Pinocchio(1940)
Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures Feb 9, 1940
A living puppet, with the help of a cricket as his conscience, must prove himself worthy to become a real boy.
Release Details
Original Release | Feb 9, 1940 | Limited
1984 Re-release | Dec 21, 1984 | Wide
1992 Re-release | Jun 26, 1992 | Wide
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Box Office Results
2026-10-19T14:12:54.026Z
All Releases (3)
$84,254,167
$37,637,878
$121,892,045
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Technical Specifications
Aspect Ratio: 1.37 : 1
Other Details
Country of Origin: United States
Language: English
Summaries
Plot Summary
- In late-19th century Italy, Jiminy Cricket (Cliff Edwards) enters the house of woodcarver Geppetto (Christian Rub) and his pets Figaro (Clarence Nash) the cat and Cleo the fish. Geppetto has made a little wooden puppet called Pinocchio, whom he loves dearly & wishes upon the evening star that Pinocchio would become a real, live boy. As Geppetto sleeps, the Blue Fairy (Evelyn Venable) arrives and grants the wish partially. Pinocchio has come to life but must prove himself worthy before becoming a real boy. However, being naive, he requires some guidance, and the Blue Fairy appoints Jiminy Cricket to be his "conscience". The cricket tells Pinocchio that anytime he needs Jiminy, all he needs to do is whistle.Geppetto awakens upon hearing the commotion from Pinocchio falling and is overjoyed to discover that he is alive and will become a real boy.In morning, Geppetto sends his son off to school. But Jiminy Cricket is still asleep! Pinocchio, is sidetracked by the wily fox John Worthington Foulfellow (Walter Catlett) and his accomplice Gideon (Mel Blanc) the cat. Recognizing his uniqueness, Honest John convinces him to join Stromboli's puppet show whose travelling show is in town. Jiminy's protests and tells Pinocchio that he should honor his father's wish & attend school.Convincing Pinocchio that this is his chance to become an actor, Honest John and Gideon take the puppet to Stromboli. They sell Pinocchio (Charles Judels) to marionette master Stromboli. Jiminy Cricket jumps in and tries to stop Pinocchio from being taken away, but he is too late.Stromboli is a puppeteer who buys Pinocchio for a miserable amount of money from Honest John & Gideon and intends to force said Pinocchio to perform onstage to make money and use as "firewood" once he gets "too old" to perform. Jiminy Cricket, feeling that he failed at his job, walks off into the night.Pinocchio becomes a success as part of Stromboli's show, but when he wants to return home at night, Stromboli, not wanting to lose such a cash cow, makes him a captive in a bird cage. Alone in Stromboli's dark and damp caravan, Pinocchio whistles for Jiminy Cricket. He finds Pinocchio but is not strong enough to unlock the bird cage.After Jiminy unsuccessfully tries to free his friend, the Blue Fairy appears, and an anxious Pinocchio lies about what happened, causing his nose to grow and become a tree branch with a bird's nest. The Blue Fairy forgives him and lets him out of the cage but warns him that he'll never become human if he keeps misbehaving. She also restores his nose to its original size.Pinocchio and Jiminy Cricket escape from Stromboli and it isn't long before the duo become separated. Pinocchio bumps into Honest John and Gideon, who have been hired by a dubious coachman (Charles Judels) to round up boys to take to the anarchic Pleasure Island amusement park. Honest John, despite the legal risks and the Coachman's implication of what happens to the boys, accepts the job out of fear.On the way to the island, Pinocchio befriends Lampwick (Frankie Darro), a delinquent boy. At Pleasure Island, without rules or authority to enforce their activity, Pinocchio, Lampwick, and many other boys soon engage in vices such as vandalism, fighting, smoking and drinking.Jiminy, realizing that once again he has been too late, follows Pinocchio to Pleasure Island, where boys can be naughty as much as they like and treat themselves to beer and cigars. The two have a falling out after Pinocchio defends Lampwick for his actions.As Jiminy tries leaving Pleasure Island, he discovers that the island hides a horrible curse that transforms the boys into donkeys, and they are sold by the Coachman into a lifetime of humiliation and slavery in circuses and mines. Pinocchio witnesses Lampwick transform into a donkey.Pinocchio starts to change into a donkey as well, growing long ears and a tail, but before the transformation is complete, he manages to flee the horrible amusement park with the help of Jiminy. Upon returning home, Pinocchio and Jiminy find Geppetto's workshop deserted.A dove arrives with a note from the Blue Fairy explaining that Geppetto has gone to sea to search for his lost son and has been swallowed by the whale Monstro (Thurl Ravenscroft) and is now trapped in its belly. Determined to save his father, Pinocchio and his reluctant conscience journey to the bottom of the sea.They find Geppetto in the belly of the whale, and escape by setting a fire in the belly of the sea monster, who sneezes them right out. In revenge, the whale chases them and destroys their raft with his tail. Pinocchio selflessly pulls Geppetto to safety in a cove just as Monstro crashes into it and Pinocchio is killed.Back at home, Geppetto, Jiminy, Figaro, and Cleo mourn Pinocchio. Having succeeded in proving himself brave, truthful, and unselfish, Pinocchio is revived and turned into a real human boy by the Blue Fairy, much to everyone's joy. As the group celebrates, Jiminy steps outside to thank the Fairy and is rewarded with a solid gold badge that certifies him as an official conscience.
Storyline
- Inventor Geppetto creates a wooden marionette called Pinocchio. His wish for Pinocchio to be a real boy is unexpectedly granted by a fairy. The fairy assigns Jiminy Cricket to act as Pinocchio's "conscience" and keep him out of trouble. Jiminy is not too successful in this endeavor and most of the film is spent with Pinocchio deep in trouble. — Tim Pickett
