Rating: 
Summary: Wooden
Review: Forget the technical problems, the bad dubbing, the muddy sound, the cheesy sets; these things are mere trifles in this monumentally bad movie. It takes a special kind of hubris to think that a fifty year-old man can successfully portray a pre-adolescent boy/puppet and Roberto Benigni (no surprise) fails. His acting isn't so much energetic as it is schizophrenic, water bug skitterings followed by shallow musings. Benigni's Pinocchio is a bounding, incongruous, humorless, vapid stick clad in a ridiculous costume. In the middle of this G-rated movie Pinocchio is floridly hanged by two robbers. The Blue Fairy (Nicoletta Braschi, as teeth-achingly beautiful as ever) brings him back to life-this is, after all, a fairy tale-but this scene is waaaaaaay too graphic for young children, as is the scene where Pinocchio gets swallowed by the leviathan. This movie ain't good, ain't funny, and ain't worth watching.
Rating: 
Summary: Ciao Pinocchio
Review: I found the movie to be a visual delight with Roberto as the mischievous boy puppet and his wife, Nicoletta as the Blue Fairy. The scenery was soothing and the special effects highly entertaining. I would have left the dubbing out. I was disappointed not to hear the movie in Italian, only to hear Roberto singing while the credits were rolling. The dubbing took away from the fact that it is an Italian story. I would like to see it in its native language with english sub titles.
Rating:
Summary: A visually stunning and faithful adaptation
Review: I had my worries before I saw this film, as I do before I see any adaptation of a favorite piece of literature, but I can happily say that I was not the least bit disappointed in this beautiful film. Visually stunning from get-go, the film never seems to let up on its attraction to the eye. But even more to its credit, the film is extraordinary in its fidelity to the spirit of the Collodi original, which made it such a treat. I was afraid that most American moviegoers and critics, used to the Disney version, might find the differances in the story-line and characters unsettling enough to leave a bad taste in their mouths, and, while this was not entirely the case, its poor critical reception seems to be partially due to this. Not that I'm not knocking the Disney film, it is a masterpiece in its own right with some of the most magnificent animation ever produced for the silver screen, but its highly Americanized and slightly emasculated interpretation of the original book has always left me preferring the original.
But some warning, this is not a movie for children. Most children who have seen the Disney film and then gone on to read the book have been disappointed, due to the episodic and didactic nature of Collodi's tale, and I think most (American) children will probably not enjoy this new version for those reasons. Also, the casting is less-than-ideal, and I think this is another reason for its strong critical failure in this country (and the reason I've given it four stars rather than five). Benigni is obviously too old for the part (although I'd rather see him than some annoying, precocious child actor)and his wife is unsuitable for the Fairy with the Blue Hair (far too glamerous, I think). Also the English sountrack is incredably annoying, I am greatly looking forward to viewing the film in its original Italian. But on the whole, to those who fancy fairy tales, and especially those who are familiar with the original story, it is highly recommended.
Rating:
Summary: Painful to watch...
Review: I haven't usually written reviews. This movie just moved me to do so, however. It nearly moved me out of the theater after 45 minutes, too. If not for the fact that my two children were watching, I would have split. OK, so the English over-dubbing was to be expected, but it was done poorly creating a soundtrack that seemed not to fit with the movie. Either the volume or the synchronization or the character of the voice was off. The characters had so little connection between them that you wondered why some of them cared about each other (e.g. the fairy caring for Pinocchio). Benigni was, at times, so farcical as to be annoying. Things happened in disjointed sequences. All in all, I wouldn't even wait for the video. Be a good boy and spend your gold on something else.
Rating:
Summary: Forget Disney!
Review: I must admit I actually liked this version of Pinocchio. :-) The out-of-sync dubbing, I suppose, is to be expected. You can't expect to make English-speaking voices and Italian-speaking mouths match up perfectly. I personally would have much preferred to see it in the original Italian. I think that would have made a huge difference -- just like it does with any movie in a language other than English. Another thing -- FORGET Disney! It is nothing at all like the Disney story. And I think it is very nice to see an alternate version. And this one is made in Italy, by Italians, so it has a very homegrown touch to it. ;-) The only problem I could see was that it is a bit more childish than Benigni's last film, "Life Is Beautiful". He goes from a touching Holocaust tragedy to a fanciful straight-up comedy. So I suppose that might pose a difficulty. Other than that, I did like it! My advice is, again, to try to see it in the original Italian, subtitled in English. And try to steer clear of the Disney-propagated Pinocchio image.
Rating:
Summary: Quite Possibly The Worst Movie Ever Made!!!
Review: I went to see Pinocchio (don't ask why) but I was expecting something a little better than what I am glad I didn't pay to see. The look of the film was wonderful, a likely sort of farie tale look to it, but the dubbing reminded me of those old Kungfu movies I used to see as a kid. I mean it was pretty awful! The dubbing of Pinocchio is was the proverbial nail in the coffin for this movie, it was not just annoying as somebody scraping a chalkboard but it was down right painful to endure. I saw kids dozing off or running around the movie theater ignoring the movie entirely. THIS WAS THE WORSE MOVIE OF THE SUMMER! I would rather see Hudson Hawk nine hundred times in one sitting than see this movie a second time, this time all the way through! This movie is probably played in some low circle of Hades as a form of eternal punishment!
Rating: 
Summary: Give this movie a chance!!!!
Review: Ignore all the negative press and go see this film. Roberto Benigni has created a faithful film version of Collodi's classic story. It is visually stunning and Benigni's energy and enthusiasm are amazing. The film is far better than the critics want you to think, and it is great to have a classic tale rendered authentically rather than perverted by the likes of Disney. Cute as those films are, they do a great disservice to literary works of all genres.
Rating:
Summary: The DVD has arrived! Finally! WATCH IT IN ITALIAN!
Review: My wife and I were travelling in Italy last year when this latest version of Pinocchio came into the theatres. The country went insane over it! They had a poll of school children on who they liked more:
Pinocchio or Roberto Benigni?
It was close, but Roberto came out on top. If you watch this movie, you'll understand why.
Roberto Benigni is an adult who hasn't forgot what it is like to be a kid. He is constantly smiling, playing and has boundless amounts of infectous energy. The role of Pinocchio is perfect for him. We saw the movie, and even though we understood a little more than half of the dialogue, we were caught up in the story and completely understood what was going on on screen. We bought into it fully. When we came back to the states, we saw that the movie was coming out again in the theatres! And then we saw the trailers... This wasn't the movie that we saw.
What's with the crappy overdub!? The voices were completely wrong!
The characters went from being three-dimensional beings with substance and depth to nothing more than a parody of their original selves.
That's why it bombed over here. The whole meaning was lost in translation. The movie is absolutely gorgeous! The costumes and sets are elaborate and stunning. It's like they were pulled directly from a popup storybook land of princes,princesses, giants and fairies. Take some time to rent or buy this one on DVD.
Watch it in Italian, and get pulled along into a faraway fantasy land.
Rating:
Summary: Not bad at all!
Review: Ok, I was expecting this film to be bad based on all the bad (press) reviews but it actually isn't bad at all. As a Benigni fan I had to buy it and it's very much worth seeing, and I'm sure many other adult Benigni fans will agree. Much beautiful scenery and I laughed aloud through many scenes, such as the lollipop scene and a scene with Pinocchio along with the puppets and Fireeater... Benigni's facial expressions make it all worthwhile. Ok, so Benigni seems a little "out of place" playing a young boy, but it's fun and different. One thing though, best seen in the Italian with English subtitle version... Haven't even bothered to watch the English dubbed version. In my opinion, dubbed movies lose much and arent worth watching.
*Note* This movie is not based on the Disney version so things can be unexpected unless youve read other versions.
...Oh and why don't my copies come with an insert? That part disappointed me, not the movie.
Rating:
Summary: Dolly doll
Review: Robert Benigni's version of Pinnochio is the new version that is lame and it will confuse kids (Pinocchio is the 41 year old puppet) and disgusts adults. Should be avoided.
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