Among the weirdest animated movies of the 1980s, and one of the most unlikely sequels, was “Pinocchio and the Dark Emperor,” a production provided by Filmation.
Any kid of the ’80s deserves Mr. T of them all knew the Filmation logo and their extensive production throughout the decade, most notably the productions of “He-Man and the Masters of the Universe” and “She-Ra: Princess of Power” (1985 – 1987).
Filmation gave theatrical release to “He-Man and She-Ra: The Secret of the Sword” (1985), which is actually a combination of TV episodes (like “The Looney Looney Looney Bugs Bunny Movie”). ” and “Go -Bots: Battle of the Rock Lords” are TV episodes combined).
Directed by Hal Sutherland, 1987’s “Emperor of the Night” is a top-to-bottom weirdness. When a bee wearing aviator glasses is the least odd thing here, you know what you’re doing.
At least the cartoon is at the end of the Saturday morning cartoon spectrum. It’s ambitious and well-paced, though always lacking the depth and beauty of Disney.
When we get to know the main character again, Pinocchio has been a real boy for a whole year.
Pinocchio Was Mesmerized By A Magical Festival Right From “Ray Bradbury”Something evil this way comes, turning him back into a puppet. The Emperor of the Carnival (James Earl Jones) draws strength from our temptations; The character is clearly equivalent to Mr. Dark and, by far, the biggest highlight of the movie.
There’s a lot of silliness and nonsense. To put it mildly, the original “Pinocchio” was better and darker. While the sequel offers some surreal and creepy visuals and some not-so-bad songs, it’s all too much fun.
Among the voice cast, Ricky Lee Jones is the Good Fairy, Scott Grimes of “Critters,” “Party of Five” and “The Orville” plays Pinocchio and Tom Bosley of “Happy Days” and “Trash Bag Ads” fun is Gepetto. There’s also Ed Asner and Don Knotts as replacements for Jiminy Crickett.
As always, Jones’ voice cuts deep and gives this film a much-needed dramatic weight. Notice how Jones makes this line sound: “Even the good Fairy can’t save you!”
Pinocchio and the Dark Emperor
Year: 1987
Cast: @ScottGrimesTom Bosley, Jonathan Harris, @TheOnlyEdAsnerFrank Welker, Don Knotts, James Earl Jones, Linda Gray, William Windom
Interesting voice cast, but Filmation’s take on Pinocchio gave me a headache.@CursedAni pic.twitter.com/jsdliO6dH1– The Voice featured artist (@vas_90s) September 18, 2021
The fairy godmother then countered, “Freedom of choice is your greatest strength!” At another point, Pinocchio uses his nose as a weapon by either lying or telling the truth.
“Pinocchio and the Emperor of the Night” wasn’t great, but it was fascinating, released at a time when Don Bluth and Will Vinton were pioneers and Disney’s animation output seemed to have peaked (in the following years). following will bring them back to the top).
This was released the same year as “The Chipmunk Adventure.” Truth be told, “The Care Bears Movie” (1985) is actually sharper than this.
Disney famously lost its attempt to block the release of this film because the character was in the public domain.
The 1980s were the last decade in which the studio took a casual attitude toward its creative assets. For example, the climax of “Gremlins” (1984) featured extensive use of “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs” and the dream sequence in “Fletch Lives” (1989) parody “Song of the South”.
Those complicated sequences would never happen today.
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“Pinocchio and the Emperor of the Night” will also be one of the studio’s last attempts at a theatrical release: Alongside “He-Man and She-Ra: The Secret of the Sword,” the film will screen. Filmation’s only other theater is “Happy Ever After.”
On the other hand, Pinocchio is indeed having a busy 2022, despite how the character seems to have fallen by the wayside with the clumsy “The Adventures of Pinocchio” (1996) live-action.
We’ve seen Disney’s live-action remake of the widely loved Robert Zemeckis and Guillermo Del Toro’s upcoming version, which premieres December 9 on Netflix.
What about Pinocchio resonates today?
Perhaps topics about what it means to be truly human or a focused effort to maintain a childlike view of the world.
In other words, Pinocchio fits our current obsession with nostalgia. His return comes shortly after the box office reunion of Pete “Maverick” Mitchell and the recent revival of Ghostbusters: Afterlife.
Following the same trend of ’80s flashback movies, “Pinocchio and the Emperor of the Night,” while much more complex than movies like “The Little Mermaid” and “Monster Squad,” Again a good company.
In an age of looking back, shedding our ET dolls, and embracing the aliens of our childhood, who better metaphor for our collective unwillingness to grow up than A boy was once a toy and there are crumbs to prove it?
