Shortly after the premiere of the live action version of the Disney classic, Netflix is preparing to do the same with Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio. Of course, they are two different feature films, although the source is the same, the tale of the Italian Carlo Collodi. The Mexican filmmaker is in charge of directing this wonderful musicalwhich draws attention for its sensitivity, its spectacular setting and its finish in stop motion animation, directed by the legendary Mark Gustafson.
The stop motion technique may be jarring at first because of the way the characters move, but it doesn’t take long for the viewer to get used to the artistic style, which fits perfectly with the way the characters move. the one that moves a puppet when the puppeteer pulls the strings with artisan mastery.
Italy in the abyss: a Pinocchio between two World Wars
Guillermo del Toro chooses a setting after that of the author of the original story, who lived until the end of the 19th century. In this version, the narrative begins in a turbulent time for the Old Continent: At the beginning of the 20th century, Geppetto (David Bradley) lives with his son Carlo in a small Italian town, where he works as a master carpenter. It is in those years when the First World War broke out, one of the great contemporary wars, which resulted in the tragic death of the little boy.
Consumed with grief, the elderly Geppetto succumbs to the effluvia of alcohol, so he puts work aside, until he decides to rebuild Carlo using a very special wood. By divine action, heThe puppet ends up coming to life and Pinocchio is born (Gregory Mann), a wooden child made to make the unfortunate father happy. The recognizable voice of Ewan McGregor, who already sang in Moulin Rouge, now flows from the throat of Jiminy Cricket, Pinocchio’s faithful protector. This character also carries part of the humorous load of the film.
Guillermo del Toro immerses the viewer in the dark Italy of World War II, where the dictator Benito Mussolini allies with the axis countries to embrace fascism. Portrayed as a brainless, warmongering tyrantthe historical character fills a role similar to that of Podesta (Ron Perlman), a heavy-handed fascist guy who advocates training children for war.
A scene from Pinocchio by Guillermo del Toro.
A classic to ponder
Despite the changes in the historical context, the plot of Pinocchio follows the line of the story, so that the classic elements are present: on the one hand, Count Volpe (Christoph Waltz) takes advantage of the boy to earn money at his expense , while the monkey Spazzatura (Cate Blanchett) does everything possible not to lose his privileged position in the show. For the other, the desperate journey of the father in search of his lost child is recorded on the tape.
pinocchio of Guillermo del Toro It does not lack emotion or reflection, it delves into the concept of death, the meaning of life and the consequences of a very painful loss. Using a truly luxurious cast, the Netflix film excites with its almost two hours of splendid animated cinema. Pinocchio, a wooden boy condemned to live forever?
pinocchio will debut on Netflix next December 9although it will be released in select theaters in November.
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