Director Robert Zemeckis is known for his boundry-pushing effects efforts (Back to the Future, Forrest Gump, The Polar Express). This time he’s brought his regular collaborator Tom Hanks as Geppetto. The roles of other humans are played by some wonderful talents (Cynthia Ervio and Luke Evans), while the animals, etc. are CGI and voiced by the likes of Joseph Gordon-Levitt (Jiminy Criket) and Keegan-Michael Key (The Fox). There are also hints of songs from the Disney classic, plus a few new ones that get more time. Even with all this and some grand visuals (Pleasure Island) and cute references (the cuckoo clocks feature Disney characters) the whole thing feels flat. Everyone’s expending lots of energy, but the opening scenes with a sleepy Hanks launch the film with a snore (literally). The adventures proceed, but never with much life. Kind of like the characters in Polar Express all those years ago. Even with a few modern references and some rewrites, it never sparks joy. 
(2.5 / 5)
