Guillermo Del Toro’s Pinocchio

Guillermo Del Toro’s long awaited Pinocchio is now on Netflix. Del Toro and Mark Gustafson deliver a stop-motion animated adaptation of Carlo Collodi’s classic story. It’s an adaptation of the book, not Disney’s 1940 animated classic. Much of the story you’ll recognise, Gepetto (David Bradley) is devastated at the loss of his 10 year old son, Carlo. One night, years later full of anger filled by pain he creates his wooden boy. Enchanted by a wood sprite (Tilda Swinton) Pinocchio (Gregory Mann) is born. The sprite also entrusts a cricket, Sebastian J. Cricket (Ewan McGregor), with guiding and teaching him to be good. We follow Pinocchio as he learns about life, what life is and what being human means.

Set in Mussolini’s pre-war fascist Italy provides some interesting places you would not expect the story of Pinocchio to go such as the dangers of nationalism. It is also full of other more general questions, father and son relationships and the devastation of tragic loss. How society treats those who are different whether it’s castigation or exploitation. Helped by a smattering of dark characters especially in Podesta and Count Volpe. For its seriousness there is also welcome humour, normally revolving around McGregor’s Cricket and some enjoyable musical numbers.

At the heart of the film is the exploration of life and importantly the part death plays in it and this is essential to Pinocchio’s ideas of being a real boy and what real means.

There is a strong voice cast with Cate Blanchett, Christoph Waltz and Ron Perlman as particular standouts. Being a Del Toro film it of course looks fantastic and the use of stop motion adds a tactile feel to the animation.

For all its positives, I didn’t quite connect with Pinocchio, whether it was the pacing or its seriousness it didn’t quite appeal to me as much as it could have.

Pinocchio looks great and covers some dark and grown up topics and does so with some humour. It’s a thoughtful exploration of what it means to be alive. But it is also a little serious and slow at times. A film I admired more than I loved.