exclusive first look. “They are both about a child that is thrown into the world. They are both created by a father who then expects them to figure out what’s good, what’s bad, the ethics, the morals, love, life, and essentials, on their own. I think that was, for me, childhood. You had to figure it out with your very limited experience

    One thing that intrigued the director was the similarities between the living puppet and the iconic Frankenstein story, as a doctor brings his creation to life.

    I’ve always been very intrigued by the links between Pinocchio and Frankenstein. They are both about a child that is thrown into the world. They are both created by a father who then expects them to figure out what’s good, what’s bad, the ethics, the morals, love, life, and essentials, on their own. I think that was, for me, childhood. You had to figure it out with your very limited experience.

    Guillermo Del Toro

    The upcoming film will delve into that kind of ethics a bit, but he promises it’ll still be child-friendly, he simply believes “these are times that demand from kids a complexity that is tremendous. Far more daunting, I think, than when I was a child.”

    He’s working on the project alongside Mark Gustafson, who many might know as the animation director for Wes Anderson‘s Fantastic Mr. Fox. Though, there is a deliberate choice to tell the story of a wooden boy coming to life while everyone else is made of stop motion puppets, which also makes it stand out from other adaptations, especially Robert Zemeckis‘s live-action version for Disney.

    Gregory Mann will take on the voice of Pinocchio, who is a cheerful fellow but has a sad backstory. He’s actually carved out of the tree that grew over the grave of Gepetto’s son. the heartbroken man will be voiced by David Bradley, who gets a second chance at being a father. Ewan McGregor is also set to join as the purple cricket, Sebastian J. Cricket, who made a home out of Pinocchio’s trunk.

    The big departure will be that there are no longer other mystical beings outside of the young boy being brought to life from wood. So, don’t expect the talking animals or donkey transformations from the original storyline. He also generally took a different direction with the villain

    I didn’t want magical creatures other than the wood spirit that gives him life, and Pinocchio himself,” del Toro says. “I didn’t want a talking fox and a talking cat and the magic of transforming him into a donkey. I wanted everything else to feel as close as we can to the real world. The three main villains in the original story are the cat, the fox, and the puppeteer, and we wanted to fuse them into one

    Guillermo del Toro

    As with any del Toro film, Ron Perman is also joining the production as a new addition to the story. he’ll play an authoritarian trying to recruit the wooden boy as a soldier, which moves away from Pleasure Island. He also teases many more changes to iconic characters to make this story truly its own take on a magical creature in a real and dark world.

    It definitely sounds like he is taking a different direction and the concept art that was revealed some time ago promises a dark storyline that will surely be among the director’s best. He’s always had a way of telling stories of people that stand out from the rest and it seems the theme will remain in the upcoming Pinocchio film heading to Netflix.

    Source: Vanity Fair

  • First Look at Live-Action Pinocchio and Tom Hanks as Geppetto

    First Look at Live-Action Pinocchio and Tom Hanks as Geppetto

    While most of the Walt Disney Annual Meeting for Shareholder was mostly focused on the inner workings of the company, Disney was surprised with a special look at some future projects. The biggest was our first look at Tom Hanks as Gepetto for the Disney+ original live-action remake of Pinocchio.

    It’s kind of crazy to see a live-action doll of Pinocchio that is just a one-to-one replica of the design from the cartoon. Yet, it makes sense given that dolls in this design are being sold worldwide and he is made of wood. Gepetto even looks amazingly faithful to the original with Tom Hanks truly embracing the character. He’s also a great choice for the role with his general optimistic attitude.

    The film will likely follow the original quite closely, but the question is how much they’ll tone down specific elements. I wouldn’t expect children to smoke and drink beer in this film, but they might still turn some naughty children into donkeys to teach them a lesson. So far though, it looks quite faithful and it’ll be interesting to see what they may change once it releases.

    Source: Walt Disney

  • DISNEY+ DAY: ‘Pinocchio’ Eyeing Fall 2022 Release

    DISNEY+ DAY: ‘Pinocchio’ Eyeing Fall 2022 Release

    The retelling of Pinocchio directed by Robert Zemeckis is heading to Disney+, as they shared the full cast line-up and that it is eyeing a release for Fall 2022. Tom Hanks, Cynthia Erivo, and Luke Evans will bring some of the iconic characters to life with the help of voices provided by Benjamin Evan Ainsworth, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Keegan-Michael Key, and Lorrain Cracco.

    Source: Twitter

  • Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Cynthia Erivo Join Robert Zemeckis’ ‘Pinocchio’

    Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Cynthia Erivo Join Robert Zemeckis’ ‘Pinocchio’

    Disney has been busy developing their next live-action adaptations of some of their classic animations. A few days ago, Jessica Alexander joined the upcoming remake of The Little Mermaid. That wasn’t the end of it just yet. They’ve also been busy casting their cast for the Robert Zemeckis-directed Pinocchio. The Wrap has reported that Cynthia Erivo closed a deal to play the Blue Fairy. They also found their Jiminy Cricket. Joseph Gordon-Levitt has joined the production as the helpful companion. They are joining Keegan-Michael Key as Honest John and Benjamin Evan Ainsworth, who will voice the titular Pinocchio.

    The film will be adapted based on a script by Zemeckis and Chris Weitz. It will start production in the United Kingdom. It is joining other Disney adaptations that will head directly to the Disney+ streaming service once it premieres, as revealed in Disney’s Investors Day. Guillermo del Toro has also been working on a new adaptation of the iconic wooden boy, which will be a far departure from the Disney original. It will be interesting to see how different these two visions will end up being when they release.

    Erivo has quite the background. She appeared in the films Widows, Harriet, and the HBO series ‘The Outsiders. She has been quite busy with her debut album and a children’s book on the way as well. The actress will also portray Aretha Franklin in the upcoming series Genius. It is great to see her join the upcoming Disney+ film, and it will be interesting to see what she brings to the role of the Blue Fairy.

    Source: The Wrap (Casting), The Wrap (Disney+), SyFy