Pinocchio

But he's also a creature born of grief. In this Pinocchio, the unassuming woodworker Gepetto has lost a real-life son in a wartime bombing. The puppet he ...

Because now comes Guillermo del Toro, with his blazing creative talent, to really stir things up. And boy, this is not your Disney “Pinocchio” — not the 1940 ...

More than 80 years after Walt Disney seemed to crystallize the Pinocchio tale for American audiences, Guillermo del Toro makes it his own.

Conversely, del Toro is speaking to something that he’s personally felt and infused in most of the films throughout his career: that to be “different” is to be glorious. And who wants to be “a real boy” when being made of wood makes Pinocchio so special that even il Duce is riveted by his individuality? and we do mean an ending as the film flashes forward to Pinocchio caring for Geppetto until his death, and then doing the same for Sebastian J.. In one of the biggest changes from the book and its Disney counterparts, Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio is something of a revenant, or at least a cat with nine lives. Notes of complaint caused Collodi to later alter the story so that Pinocchio proves his worth and is transformed into a real boy by the magical fairy. Apparently in the original serialized version of The Adventures of Pinocchio published across several magazines, the wooden boy is hanged and killed for his many crimes and selfish deeds. By his own self-description, Sebastian is a novelist, a raconteur, and ultimately a gentleman (gentlecricket?) who’s lived a life of refined adventure around the world. In perhaps homage to Disney, Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio is narrated by the talking cricket who is assigned by the wood sprite fairy to be Pinocchio’s conscience. He wants to be loved like a real boy but he resents being constantly compared to the “real” Carlo by Gepetto. Of course how Pinocchio sees the world, and how it sees him, is entirely different from Geppetto’s own struggles. While Tom Hanks is definitely playing Geppetto in the flesh and blood, he is acting against mostly computer-generated animations, including a picture-perfect recreation of old Walt’s Pinocchio from 1940. For generations of children the world over, and particularly in the United States, Pinocchio would always have strings on him: and they came in the shape of

The Netflix movie is this year's third adaptation of Carlo Collodi's book—and the first to truly come to life.

Del Toro has rationalized the connection by saying that Pinocchio represents a kind of innocent disobedience, of which fascism’s calculated conformity is the precise opposite, but the movie also shows how easily his innocence can be corrupted. Del Toro finds in this oft-told tale both the heart that has allowed it to endure for so long and an idiosyncratic connection that makes his version feel new. Although it’s credited as a direct adaptation of Collodi’s text, del Toro’s Pinocchio owes as much to the 1940 Disney version, including the central presence of a garrulous insect, here named Sebastian J. Del Toro first announced his plans to make Pinocchio in 2008, and the project was set up and fell apart several times over the years, which helps explain why, even though it arrives less than a year after his Nightmare Alley, the movie has the feel of a last at-bat, a go-for-broke heedlessness that avoids the micromanaged fussiness that often infects live-action directors’ forays into animation. Written by del Toro and Patrick McHale, it’s heavily entwined with two of del Toro’s favorite things, Catholic imagery and the march to fascism, and set in the only place where the two fit together more snugly than the mid-20th-century Spain of his The Devil’s Backbone and Pan’s Labyrinth: mid-20th-century Italy. The boy, named Carlo, is killed by a World War I bomber while he’s admiring the crucifix Geppetto has been installing in the village church, shortly after handing the old man a bucket of red paint to touch up Christ’s stigmata.

'Pinocchio' directors Guillermo del Toro and Mark Gustafson use their new animated film to explore the parallels between fascism and fatherhood.

“The conceit behind fascism is the darkest interpretation of a father figure,” said Del Toro. But beyond the connection between fascism and certain types of parenting, his “Pinocchio” addresses death and rebirth and the consequences of one’s decisions — themes and topics that some may consider too weighty for children’s entertainment. Our greatest hope, [as with] every generation after us, is that we are seen for who we are, not for who they wanted us to be.” Kids want to put the real answers together.” It’s important to have these conversations about “the bigger realities of life,” he said, “because kids don’t want easy answers. That might be why a certain cricket is the repeated target of more traditional cartoon violence. “I felt that it was a close match to my child-rearing experience.” “Pinocchio is there to transform the lives of the others,” said Del Toro during a recent video call. What can you learn from the world by pushing back a little bit when everybody is just in lockstep and going one direction?” The Academy Award-winning Mexican filmmaker lists Pinocchio and Frankenstein’s creature as two characters he identified “very strongly with” growing up. “It opened [the story] up in a very different way,” said Gustafson. Directed by Del Toro and Mark Gustafson, the wooden puppet at the center of this tale is a grief-stricken father’s drunken creation brought to life by a wood sprite.

In a behind-the-scenes featurette, the filmmaker known for crafting blockbusters including The Shape of Water and Nightmare Alley gives viewers a backstage pass ...

[transport audiences](https://collider.com/pinocchio-trailer-guillermo-del-toro/) to 1930s Italy where the Fascist government plays a major part in the story all while keeping cadence with the original Carlo Collodi 1883 novel, The Adventures of Pinocchio. [tedious techniques](https://collider.com/pinocchio-guillermo-del-toro-mark-gustafson-interview-stop-motion-netflix/) that went into bringing stop-motion alive in a way that Gustafson says adds to the tale in a “really powerful” way. In a behind-the-scenes featurette, the filmmaker known for crafting blockbusters including The Shape of Water and Nightmare Alley gives viewers a backstage pass to the creation of [Netflix’s latest stop-motion](https://collider.com/guillermo-del-toro-pinocchio-footage/) musical feature.

The straight-to-Disney+ remake of the animated classic from the same studio was nearly a scene-by-scene rendition of its celebrated, golden era 1940s version.

It’s a topography comprised of gorgeous artistry and impressive craftsmanship that is (mostly) strapped for cash and studio support on one end of it; the other is made up of depressingly hyperrealistic computer-generated imagery and hollow storytelling that somehow still rakes in the big bucks (in spite of audiences and critics begging Disney to stop making lackluster live-action remakes of animated classics). Netflix is heating up with Pinocchio, The Sea Beast, Drifting Home, Wendell & Wild, and My Father’s Dragon, Universal Pictures was applauded for Minions: The Rise of Gru and The Bad Guys, while DreamWorks may finally get the upper-hand over Disney with Puss in Boots: The Last Wish. We already know what to expect with Disney’s slate of scene-for-scene, live-action remakes of the groundbreaking hand-drawn animated classics that built its empire. Disney is sticking to a tired, but safe formula for at least the next six years. Pinocchio’s thin line between person and puppet, and the viewer’s ability to see the darkness of that predicament, is probably the most shocking and effective trick del Toro pulls off. Indeed, Guillermo del Toro seemed to have been gifted a rare exception to the norm — time to carve out his unique vision for Pinocchio, as well as a steadfast belief from Netflix that it would pay off. [that have made it generally unappealing for streamers](https://variety.com/2021/film/news/laika-animation-studios-live-action-1234941348/), who rely heavily on quick turnarounds and cutting corners). Dazzling, dizzying, and disturbing, Pinocchio is a labor of love from start to finish. How is it possible that these two versions of Pinocchio, both based on the same Italian folktale and both released in the same year, were so wildly different? The CGI and the visuals throughout the Pinocchio remake are sensational, as is to be expected from a movie with Robert Zemeckis (Back to the Future, Death Becomes Her, Who Framed Roger Rabbit?) at the helm. [Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio](https://www.inverse.com/entertainment/guillermo-del-toro-pinocchio-review), released months after Disney’s, is the moviemaking magic that happens when a director is doggedly determined to carry out his bonkers — and brilliant — vision, and a studio is equally set on making his wish come true. The straight-to-Disney+ remake of the animated classic from the same studio was nearly a scene-by-scene rendition of its celebrated, golden era 1940s version.

Academy Award-winning director Guillermo del Toro (“Pan's Labyrinth” and “The Shape of Water”) is known for exploring humanity in monster stories.

And I think the melancholy of that movie is tremendous. The other thing that is terrible is we live in a world in order to be accepted you have to simulate, change who you are and go with the flow in many ways. How important is that for the film? The return of fascism and the idea that obedience is good scarily comes in cycles. That and the show business aspect of it in which there’s a pageantry to it. I wanted to make a Pinocchio that was counter to most Pinocchios in the sense that we actually say disobedience, rather than obedience, is a virtue. It’s a father figure, a strongman figure that attracts all of the orphan souls of the world. The journey that you go through is both insignificant on a cosmic level but is very significant in terms of the lives you affect. It was very confusing, it was really full of danger, fraught with turmoil and darkness.’ And then shortly thereafter I was exposed to “Astro Boy” -- the tale of the artificial boy created by a father who then sends him out into the world to figure out for himself what is right, what is wrong. Therefore, I was trying to think about a story in which a puppet acts freely while all of the characters act like puppets. It’s very interesting for me to think the only wisdom in life is to accept that death makes it worth living. The Disney “Pinocchio” was the second or third film I saw with my mother.

Guillermo del Toro's tale goes beyond a puppet with a nose that grows when he lies, looking at parenting, fascism, and mortality in Pinocchio instead.

Del Toro doesn’t offer a firm determination either way; perhaps Pinocchio is able to spread cheer and joy in the 20th century, but perhaps he will live to see countless other wars and massacres. Ironically, it’s a story of a puppet that is more human than anything. Another theme that del Toro tackles in his study of parentage are whether bringing a child into an evil world is justified. Of course, Pinocchio is too innocent to suspect his malicious intentions, and he signs a deal with the deceptive ringmaster. This youthful ignorance that Pinocchio is given is easily taken advantage of when he ventures out into the Italian villa. Pan’s Labyrinth explores loss, war, and imperialism through the eyes of a child, and even Hellboy opens with a flashback to the titular character during his youth.

Funko has revealed new images of their figures for Guillermo del Toro's Pinocchio, which is out on Netflix now.

The images can be viewed down below, and you can find more information on Funko’s new Pinocchio line on [Pinocchio](https://collider.com/tag/pinocchio/) story over the decades. Now with the film’s Netflix debut, [Funko](https://collider.com/tag/funko-pop/) has unveiled their Pop line for Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio.

Directors Guillermo del Toro & Mark Gustafson discuss the making of their Netflix original feature Pinocchio, and what's next for the filmmakers.

I thought Cabinet of Curiosities was so well done, and I think it did well on Netflix, but I don't know. DEL TORO: We got the thing I published on Twitter about a billion views, or whatever that is. DEL TORO: I will say this, if you allow it, anybody that lives in the New York area can actually come, and for a few hours be in front of the sets at MOMA on the exhibit of the Art of Pinocchio. To me, the best for me, right now today, is going to be the talk in the church between Geppetto and Pinocchio. Once you have the tools, you want to push them right up to the limit. He spent two years in that bedroom, and I think the beauty of that, not for him perhaps, but for the audience, is that he was really able to just sink completely into that scene. GUSTAFSON: It helped the animators. It's the whole sequence in the bedroom where Geppetto puts Pinocchio to bed, and before that he puts Carlo to bed. It's so tender, and I think it reads so true, and all that stuff was done by one animator. They also discuss how stop-animation has evolved over the years, how their collaboration worked on Pinocchio, whether we’ll be seeing another team-up in the coming years, and if del Toro is returning with a second season of Guillermo del Toro’s Cabinet of Curiosities for Netflix. [Guillermo del Toro](https://collider.com/tag/guillermo-del-toro/) and Mark Gustafson are finally able to present the world with their stop-motion masterpiece, [Pinocchio](https://collider.com/tag/pinocchio/). On top of the stop-motion animation, Pinocchio is backed by an ensemble cast of vocal talent including Ewan McGregor, David Bradley, Tilda Swinton, Cate Blanchett, Christoph Waltz and many more.

NPR's Michel Martin speaks with award-winning director, Guillermo del Toro, about his new stop-motion animated film Guillermo del Toro's Pinocchio.

So, you know, I have learned that not making the movie for the right reason is almost as satisfying as making it for the right reasons. DEL TORO: You know, I have learned in 30 years of filmmaking that the natural state of a movie is to not get made. MARTIN: You just mentioned something that I had forgotten about is what a long journey it was for you to get this film made. And I do believe that if you hold steady to who you are and you follow the things you have learned through experience and spirit and listening and watching with love, you are rewarded by being a real boy, as the fable would have it, a real person, a real human being. And I believe that the only lie Pinocchio should never embrace is to lie about who you are. And in this one, you know, Pinocchio doesn't transform, and it's Geppetto that learns to be a real father. MARTIN: I mean, the film is lovely and funny, but there are points in it that are so deeply sad. In the traditional story, "Pinocchio" learns to be a real boy and transforms. There is Disney's "Pinocchio," which is a masterpiece that reflects the time it was made in. It is a movie that really talks about disobedience as a virtue, disobedience with a conscience as a virtue, and the fact that you can actually be loved the way you are. And all he really wants is to be a real boy and to make his father proud. As you've mentioned, there have been a lot of adaptations of "Pinocchio," maybe the most famous in the U.S.