Pinocchio Di Liliana Nadal - The world's longest animated filstrocca !

The primary school of Conegliano presents the animated film the adventures of... Carpenter Antonio one fine day obtained a funny piece of wood that cried and laughed and talked away just like the little children could. And when Geppetto came along the piece of wood soon made a joke a little boy’s voice said, sing-song, "Old yellow wig!" It really spoke! The old companions fought and cussed and grasped their wigs with trembling arms but soon fell down into the dust so old and weak they did no harm. Antonio made peace with his friend and gave him the strange piece of wood "Here, make a puppet that can bend and jump and sing, like we once could". Geppetto’s hands were old and slow but carved the puppet all the same he called his ‘son’ Pinocchio but Mischief was his middle name. The naked puppet ran away and though Geppetto tried his best to make his little ‘son’ behave he found himself under arrest. Then when Pinocchio made his way back home, a voice came from the wall a friendly cricket said "You play too many tricks for one so small". The naughty toy grew angry fast and threw a hammer: how it flew! Nobody scolded him at last but he felt cold and hungry too. He looked for food upon the ground an egg among the shavings lay but when Pinocchio looked around his lovely meal had flown away! He ran towards the village lights, to see if there he'd get bread and pressed a doorbell late at night but they threw water on his head! Pinocchio, hungry and cold fell fast asleep upon a chair his feet into the embers rolled and burnt away to cinders there. Then good Geppetto came back home, all tricks forgotten, with some pears and gave them to his naughty ‘son’ without a thought for his own cares. He made his puppet some new feet, and dressed him in good clothes of wool but his own jacket went to meet the cost of reading books for school. The puppet sold his book again to buy a ticket for a play and there he met his puppet friends and they were glad he’d come that way. The little puppets sang and danced but the black-bearded Master came red-eyed with rage he roared and pranced and raised his arm to punish them. Fire-eater sneezed to hide his tears at the brave-hearted puppet’s stand Pinocchio mastered all his fears to save poor Harlequin, his friend. He gave Pinocchio coins of gold and wished him well and let him go but Fox and Cat a story told and tricked him with a tale of woe. Straight on! Fox and Cat following, when dusk came they were hungry, so they went into the Red Prawn Inn who paid the bill? Pinocchio! Pinocchio has paid no mind to friendly Cricket’s good advice you can be sure the rascals find his coins and steal them in a trice! The golden coin Pinocchio hid inside his mouth, it made him choke the rascals chased and captured him, and left him hanging from an oak. Blue Fairy sent a coachman there to lend Pinocchio a hand the coachman cut him down with care but poor Pinocchio couldn’t stand. Pinocchio was put to bed three doctors came and looked at him they said that he was almost dead and that he must take medicine. The little fairy nursed him well and gave him medicine each day Pinocchio didn’t like the smell said "No"! And pushed it all away. But when the undertakers brought a coffin, he knew he must try he had to drink that awful draught because he didn’t want to die. He couldn’t tell the fairy why they’d hung him up upon a tree and every time he told a lie his nose grew longer rapidly. The woodpeckers all flew about and chiselled down the nose of wood Pinocchio wanted to go out to find Geppetto if he could. But Fox and Cat were just ahead they cornered him and told a tale they made him sow his coins and said "The field of miracles cannot fail". Pinocchio said he had been robbed but nobody believed his tale and though he cried and wailed and sobbed they threw the puppet into jail. When finally he was released he set off for the fairy’s home the serpent didn’t get a feast a sharp trap cut him to the bone! The man who caught Pinocchio attached him with a heavy chain he had to guard a hen-house, so he was in trouble once again! Some weasels came during the night he did not help them steal a hen his master said he had done right and freed the puppet there and then. At last Pinocchio was free he jumped and danced he was so glad he wanted to go back and see his little fairy who was sad. He did not find the fairy’s home the one he loved had died of grief Pinocchio cried upon the tomb his poor blue fairy lay beneath! A silent dove flew downwards then and took him to the windy shore to meet his father once again and live together as before. But Geppetto had rowed away! Pinocchio braved the stormy sea among the waves an island lay where everyone worked busily. And there his fairy lived again he promised her to study hard she gave him schoolbooks and a pen and off he went to the school yard. Pinocchio’s schoolmates laughed and jeered he turned away along the shore to see a shark that had appeared upon the beach the night before. The naughty boys soon lost their head they fought and knocked a classmate down Pinocchio stayed the others fled the boy lay still upon the ground. Pinocchio now, under arrest, forgot the fairy’s good advice he’d promised her to do his best but didn’t want to pay the price. He saw a mastiff in the sea the poor dog was about to drown although he wanted to be free he helped the dog to reach the ground. Pinocchio thought he’d got away but was soon caught by the Green Man "I’m not a fish!" he tried to say "Don’t put me in the frying pan!" When the Green Man began to fry Pinocchio called out in despair the mastiff heard the puppet’s cry and snatched him from the ogre’s lair. He got back home so late at night a snail at the window said "Wait until morning when it’s light" he kicked the door "I want my bed!" He saw a good meal coming close his foot was stuck fast in the door there was no food, it was all false! Pinocchio fainted on the floor! The fairy had forgiven him and had a day fixed for the toy to change his little wooden limbs and turn into a real boy. But Candlewick said, "I’m so smart how wonderful it’s going to be! I’m going on a golden cart with ribbons, to the toy country!". There followed months of fun unknown but in the end the flaw appeared the heads of all the boys had grown a pair of great big donkey’s ears! So poor Pinocchio had become a little donkey, how he brayed! The circus people made him run and jump through hoops while music played. But one sad day Pinocchio fell the ringmaster said "He must go! He cannot jump I’ll have to sell to buy another for the show". They sank him down into the sea to make a drum of donkey skin but then some fishes set him free he was a puppet once again! Pinocchio thought he’d won the day he almost reached the little goat but though he tried to swim away he slipped back down the great shark’s throat! And there he found his father, right inside the belly of the fish eating in pale candlelight a sardine in a little dish. Then they decided they would dive between the jaws into the sea the tuna fish escaped alive and carried them they had got free! Their home was waiting for them still Cricket and Goat had kept it sound to help Geppetto who was ill Pinocchio pushed the wheel around. And when the puppet heard the news that his fairy had fallen sick he worked all night to pay the dues and didn’t play a single trick! Pinocchio has discovered how by helping others you find joy he’s not a wooden puppet now he’s changed into a real boy! the end