Dubbing Differences: Pinocchio

I found the following notable changes in the Brazilian Portuguese dub of Disney's Pinocchio:

• Jiminy Cricket in English says “I’m just a cricket singing my way from hearth to hearth,” but in Portuguese he says “singing my way on the path to all hearts.” Given the similarity between the English words “heart” and “hearth,” I wonder if this is a genuine error in translation. Either that or the English subtitles are wrong.

• The song “My Little Woodenhead” has its chorus and focus changed. It sings about Pinocchio in the same way, but also talks about how “the only thing he’s missing is the ability to speak.”

• Jiminy says “Unbelievable!” instead of “As I live and breathe!”

• Instead of the charge to be “brave, truthful, and unselfish,” the Blue Fairy charges Pinocchio to be “valient, sincere, and generous.”

• Jiminy Cricket’s name is Talking Cricket, and Pinocchio just calls him “Cricket” throughout the film. Apparently, this was his title in the original book.

• Instead of “No tricks now,” Jiminy says “This is serious.”

• When Jiminy is admiring his new clothing the Fairy gives him, he said “Elegance!” instead of “My my!”

• Concerning Jiminy’s hypothetical conscience badge, instead of “I shouldn’t wonder,” the Blue Fairy says “I hadn’t thought about this.”

• In English, Geppetto tells Pinocchio to “Say hello to Figaro,” at which Pinocchio says “Hello to Figaro.” But in Portuguese he’s smarter; Geppetto tells him to “greet Figaro” and he says “Pleased to meet you, Figaro!”

• Honest John says “If we work with our heads” instead of “If we play our cards right.”

• Honest John says “Why, I can see your name in lights! Lights two meters in height!”

• “Hi-diddly-dee” in Honest John’s song is replaced with “La la la la,” and it doesn’t rhyme as much throughout.

• Jiminy says “Quirky” instead of “What a buildup.” I had never heard that word before in Portuguese.

• Stromboli doesn’t speak Italian in the “I Got No Strings on Me” scene. He just mutters and shouts in Portuguese instead.

• Pinocchio doesn’t join Stromboli in laughing when Stromboli is about to throw him in the cage.

• A slight change in Jiminy’s “Aww. Take it easy son. Come on. Blow.” In Portuguese he says “Listen, don’t cry like that. Take it. Help yourself.”

• Instead of “You better come clean,” Jiminy says “This is good to know.”

• Honest John says “That proves that ‘Honest John’ is dishonest” instead of “That shows you how low Honest John will stoop.”

• The Coachman says he’s seeking “cool boys” instead of “stupid boys.”

• Honest John’s bogus symptoms he lists are translated directly.

• Lampwick’s name is “Puller.”

• Instead of “Who’s the beetle?” Lampwick says “What insect is this?”

• Jiminy Cricket: “Listen here, you—you naughty child!”

• Jiminy doesn’t yell when he gets knocked down the billiards hole.

• Instead of “Go on, make a jackass out of yourself!” Jiminy says “Go on, let’s see you transform into a donkey!” I guess this makes sense in context, but it’s still pretty overt.

• Similarly, Lampwick says “He thinks I have what, a donkey face?”

• Lampwick cries out that he’s been “deceived” instead of framed.

• Instead of calling him a “whale of a whale,” Jiminy calls Monstro “the whale of all whales.”

• Instead of saying “As soon as I take on some ballast,” Jiminy says “As soon as I get heavier.”

• Instead of “No more privacy than a goldfish,” Jiminy says “some of these fish are curious.”

• Jiminy calls his seahorse “Horsey” instead of Nelly.

• Instead of saying “Solid gold, too!” Jiminy says “A golden badge!” A small change, but I think they’re fun.

Check out other Dubbing Differences here!