Geppetto

The Disney Company has rediscovered the magic of the live action musical (a magic that seemingly vanished toward the end of the 60s); although, it might have considered the wide screen a better source for the release of "Geppetto."

In simple terms, this is a motion picture-sized musical extravaganza for the small screen that depicts the tale of "Pinocchio" from the eyes of his "father" Geppetto. Starting with his "son's" creation, Geppetto quickly learns that children are not perfect; what he fails to understand is that such imperfections may be derived from the parent. Subsequently, when Pinocchio runs away with the evil gold-loving Stromboli and then to Pleasure Island, Geppetto requires lessons in parenthood and of the heart and inner soul. In hilarious fashion, the Blue Fairy assists Geppetto on his journey to eventually find both understanding and Pinocchio.

Drew Carey is surprisingly strong in a title role that relies more on emotion than one-liners. Brent Spiner's Stromboli is evil personified, although in a comical light that should not leave the kiddies afraid to go to sleep in the dark. Julia Louis-Dreyfus initially appears over-animated as the Blue Fairy. We discover later how this plays into her role when she displays her magic powers to Carey in a series of hilarious dance sequences. Usher is ever-so-sly as the singing Ring Leader in Pleasure Island. Seth Adkins is the penultimate Pinocchio, reminiscent of the 1940s animated version. His extensive makeup leads one to believe that this talented boy is genuinely made of wood.

The rest of the cast play their roles with abundant energy and warm-hearted feeling that transmits beyond the screen and directly into the hearts and minds of the audience. These feelings are intensified by Stephen Schwartz's highly enjoyable musical score and songs, with no less than two showstoppers: in "Toys" three tracks sung by the parents, children and Geppetto run simultaneously yet we clearly understand each one. "Satisfaction Guaranteed" sung by Rene Auberjonois and a chorus of golden-voiced youngsters adds exuberant, vibrant energy to an active and complex choreographed sequence; the townspeople and their "perfect" children create a visual delight with their routine.

Equally incredible is the scenery in the Pleasure Island sequence, a colorful, attractive yet eerie amusement park of sorts where Pinocchio connects with the "bad" children of the world. Particularly funny are the run-ins that Stromboli has with the Pleasure Island children as he races against Geppetto to find and catch Pinocchio before he can suffer the fate of all Pleasure Island kids.

Monstro fans, take heart. The giant whale makes a cameo appearance. Kids especially will laugh at Pinocchio's idea to hopefully save Geppetto and himself from that mighty stomach.

Finally, the live action musical extravaganza has come back to the screen, albeit a smaller screen than for major musicals of the past. Before viewing "Geppetto," one may wish to watch the original Disney animated version of "Pinocchio" to become familiar with the story and characters. Consider that an optional homework assignment, not a necessity as this film can and will stand on its own for future generations of families.

I grew up watching this TV movie and to this day I still enjoy it. So many happy memories. The story is wonderful and has a great ensemble cast. Some truly beautiful original songs as well, written by musical theatre giant Steven Schwartz. Find this film and watch it! It's perfect for what it is.

Geppetto is a wonderful surprise from Disney. Drew Carey does a surprisingly good job as the title character and in all the musical numbers. Rene Auberjonois and Bret Spiner are particularly enjoyable in their roles. Of course, everyone who has seen the animated feature, Pinocchio, knows the story. And unlike some remakes, Geppetto sticks closely to the original story. This is a must see.

The Disney folks must be applauded for reviving the live-action movie musical (albeit on television); it wasn't hard to improve on John Huston's gruesome film of ANNIE, but the Disney version actually seemed an improvement on the overrated Broadway show. And it's always fun to see stars not primarily known their for singing and dancing kick up their heels (if you haven't seen Kathy Bates' spectacular turn in ANNIE, rent it now.) So it's disheartening to report that GEPPETTO isn't even in the ballpark. Ostensibly a retelling of the Pinocchio story from his father's point of view, it will probably bore kids and puzzle most adults.

Admirably, Drew Carey as Geppetto displays none of his sitcom or stand-up personae, but hasn't found any persuasive replacement. It doesn't help that the character as written is pretty much a simpering wimp or that his wig appears to be the one originally worn by Patty Duke as the American twin on her old TV series; Carey could be auditioning for a biopic about The Turtles. In fact, the whole production has the look and sound of the kind of expensively cheesy sixties musicals that helped bury the genre: technically slick and impressive without being attractive or appealing. The tone, however, is pure nineties: guilty parents can only find happiness by learning to obey their children.

Hearing just a few bars each of "When You Wish Upon a Star" and "I've Got No Strings" here is enough to illustrate how uninspired Stephen Schwartz's score is. Schwartz seems at fault too for pushing Carey, who has a more than adequate singing voice, beyond his range; he could and should have sounded a lot more comfortable. As a hazily-conceived Blue Fairy, Julia Louis-Dreyfus attempts an unsuccessful homage to Billie Burke in THE WIZARD OF OZ, but also reveals a very pretty soprano behind the affected diction. Poor Usher Raymond gets stuck with the worst song, and though he looks like he could dance up a storm he's barely given the chance. Brent Spiner, with vocal chops to spare, comes off best, but then again he is playing the villain (and gets the best hair, too.)

It would be churlish to complain about Seth Adkins' whiny performance as Pinocchio; nearly all of the child actors have been directed to whine and sulk brattily, the better to manipulate their supplicatory parents. But the sheer awfulness of his costume and makeup is indicative of the production's creative clumsiness. With a grotesquely streaked face and awkward, artificial "puppet" joints, Pinocchio looks less like a little wooden boy than the unfortunate victim of some horrible real-life disease.

OK, so the costumes and make-up were horrible?So what? I got over it. It's not the best movie out there, but considering I've never been able to keep my brain on in the original Pinnochio(in fact, I found myself, still with my eyes open, waking up and going "How long was I out? and once "Where am I?" and a lot of "What was I thinking?"s), it wasn't that bad. Too bad it seemed a one time thing. Drew Carey, one of my favourite comedians, doesn't do a lot of looking around, laughing or jerking motions like on his show(which doesn't mean the show is bad, a like it a lot), but instead is surprisingly strong if not as believable as other choices, and focused. I despised the Fairy woman(I forget the name) and Pinocchio himself gave a bad performance, not believable at all. But Brent Spinner and a short, good, but a little clumsy appearance by Wayne Brady keep the score from falling. His role a little unnecessary, the Magician was a good time filler. Brent was definitely the best actor out there, out to make a hard, almost no-reason-behind-his-actions character rise beyond all else.

But please: Get a new composer! For the love of God!