Geppetto (film)

Last updated
Geppetto
Geppetto (TV musical).jpg
2009 DVD cover for Geppetto
GenreMusical fantasy
Based on The Adventures of Pinocchio
by Carlo Collodi
Written by
  • David I. Stern
Directed by Tom Moore [1]
Starring
Narrated byDrew Carey
Theme music composer Stephen Schwartz [1]
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
Production
Producer Ted Zachary [2]
CinematographyStephen M. Katz
EditorVirginia Katz
Running time89 minutes
Production companies
Original release
Network ABC
ReleaseMay 7, 2000 (2000-05-07)

Geppetto is a 2000 American made-for-television musical film based on the popular 1883 Italian children's book The Adventures of Pinocchio by Carlo Collodi starring Drew Carey and Julia Louis-Dreyfus. While not a direct adaptation of the 1940 animated film, it features a few elements such as the character of Figaro, the "I've Got No Strings" song as well as Pleasure Island. It features original songs written by Stephen Schwartz. [1] Schwartz had developed the songs as a reunion for stars Julie Andrews and Dick Van Dyke, but Andrews was undergoing throat surgery so the idea was dropped.[ citation needed ]

Contents

Plot

Geppetto (Drew Carey) is a kind toymaker who desperately wishes to become a father. One night, after selling his new spring toys to the children of Villagio, his wish is granted by the Blue Fairy (Julia Louis-Dreyfus), who brings his wooden puppet, Pinocchio (Seth Adkins), to life with her magic saying that someday, if he proves himself brave, truthful and unselfish, he will become a real boy.

At first, Geppetto is delighted to have his wish come true, but runs into a string of problems, such as Pinocchio asking unnecessary questions when trying to get to sleep, getting into mischief and wandering off when introducing him to the townspeople, and showing no interest in being a toymaker. The next day, Geppetto sends Pinocchio off to school, telling him to just act like all the other children and he will do fine. However, Pinocchio gets into a fight at school, in which he was imitating all the other children. A disappointed Geppetto takes him home where an unsuccessful puppeteer named Stromboli (Brent Spiner) becomes interested, thinking he would make him a fortune in his puppet shows. Still furious about Pinocchio's behavior, Geppetto tries to reason with the Blue Fairy, but she does not believe him. He returns home to apologize to Pinocchio, only to find out he ran away to live with Stromboli. Geppetto decides to say goodbye to Pinocchio by watching him perform in Stromboli's puppet show.

Stromboli is pleased with Pinocchio as his star puppet which has made him much money. But when Pinocchio asks to let him go, Stromboli refuses, stating it would violate a contract they signed. When Geppetto arrives backstage, hoping to say goodbye, Stromboli explains that Pinocchio left after the show, claiming that he wanted to see the world. After he leaves, Stromboli is outraged when he notices that Pinocchio escaped from the cage and spots him boarding a stagecoach to Pleasure Island. He decides to recapture him while Geppetto goes out to rescue him as well, with the Blue Fairy following him, attempting to assist him in his quest. Along the way, he meets an inept magician named Lezarno (Wayne Brady) and Professor Buonragazzo (René Auberjonois) who lives in the town of Idyllia, where he and his son make perfect and ideal children who always obey their parents. Geppetto and Stromboli both arrive at Pleasure Island where Geppetto finds out all the boys turn into donkeys after riding a rollercoaster. But because adults are not allowed in Pleasure Island, Stromboli is kicked out while Geppetto arrives just in time to take Pinocchio home, but Pinocchio refuses, saying he did not want him because of what a big disappointment he was to him and immediately turns into a donkey once he gets on the rollercoaster and is shipped off to sea by boat.

Trying to keep up with the boat, Geppetto accidentally gets swallowed by a monstrous whale. Pinocchio jumps off the boat and into the water where he gets swallowed by the whale as well and the donkey curse washes away. They make up and, noticing that they are inside the whale, they attempt to get out by having Pinocchio tell several lies, causing his nose to grow and tickle the whale's uvula to throw them up. Afterwards, they return to the toy shop where Stromboli arrives to take Pinocchio back, still keeping him under the contract. Geppetto offers him his whole shop in exchange for Pinocchio. As Stromboli captures him, Geppetto begs and pleads to the Blue Fairy, who can no longer help, to grant him one last wish. The Blue Fairy then turns Pinocchio into a real boy with her magic, shoos Stromboli away also with her magic, and changes the words on the sign of Geppetto's shop to "Geppetto & Son". [1]

Cast

Musical numbers

  1. "Once Upon a Time" – Geppetto
  2. "Toys" – Geppetto, town children, parents
  3. "Empty Heart" – Geppetto
  4. "Geppetto and Son" – Geppetto, Pinocchio
  5. "Just Because It's Magic" – Blue Fairy, Geppetto [1]
  6. "I've Got No Strings" – Pinocchio [1]
  7. "Bravo, Stromboli!" – Stromboli [1]
  8. "Toys" (Reprise) – Geppetto, Lezarno
  9. "Satisfaction Guaranteed" – Professor Buonragazzo, Buonragazzo Jr., Idyllia residents
  10. "Just Because It's Magic" (Reprise) – Blue Fairy
  11. "Pleasure Island" – Ringleader, roustabouts, boys
  12. "And Son" (Whale Reprise) – Pinocchio, Geppetto
  13. "Since I Gave My Heart Away" – Geppetto, Blue Fairy, townspeople
  14. "Since I Gave My Heart Away" (Single Version) – Sonya Isaacs

The soundtrack for Geppetto is available from Walt Disney Records, and it features songs from the film composed by Stephen Schwartz, as well as the single, "Since I Gave My Heart Away" performed by Sonya Isaacs (as heard in the end credits of the movie).

Jerry Mitchell was the film's choreographer. [1]

Home media

Walt Disney Home Video released the film on VHS on May 30, 2000. It was later released to DVD on September 26 of that year, and subsequently reissued on January 13, 2009.

Stage

In 2006, Geppetto was adapted into a stage musical and renamed Disney's My Son Pinocchio: Geppetto's Musical Tale .

Awards

Related Research Articles

<i>The Adventures of Pinocchio</i> 1883 childrens novel by Carlo Collodi

The Adventures of Pinocchio, commonly shortened to Pinocchio, is an 1883 children's fantasy novel by Italian author Carlo Collodi. It is about the mischievous adventures of an animated marionette named Pinocchio, which he faces many perils and temptations, meets characters that teach him about life, and learns goodness before he achieves his heart's desire of becoming a real boy.

<i>Pinocchio</i> (1940 film) American animated musical fantasy film

Pinocchio is a 1940 American animated musical fantasy film produced by Walt Disney Productions and released by RKO Radio Pictures. Loosely based on Carlo Collodi's 1883 Italian children's novel The Adventures of Pinocchio, it is the studio's second animated feature film, as well as the third animated film overall produced by an American film studio, after Disney's Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937) and Fleischer Studios' Gulliver's Travels (1939). With the voices of Cliff Edwards, Dickie Jones, Christian Rub, Walter Catlett, Charles Judels, Evelyn Venable, and Frankie Darro, the film follows a wooden puppet, Pinocchio, who is created by an old woodcarver, Geppetto, and brought to life by a blue fairy. Wishing to become a real boy, Pinocchio must prove himself to be "brave, truthful, and unselfish." Along his journey, Pinocchio encounters several characters representing the temptations and consequences of wrongdoing, as a cricket named Jiminy, who takes the role of Pinocchio's conscience, attempts to guide him in matters of right and wrong.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jiminy Cricket</span> Fictional character from Walt Disney film Pinocchio

Jiminy Cricket is the Disney version of the Talking Cricket, a fictional character created by Italian writer Carlo Collodi for his 1883 children's book The Adventures of Pinocchio, which Walt Disney adapted into the animated film Pinocchio in 1940. Originally an unnamed, minor character in Collodi's novel who is killed by Pinocchio before returning as a ghost, he was transformed for the Disney adaptation into a comical and wisecracking partner who accompanies Pinocchio on his adventures, having been appointed by the Blue Fairy to serve as Pinocchio's official conscience. In the film, he sings "When You Wish Upon a Star", the Walt Disney Company's signature song, and "Give a Little Whistle".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fairy with Turquoise Hair</span> Fictional character

The Fairy with Turquoise Hair, often simply referred to as the Blue Fairy, is a fictional character in the 1883 Italian book The Adventures of Pinocchio by Carlo Collodi, repeatedly appearing at critical moments in Pinocchio's wanderings to admonish the little wooden puppet to avoid bad or risky behavior.

<i>The Adventures of Pinocchio</i> (1996 film) 1996 film

The Adventures of Pinocchio is a 1996 fantasy comedy family film, directed by Steve Barron and based on the original 1883 novel of the same name by Carlo Collodi. Barron collaborated with Sherry Mills, Tom Benedek and Barry Berman on the screenplay. It was an American, British, French, Czech, and German venture produced by New Line Cinema, The Kushner-Locke Company, Savoy Pictures, Pangaea Holdings and Twin Continental Films. It stars Martin Landau and Jonathan Taylor Thomas. It was a critical and commercial failure which led the sequel, The New Adventures of Pinocchio, straight to video.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Fox and the Cat</span> Fictional characters

The Fox and the Cat are a pair of fictional characters and antagonists of Italian writer Carlo Collodi's 1883 book Le avventure di Pinocchio. They are depicted as poor con artists who hoodwink Pinocchio and attempt to murder him. They pretend to be disabled: the Fox lame and the Cat blind. The Fox appears to be more intelligent than the Cat, who usually limits himself to repeating the Fox's words.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pinocchio's Daring Journey</span> Dark ride at Disney theme parks

Pinocchio's Daring Journey is a dark ride at Disneyland in California, Tokyo Disneyland, and Disneyland Park in Paris. Located in the Fantasyland section of each park, this ride is based on Disney's 1940 animated film version of the classic story, which was the studio's second animated feature film. The attraction tells an abbreviated version of the film, with Pinocchio escaping from Stromboli's puppet show and visiting Pleasure Island, ignoring Jiminy Cricket's advice. Monstro the whale makes an appearance, and Pinocchio is finally reunited with Geppetto and turned into a real boy.

<i>Piccolino no Bōken</i> 1976 Japanese anime series

Piccolino no Bōken is a 52-episode anime series by Nippon Animation first aired in 1976 which was created in coproduction with the ZDF and ORF. The story is based on the novel The Adventures of Pinocchio (1883) by Italian author Carlo Collodi.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mangiafuoco</span> Fictional character

Mangiafuoco is a fictional character who appears in Carlo Collodi's 1883 Italian book The Adventures of Pinocchio, serving as a secondary antagonist turning good.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Coachman</span> Fictional character

The Coachman, also known as The Little Man, is a fictional character and a major antagonist from Carlo Collodi's 1883 book The Adventures of Pinocchio, in which he appears in chapters XXXI and XXXIII.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Terrible Dogfish</span> Fictional character

The Terrible Dogfish is a dogfish-like sea-monster, which appears in Carlo Collodi's 1883 book The Adventures of Pinocchio as the final antagonist. It is described as being larger than a five-story building, a kilometer long and sporting three rows of teeth in a mouth that can easily accommodate a train. So fearsome is its reputation, that in Chapter XXXIV, it is revealed that the Dogfish is nicknamed "The Attila of fish and fishermen".

<i>Pinocchio</i> (2002 film) 2002 film by Roberto Benigni

Pinocchio is a 2002 Italian fantasy comedy-drama film co-written and directed by Roberto Benigni, who also stars. It is based on the 1883 novel The Adventures of Pinocchio by Carlo Collodi, with Benigni portraying Pinocchio. Filming took place in Italy and Kalkara, Malta. It was dedicated to costume and production designer Danilo Donati, who died on 1 December 2001.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Land of Toys</span> Fictional location

The Land of Toys is a fictional location in the Italian novel The Adventures of Pinocchio (1883) that is disguised as a haven of freedom and anarchy for children, but is eventually discovered to be far more sinister.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Geppetto</span> Carpenter of Pinocchio

Geppetto is a fictional character in the 1883 Italian novel The Adventures of Pinocchio by Carlo Collodi. Geppetto is an elderly, impoverished woodcarver and the creator of Pinocchio. He wears a yellow wig resembling cornmeal mush, and consequently his neighbors call him "Polendina" to annoy him. The name Geppetto is a Tuscan diminutive of the name Giuseppe.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pinocchio</span> Fictional character created by Carlo Collodi

Pinocchio is a fictional character and the protagonist of the children's novel, The Adventures of Pinocchio (1883) by Italian writer Carlo Collodi of Florence, Tuscany. Pinocchio was carved by a woodcarver named Geppetto in a Tuscan village. He is created as a wooden puppet, but he dreams of becoming a real boy. He is known for his long nose, which grows when he lies.

<i>Disneys My Son Pinocchio: Geppettos Musical Tale</i> Musical

Disney's My Son Pinocchio: Geppetto's Musical Tale is a musical based on Disney's 2000 made-for-television movie Geppetto, which was in turn based on a book by David Stern, and features music and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz. As in the TV film, when Pinocchio runs away to become a star in Stromboli's puppet show, Geppetto must negotiate through a maze of adventures and comic encounters to find him.

<i>The Adventures of Pinocchio</i> (1972 miniseries) 1972 Italian TV series or program

The Adventures of Pinocchio is a 1972 Italian five-part miniseries directed by Luigi Comencini, which originally aired weekly on Rai 1 between April 8 and May 6, 1972. Based on Carlo Collodi's 1883 novel with the same name, the miniseries received a large critical success, and had an average of twenty-one and a half million viewers during its first airing. All the episodes together make up 280 minutes of runtime.

<i>Pinocchio</i> (play)

Pinocchio is a play by Dennis Kelly, based on the classic children's story by Carlo Collodi and the 1940 Walt Disney film with the original songs and score by Leigh Harline, Ned Washington and Paul J. Smith, adapted by Martin Lowe. The play was presented by the Royal National Theatre, London in December 2017, by special arrangement with Disney Theatrical Productions.

<i>Pinocchio</i> (2019 film) 2019 Italian fantasy film by Matteo Garrone

Pinocchio is a 2019 fantasy film, co-written, directed, and co-produced by Matteo Garrone, based on the 1883 book The Adventures of Pinocchio by Italian author Carlo Collodi. The film stars child actor Federico Ielapi as the title character, Roberto Benigni as Geppetto, Gigi Proietti as Mangiafuoco, Rocco Papaleo and Massimo Ceccherini as the Cat and the Fox, and Marine Vacth as the adult Fairy with Turquoise Hair. This was the final film featuring Proietti to be released before his death in November 2020.

<i>Pinocchio</i> (2022 live-action film) 2022 film by Robert Zemeckis

Pinocchio is a 2022 American musical fantasy film directed by Robert Zemeckis from a screenplay by Zemeckis and Chris Weitz. Produced by Walt Disney Pictures, Depth of Field and ImageMovers, this film is a live-action remake of Walt Disney's 1940 animated film Pinocchio, which is itself based on the 1883 Italian book The Adventures of Pinocchio by Carlo Collodi. It stars Tom Hanks, Cynthia Erivo, and Luke Evans in live-action roles, and Benjamin Evan Ainsworth, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Keegan-Michael Key, and Lorraine Bracco in voice roles. The reimagined story follows a wooden puppet named Pinocchio, who is brought to life by a blue fairy (Erivo) after being crafted by an old Italian woodcarver named Geppetto (Hanks). While the role of Pinocchio's conscience Jiminy Cricket (Gordon-Levitt) attempts to guide Pinocchio in matters of right and wrong, Pinocchio encounters a host of unsavory characters in his efforts to become a real boy.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 KING, SUSAN (May 5, 2000). "Drew Carey Thinks 'Geppetto' Is Right on the Nose". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved September 5, 2017.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 "TELEVISION MOVIES AND MINISERIES, 1999-2000" (PDF). International Television & Video Almanac. 46TH EDITION: 460. 2001. Retrieved September 5, 2017.
  3. "Geppetto". Emmy Awards . Retrieved 2024-01-21.
  4. "3rd Annual Awards 2001". Costume Designers Guild . Archived from the original on 2021-01-25. Retrieved 2024-01-21.
  5. "The Official Seth Adkins Web Site : Home". sethadkins.net. Retrieved 2024-01-21.