GUILLERMO DEL TORO’S PINOCCHIO – Review

Aside from the serious somber Oscar contenders, and a few action blockbusters, the end-of-the-year holidays see the release of many family-friendly animated fantasies. And this pre-Thanksgiving weekend delivers a new version of a familiar children’s classic. Of course, some of that familiarity may come from its having a “new take” just a few months ago. Now, this spin is a bit more “low-tech”, as the former was a mix of live-action and “motion capture” magic, this one is done with stop-motion animation (fittingly often called “puppet animation”). Plus it adheres much more closely to the somewhat “dark” nature of the book. Which is a good match with its co-director/producer. who has helmed many a sinister fantasy fable. And just to drive that point home, his name is in the title, GUILLERMO DEL TORO’S PINOCCHIO, to make sure we know this “ain’t” your Uncle Walt’s lil’ “wooden boy”.

Now it begins in a setting we somewhat recall, An affable insect, Sebastian J, Cricket (voice of Ewan McGregor) guides us into a quaint, quiet Italian village. Then he tells us of the town’s elderly widower, woodcarver Geppetto (David Bradley) who shares his shop/home with his young son Carlo. Life is sweet until the boy is killed by a bomb accidentally dropped by the many planes that fly over. Oh, so this is not set in the pre-flight 1800s, eh? Yes, it’s happening during the 1930s reign of Mussolini. Well, a distraught, boozing Geppetto decides to recreate his boy as a wooden puppet and chops down the tree where Sebastian abides. Late that night, after the carving is complete, Geppetto “sleeps it off” as the magical wood sprites merge into an enchantress (Tilda Swinton) who bestows life onto the toy. The next morning he introduces himself to his startled, scared papa. Pinocchio (Gregory Mann) is more than a “handful”, spewing endless questions and wrecking the work area. The decision to send the lad off to school causes panic among his neighbors who treat the lad as an unholy monster. But Pinocchio catches the attention of the monkey Spazzatura (Cate Blanchett), who takes him to his master, Count Volpe (Christoph Waltz). He decides to make the boy his star attraction in his failing traveling carnival show. Later, when it’s known that Pinocchio is almost immortal, he’s drafted into the army by the town government liaison, Podesta (Ron Perlman), befriends his son Candlewick (Finn Wolfhard), and even performs for “Il Duce” before rescuing his pop from a ravenous sea monster.

Well, this is loads of fun, though it has a real somber “edge” to it, so it’s perhaps not ideal for the wee ones. Knowing the title director, some sinister imagery is expected…and delivered. As I hinted earlier, death plays a big role, from Geppetto’s early loss to the title hero, who pops out of a coffin several times, much to the chagrin of some shiny black-clad bunnies who’s rather be playing poker. And that’s part of the black humor of the piece, from flying cutlery to the steady punishment of the narrator who’s flattened frequently over the last act. Perhaps most surprising is the subtle political themes, as fascism almost swallows the hero (before the sea beast gets a chance). But then this harkens back to the filmmaker’s earlier masterwork PAN’S LABYRINTH, but this time mixed with a touch of the Frankenstein mythos (another obsession for Mr. del Toro). Mind you, the storybook look is there, gloriously rendered in stop-motion much as with the Rankin/Bass TV specials and the recent work from the Laika Studios (CORALINE). Much credit is due to the talented roster of artists, spearheaded by the co-director, stop motion maestro Mark Gustafson. But it would be merely pretty images (no, it’s beautiful) without the witty, often caustic script/adaptation by del Toro, Patrick McHale, and Matthew Robbins which had me chuckling throughout. The icing on the cake might be the delightful, toe-tapping songs from composer Alexandre Desplat which are propelled by stellar vocal talents. Who knew that Waltz was such a crooner, nearly as good as McGregor? But delivering most of the songs is Mann, who never goes for the maudlin, and instead makes the title hero are real hellion, menacing his papa as he engages in a dance of destruction. I’ll admit that I was one of the few critics that didn’t eviscerate the recent Disney remake, but this is one incredibly surprising spin on the oft-told tale, Perhaps not for the entire family, but the movie present for older, and more dark-humored fantasy fans, is GUILLERMO DEL TORO’S PINOCCHIO. And I’m not gonna’ “knock on wood” when praising it.

3.5 Out of 4

GUILLERMO DEL TORO’S PINOCCHIO is now playing in select theatres