Take a Trip to Italy With the Veggies in Pistachio

When my brother Nathan was little, he went through a phase during which the only movie he wanted to watch was Pinocchio. He’d be content to watch it three times a day. I don’t know how many dozens of times he saw the movie before he moved on to a different obsession, but the story of the little wooden boy with an ever-expanding nose has always been one of his favorites. So I thought of him as I watched Pistachio, the latest DVD from VeggieTales, the line of computer-animated videos that uses a wacky array of anthropomorphic veggies to impart Biblical lessons.

Right now, Nathan is in Italy, and last I heard he was enjoying a gelato festival. Pistachio takes place in Italy, and Gelato is the name given to the character who corresponds to Geppetto in the original tale. In this version, Geppetto is a kindly old man who lost three of his brothers at sea and who delights in carving wooden toys, including a duck so realistic that it attracts a trio of real ducklings, who become his family. One day, he receives a very special piece of wood and carves it into a boy, who then springs to life, and Veggie fans will recognize the youngster as an incarnation of the adorable, albeit mildly irritating, Junior Asparagus.

In terms of starring Veggies, Pistachio sticks mostly to the side characters and even introduces a few newbies. Among the more familiar faces as Madame Blueberry as the Blue Fairy role and Khalil the caterpillar as Pistachio’s conscience, or more to the point the one who is there to remind the lad of his father’s teachings. Scooter the carrot makes a brief cameo as an art museum employee, and the shifty leeks who are so good at causing trouble turn up as the fox and cat determined to lead Pistachio astray. And though Gelato’s face is obscured by a large white mustache, puffy white hair and tiny spectacles, his voice is clearly that of Larry the Cucumber, while Bob the Tomato serves as the unseen narrator. Meanwhile, his brothers are new characters who are modeled after three iconic Italian-American actors, most prominently Robert DeNiro.

The Italian references fly fast and furious, from the names of every character to the landscapes, and it’s great fun to point out all of the allusions. It’s also interesting to compare this story to various versions of Pinocchio, particularly Disney’s, since that has become the most iconic. In this version, Pistachio is not so much tempted by the allure of fame as by a desire for money. Hence, he never really falls into puppet master Mr. Nezzer’s snare, but he is all too easily drawn into the dangerous quagmire of games of chance; the more he spends, the more desperate he becomes to recover what he lost and thus regain his father’s approval. I found this an interesting side lesson on the danger of being too preoccupied with acquiring money, with the lesson being that it’s more important to make wise spending decisions than to try to accumulate great wealth.

The songs are enjoyable as always, though I found the Silly Song, Where Have All the Staplers Gone?, more depressing than amusing. I have a hunch that it’s one of those songs that children will find silly, while many adults will have a hard time getting a laugh out of it. And I found the vampire stapler at the end of the segment just plain creepy. But I like Gelato’s peppy instructional song to his ducklings. Mr. Nezzer’s tune is appropriately ominous, and the brothers’ lament sounds like something out of the iconic spaghetti scene in Lady and the Tramp.

Along with the main story, which is both creative and beautifully animated, there is the typical counter-top framing device, only this time, things look a little different. That’s because VeggieTales, like so many movies and television shows of late ranging from Star Trek and LOST to Shrek Forever After, has latched onto the reboot as a compelling storytelling device. So it is that between the last video and the current one, Extreme Re-Do: Crying Edition, a nod at feel-good home repair show Extreme Makeover: Home Edition, has come in to recreate these familiar surroundings. Larry’s in on it, while Bob is confused and unsettled. Everything from the theme song to Qwerty the computer has gotten a face lift, and it will be interesting to see how these differences carry over into future installments.

Pistachio is a charming tale that encourages obedience to one’s parents and thriftiness in one’s financial decisions. For those who identify more with Gelato than Pistachio, it’s a reminder of the importance of not giving up on one’s children although they have gone astray. It also urges young and old alike to accept change and to look for the good in a new situation even if it is thrust upon one quite suddenly. And it’s also just plain fun, with pop culture references from Pinocchio and Lady and the Tramp to The Godfather and Midnight Cowboy. VeggieTales seems to be at its best when it spoofs great literature but infuses it with Biblical meaning, and Pistachio definitely falls into that category.