To celebrate the Home Entertainment release of Pinocchio, which is available on digital from today (December 7th 2020) and on DVD from 14th December 2020, let’s take a look at five films across a range of genres that portray that special bond between father and son…
1. Pinocchio
In this magical new adaptation of a timeless classic, Gepetto (Roberto Benigni) carves a wooden puppet, Pinocchio (Federico lelapi), who comes to life and becomes his son. Pinocchio proves to be rebellious in his exciting, new-found life and accidentally gets taken on board a puppet show.
Through his journey back to his father, Pinocchio must experience an array of challenging lessons in order to change his values and learn what really matters most to him.
This live-action fantasy is contemporary with an unbeatable visual force, truly showcasing the unconditional love between father and son and their unstoppable desire to be back with each other.
2. Life Is Beautiful
In relation to Roberto Benigni, another Italian film to acknowledge is Life Is Beautiful (1997) which was directed by and also stars Benigni.
The actor plays Guido Orefice, a Jewish father living in a Nazi concentration camp with his wife and son. He does all he can to protect his son from the harsh reality of their situation, using his imagination and humour to get them through.
This film gained huge critical success and even became one of the highest-grossing non-English language films of all time. Benigni won an Oscar in 1999 for his performance and the film went on to win ‘Best Foreign Film’ from major acknowledgments including Academy Awards, BAFTA Awards and Critics’ Choice Awards.
3. Finding Nemo
One of the most popular Pixar films to date, Finding Nemo (2003) follows the story of a clownfish, Marlin (Albert Brooks) who is overprotective of his only son, Nemo (Alexander Gould).
After being captured by divers and taken to Sydney, Marlin shows true determination and unconditional love by setting out on a journey across the ocean to find his son, doing whatever it takes.
He runs into a blue tang named Dory (Ellen DeGeneres) who suffers from short-term memory loss and together they encounter many trials and tribulations before finally reuniting with Nemo.
Through creativity and imagination, this emotionally rich story showcases the importance of a strong bond between father and son and the unconditional love in this film is never questioned.
4. We Bought A Zoo
We Bought a Zoo (2011) is a heart-warming family drama that is loosely based on a true story, starring Matt Damon, Scarlett Johansson, Colin Ford and Elle Fanning.
The story follows Benjamin Mee (Matt Damon), a man who has just lost his wife, and his children on their journey towards renovating a zoo they now own and live on.
Grief is dealt with incredibly well in this depiction but the relationship between Benjamin and his son Dylan Mee (Colin Ford) is something that is focused on as we watch them create a strong bond of acceptance together over their new life and the loss of his mother.
They experience an inner journey of letting each other back in and learning to focus on what really matters in the present moment.
5. The Pursuit of Happyness
The Pursuit of Happyness (2006) tells the heartfelt story of Chris Gardner (Will Smith), a salesman who loses his wife and everything that he’s worked for and owns, after investing all of his life savings on a product that never took off. He takes up an unpaid internship in an attempt to get his life back on track.
Left alone with his son, Christopher Gardner Jr. (Jaden Smith), they are forced to live on the streets and deal with the struggles of adversity.
This iconic father and son duo (both on screen and in real life) showcase the values of positivity, love, inspiration and the sacrifices one makes. The incredible attitude to do right by his son shines through in one of Will Smith’s most memorable performances to date.
