“Pinocchio” (1940)
Animated film «Pinocchio» (1940)
Genre: family, fairy tale
Directed by: Ben Sharpsteen, Hamilton Luske
Produced by: Walt Disney
Written by: Carlo Collodi, Ted Sears, Otto Englander, Erdman Penner
Music by: Leigh Harline, Paul J. Smith
Studio: Walt Disney Productions
Release Date: February 7, 1940
Running time: 88 minutes
Budget: $2,289,247
Gross Revenue: $84,254,167
“Pinocchio” is the second animated feature film produced by Disney and based on the story The Adventures of Pinocchio by Carlo Collodi. Pinocchio won two Academy Awards.
Plot
The plot of the film involves an old wood-carver named Geppetto who carves a wooden puppet named Pinocchio who is brought to life by a blue fairy, who tells him he can become a real boy if he proves himself "brave, truthful, and unselfish". Thus begin the puppet's adventures to become a real boy, which involve many encounters with a host of unsavory characters…
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Background Information
- "Pinocchio" is based on the fairy tale by Italian writer Carlo Lorenzo, known as C. Collodi.
- As the main prototypes for the Blue Fairy, used appearance of actresses Evelyn Vineybl (also voiced the character), and Jean Harlow. According to writer John Grant, a prototype for Fairies also erroneously considered Marilyn Monroe, which at that moment was 14 years old. For the Blue Fairy, as for the other characters, has been used a live model. As a model became a dancer Marge Champion, previously served as a living model for Snow White, 1937.
- Cartoon significantly deviates from original fairy tale: there aren’t many scenes and characters, and carpenter Carlo is not as poor as in the book.
- In the cartoon Pinocchio do not end up turning into a donkey (visible are only ears and tail). In the original, he turns into a donkey completely but very quickly becomes the same, when the fish ate his donkey skin.
- As in "Snow White", in "Pinocchio" the book first appears on the screen.
- In order to better draw the scene when Pinocchio tries to escape from the whale, the artists have long studied the habits and movements of these whales.
- Two books labelled "Alice in Wonderland" and "Peter Pan" are visible in the very first shot of the film. Alice in Wonderland was released 11 years after Pinocchio, with Peter Pan immediately following two years later.
- Collodi based many of the places in the novel on real places. The Red Lobster Inn, or Osteria Gambero Roso, still exists, as does the house that served as the model for Geppetto's carpentry shop.
- It took 750 artists to make Pinocchio, and the film used an innovative "multi-plane" camera to get the underwater sequences to look watery. Disney won a special achievement Oscar for that technology.
- In "Tangled" durning the "I've Got A Dream" scene you can see Pinocchio.
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Errors
- When Pinocchio becomes entangled with the Russian dancer marionettes, two extra marionettes suddenly appear.
- When trying to free Pinocchio from Stromboli's cage, Jiminy Cricket takes his jacket and hat off and put them on the padlock. In a later scene, they are no longer there.
- Jiminy gets mad at Lampwick and throws his umbrella to the left, but then as he's leaving to the right all of a sudden he has his umbrella again.
- When Jiminy inspects his image reflected in a copper pot, it is reflected as magnified. Images reflected off convex surfaces are reduced in size.
Awards
Academy Awards
Best Original Score and one for Best Original Song for the song "When You Wish upon a Star".
American Film Institute recognition
- AFI's 100 Years... 100 Movies - Nominated
- AFI's 100 Years... 100 Thrills - Nominated
- AFI's 100 Years... 100 Heroes and Villains:
- Stromboli - Nominated Villain
- AFI's 100 Years... 100 Songs:
- "When You Wish Upon A Star" - #7
- AFI's 100 Years... 100 Movie Quotes:
- "A lie keeps growing and growing until it's as plain as the nose on your face." - Nominated
- AFI's Greatest Movie Musicals - Nominated
- AFI's 100 Years... 100 Cheers - #38
- AFI's 100 Years... 100 Movies (10th Anniversary Edition) - Nominated
- AFI's 10 Top 10 - #2 Animated film