18. Pinocchio (2022)
Tom Hanks knows how to tug at our heartstrings as the lonely toymaker Geppetto, who yearns for a boy of his own. While he tries his hardest to forge a bond with the titular puppet, the CGI animation makes Pinocchio, along with other famous characters like his trusty sidekick, Jiminy Cricket, and the manipulative Honest John, seem lifeless. They look jarringly out of place against the equally artificial settings; what is meant to be an idyllic European town is obviously a fake movie set. The disability representation with the new addition of Fabiana and her ballerina marionette, Sabina, is a nice touch—certainly better than the cringeworthy, Scuttle-like Sofia the seagull. The original Pinocchio is a mesmerizing work of art, so any remake had big shoes to fill. Using actual puppetry could have made this version feel more authentic and visually pleasing.
