Pinocchio – Movie Review
Director: Guillermo del Toro, Mark Gustafson
Writer: Guillermo del Toro, Patrick McHale (Screenplay)
Writer: (Book)
Cast (Voice Talents)
- Ewan McGregor (Star Wars The Phantom Menace)
- David Bradley (The World’s End)
- Gregory Mann (Victoria)
- Burn Gorman (Pacific Rim)
- Ron Perlman (Hellboy)
Plot: A father’s wish magically brings a wooden boy to life in Italy, giving him a chance to care for the child.
Runtime: 1 Hour 57 Minutes
There may be spoilers in the rest of the review
Story: Pinocchio starts when carpenter Geppetto sees his son killed during a war. Geppetto struggles every day with his son’s loss, making a wish to bring his son back. He decides to make a puppet out of the tree above his grave and overnight the Wood Sprite gives the wooden boy life, becoming Pinocchio.
As Pinocchio causes problems around the town, he draws the attention of Count Volpe and his traveling circus. Pinocchio decides to join the circus to prove his father wrong, as Geppetto goes on a journey to save his son.
Verdict on Pinocchio
Characters
Pinocchio is bought to life by magic, a young soul in a wood body experiencing the world for the first time. This leads him to get in trouble around the town, lacking concentration and making rash decisions. He learns the disturbing truth about his life and what it means to be in his position in life and what he can offer to everyone around him.
Geppetto is a heartbroken father who builds Pinocchio, with his wish to have him come to life coming true. He struggles to accept his own creation at first but grows to love him, giving him a second chance at fatherhood.
Sebastian is a cricket that has come to settle down for his memoirs. However, he finds himself assigned to protect Pinocchio, to guide him through life by the wood spirits. He is the one telling this story of life and death and his part in it.
In the supporting characters, we get to meet the people that want to take advantage of Pinocchio. Count Volpe to use him for profit, while Podesta for winning battles. He also meets others that guide him through life and death and everything it means.
Story
The story follows the life of Pinocchio, from his heart-breaking motivation for creation. To the adventures he finds himself drawn into as he looks to discover what his life is all about.
Taking a big step away from the more family-friendly traditional story. We get a much darker vision of the adventures of Pinocchio. One that isn’t afraid to discuss life and death. This makes this story grab at the heartstrings more than anything else, leaving us broken down by how beautifully tragic the story truly is.
Themes
Pinocchio is a stop-motion animation you can see the love and passion put into each and every detail involved. It looks beautiful and uses different situations to create even more worlds for the character to explore. The creations within the death world are particularly fantastic to see.
Where to Watch: Pinocchio is available on Netflix.
Final Thoughts –Pinocchio is a beautifully tragic vision of the classic tale.
