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Gepetto (voiced by David Bradley) and Pinocchio (Gregory Mann) in “Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio.”<\/p>\n
The mere title \u201cGuillermo del Toro\u2019s Pinocchio\u201d announces that this stop-motion animated movie reflects the keen eye and visual style of the directing auteur, with a healthy dose of revisionism and reimagining baked into that. Yet despite its beauty, several of those narrative touches don\u2019t fully work, leaving behind a movie that\u2019s aesthetically lovely but narratively uneven.<\/p>\n
Seeking deeper emotional resonance and adopting a darker maybe-not-for-kids tone, this \u201cPinocchio\u201d opens with a prologue about Geppetto (voiced by \u201cThe Strain\u2019s\u201d David Bradley) having lost his young son, leaving him not merely lonely but grief-stricken. His story is still narrated by an anthropomorphic cricket (Ewan McGregor), although here, the bug is a traveling novelist before being tapped as the wooden boy\u2019s conscience.<\/p>\n
Pinocchio (Gregory Mann) turns out to be another interesting visual choice, resembling a creature carved out of wood more than the puppet from the Disney classic, whose shadow lingers over this production in a number of ways. Perhaps foremost, del Toro makes the ill-advised decision to incorporate songs into the story, although he keeps interrupting them, which might speak to a certain lack of conviction about that particular aspect.<\/p>\n
There is, again, a fairy (Tilda Swinton) who seeks to ease Geppetto\u2019s suffering \u2013 referring to him as a \u201cpoor, heartbroken man\u201d \u2013 by giving the wooden boy life. Here, the old man is initially resistant, announcing, \u201cYou\u2019re not my son!,\u201d gradually coming around as the cheerful lad embarks on a series of harrowing adventures, including his involvement with a puppet show whose proprietor, Count Volpe (Christoph Waltz), makes the fearsome Stromboli seem cuddly by comparison.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s around that point where del Toro (who shares directing credit with animator Mark Gustafson) appears determined to connect this \u201cPinocchio\u201d to larger and more ambitious themes. Setting the tale in Italy during the rise of Mussolini, he shows other young boys being drafted to serve the fascist state. It\u2019s an intriguing but ultimately muddled departure, grounding a story associated with fantasy in grim historical reality.<\/p>\n
Not surprisingly given his track record, del Toro fares better in creating a rich visual template, with the fairy and the sea monster bringing to mind the inventiveness of his landmark film \u201cPan\u2019s Labyrinth\u201d through an animated filter.<\/p>\n
As it happens, this version of the story follows\u00a0Disney+\u2019s live-action rendition\u00a0featuring Tom Hanks, which inadvertently gave the word \u201cwooden\u201d a workout. While del Toro\u2019s take is much more interesting, nor can it be viewed as an unqualified success, making one wonder whether everyone might have been better off simply leaving the 1942 classic alone.<\/p>\n
Obviously, the intent was to make a movie that isn\u2019t your granddad\u2019s \u201cPinocchio,\u201d and del Toro \u2013 who also put his possessory brand on the recent Netflix anthology\u00a0\u201cCabinet of Curiosities\u201d\u00a0\u2013 has accomplished that mission.<\/p>\n
\u201cPinocchio\u201d surely has its moments. But beyond answering the streaming giant\u2019s wish for another marquee attraction carved from a beloved property, any praise comes with a few strings attached, depriving it of the consistent sense of wonder that would qualify as a dream come true.<\/p>\n
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