Pinocchio: The Making of The Disney Epic (2015)

 

Pinocchio (1940) is one of the Disney studio's greatest animated movies. Even with the many animated Disney films that have followed there is still something about Pinocchio that makes it stand out as something truly special. When you read film historian J.B. Kaufman's essential book about the making of Pinocchio you will understand why it is so special. Kaufman's research is exhaustive and there is no detail about the production that is too small for this book. This lets us see how the filmmakers spent a great amount of time and effort on the smallest details in this film. There is not a single second that was not the result of much time and effort on the part of the filmmakers. It is a result of how these filmmakers never settled for anything less than perfection that makes this such an incredible movie. 

Kaufman's book is so informative that even the most dedicated Disney buffs will learn a great deal. You may think you know your Disney history before reading this book but there is so much here, you have never even heard about before. This film spends a great deal of time discussing story ideas that were discarded around the time. The story may seem effortless when you watch the movie, but they were anything but. It is fascinating to read about all the different directions this movie could have gone (if you have read Collidi's original story, you can easily note how hard of a story this would be to adapt to a movie). When you read about the various directions this film could have gone in, it is great fun to picture the various completely different movies we could have gotten instead.   

As well as the bulk of the book telling the story of production, this book has various appendixes. One lists who animated what from start to finish of the film. Another goes over the uses of Figaro the cat and his career as a star of the Disney studio's short cartoons. Another goes over Jiminy Cricket and his life outside of this movie. Each of these appendixes are just as fascinating as the main body of the book.

This book also features an extra chapter by film historian Russell Merrit (whom Kaufman had co-written a couple of Disney books with). Merrit gives a deep critical dive into the themes of this film. Some of his discussion involves deep analysis that goes into symbolism that I doubt was on the mind of most anyone working on this film. However, a film is always open to interpretation on the part of the viewer, and his analysis is very well written and intelligent.    

This is a must own for any Disney fan.