Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio
Directed by Guillermo del Toro & Mark Gustafson
★★★
Description
Guillermo del Toro's Pinocchio - (L-R) Count Volpe (voiced by Christoph Waltz) and Pinocchio (voiced by Gregory Mann). Cr: Netflix © 2022
Production Still Image
There are few directing voices out there with a voice as unique as Guillermo del Toro's. Whether he is regaling a love story between a deaf woman and a man-fish hybrid in The Shape of Water, or exploring youth and girlhood through a darkened, horrifically mystifying tint in Pan’s Labyrinth, del Toro always finds the humanity within the strange, even in his lesser films like last year’s Nightmare Alley. The Mexican-born filmmaker succeeds once again in, perhaps, the most original and endarkened adaptation of Carlo Collodi’s classic Pinnochio fairytale.
In the vein of the Grimm brothers, Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio shows a darker, more sinister side of fairytale lore. Simultaneously beautiful and strikingly violent, the stop-motion animated feature is both brooding and childlike. This isn’t the same Pinocchio we remember from the Disney animated classic, nor the gawkish eyesore we saw in Robert Zemeckis’ adaptation earlier this year. No. This film is something wholly original and somehow still a somewhat faithful adaptation.
Pinocchio is gorgeously brought to life by incredible stop-motion animation. Its appearance may be somewhat nostalgic for those of us who grew up watching similarly created classics like Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer and other (especially Christmas-themed) classics. Yet, despite its looks and subject matter, del Toro’s adaptation isn’t necessarily a kids’ film. It deals with heavy themes such as war, trauma, the loss of a child, and kidnapping, so parents may want to be aware.
The Netflix release boasts an incredibly talented cast (and many frequent collaborators) featuring Ewan McGregor, David Bradley, Ron Perlman, Tilda Swinton, and Christoph Waltz. Most surprisingly, soon-to-be 8-time Oscar nominee, Cate Blanchett shows up as Spazzatura, a monkey who speaks, unsurprisingly, as a monkey.
Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio is filled with striking visuals, well-thought-out characters and meaty themes. It may not be the most kid-friendly animated film out this year, but it's definitely one you don’t want to miss!
