''Guillermo del Toro's Pinocchio'' (or simply ''Pinocchio'') is a 2022
stop-motion animated musical fantasy
Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction involving magical elements, typically set in a fictional universe and sometimes inspired by mythology and folklore. Its roots are in oral traditions, which then became fantasy literature and d ...
film directed by
Guillermo del Toro and Mark Gustafson (in his
feature directorial debut
This is a list of film directorial debuts in chronological order. The films and dates referred to are a director's first commercial cinematic release. Many film makers have directed works which were not commercially released, for example early work ...
) with a screenplay by del Toro and
Patrick McHale from a story by del Toro and
Matthew Robbins. Based on the 1883 Italian novel ''
The Adventures of Pinocchio
''The Adventures of Pinocchio'' ( ; it, Le avventure di Pinocchio ; commonly shortened to ''Pinocchio'') is a children's fantasy novel by Italian author Carlo Collodi. It is about the mischievous adventures of an animated marionette named Pi ...
'' by
Carlo Collodi
Carlo Lorenzini (24 November 1826 – 26 October 1890), better known by the pen name Carlo Collodi (), was an Italian author, humourist, and journalist, widely known for his fairy tale novel ''The Adventures of Pinocchio''.
Early life
Co ...
, and strongly influenced by
Gris Grimly's illustrations for a 2002 edition of the book, it reimagines the story of
Pinocchio
Pinocchio ( , ) is a fictional character and the protagonist of the children's novel '' The Adventures of Pinocchio'' (1883) by Italian writer Carlo Collodi of Florence, Tuscany. Pinocchio was carved by a woodcarver named Geppetto in a Tuscan ...
, a wooden
puppet who comes to life as the son of his carver
Geppetto
Geppetto ( , ), also known as Mister Geppetto, is an Italian fictional character in the 1883 novel ''The Adventures of Pinocchio'' by Carlo Collodi. Geppetto is an elderly, impoverished woodcarver and the creator (and thus 'father') of Pinocch ...
, as "a story of love and disobedience as Pinocchio struggles to live up to his father's expectations, learning the true meaning of life" set in
Fascist Italy during the
interwar period and
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...
. It stars the voices of Gregory Mann and
David Bradley as the title character and Geppetto respectively, alongside
Ewan McGregor
Ewan Gordon McGregor ( ; born 31 March 1971) is a Scottish actor. His accolades include a Golden Globe Award, a Primetime Emmy Award, and the BAFTA Britannia Humanitarian Award. In 2013, he was appointed Officer of the Order of the British ...
,
Burn Gorman,
Ron Perlman,
John Turturro
John Michael Turturro (; born February 28, 1957) is an American actor and filmmaker. He is known for his contributions to the independent film movement. He has appeared in over sixty feature films and has worked frequently with the Coen brothers, ...
,
Finn Wolfhard
Finn Wolfhard (born December 23, 2002) is a Canadian actor and musician. He gained recognition for playing Mike Wheeler (Stranger Things character), Mike Wheeler in the Netflix series ''Stranger Things'' (2016–present). His film roles include ...
,
Cate Blanchett,
Tim Blake Nelson
Timothy Blake Nelson (born May 11, 1964) is an American actor and playwright.
Described as a "modern character actor", his roles include Delmar O'Donnell in '' O Brother, Where Art Thou?'' (2000), Gideon in '' Minority Report'' (2002), Dr. Pend ...
,
Christoph Waltz and
Tilda Swinton
Katherine Matilda Swinton (born 5 November 1960) is a British actress. Known for her roles in independent films and blockbusters, she has received various accolades, including an Academy Award and a British Academy Film Award, in addition t ...
.
A long-time passion project for del Toro, who considers that no other character ever "had as deep of a personal connection to
im than Pinocchio, it was originally announced in 2008 aiming for a 2013 or 2014 release. However, the project went into
development hell; in January 2017, McHale, creator of ''
Over the Garden Wall'', was announced to co-write the script, but production was suspended in November 2017 as no studios were willing to provide financing. It was revived the following year after being acquired by
Netflix
Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a fi ...
.
''Pinocchio'' premiered at the
BFI London Film Festival on October 15, 2022. It was released in
select cinemas on November 9, 2022 and began
streaming on Netflix on December 9. The film received critical acclaim, garnering praise for its animation, visuals, music, story, and voice performances. It received numerous accolades, including three nominations at the
80th Golden Globe Awards, among them
Best Animated Feature Film.
Plot
In
Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...
during
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
, the carpenter
Geppetto
Geppetto ( , ), also known as Mister Geppetto, is an Italian fictional character in the 1883 novel ''The Adventures of Pinocchio'' by Carlo Collodi. Geppetto is an elderly, impoverished woodcarver and the creator (and thus 'father') of Pinocch ...
loses his son, Carlo, inadvertently during an
aerial bombardment
An airstrike, air strike or air raid is an offensive operation carried out by aircraft. Air strikes are delivered from aircraft such as blimps, balloons, fighters, heavy bombers, ground attack aircraft, attack helicopters and drones. The offic ...
by
Austro-Hungarian forces. Geppetto honours his memory by planting a pine cone near his grave and spends the next twenty years mourning his loss.
An anthropomorphic
cricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by str ...
named Sebastian J. Cricket takes up residence in the resulting pine tree. Geppetto subsequently cuts the tree down in a fit of drunken rage in order to make a new son out of its wood. He passes out drunk, leaving the puppet unfinished, and a blue
Wood Sprite brings it to life, christening him
Pinocchio
Pinocchio ( , ) is a fictional character and the protagonist of the children's novel '' The Adventures of Pinocchio'' (1883) by Italian writer Carlo Collodi of Florence, Tuscany. Pinocchio was carved by a woodcarver named Geppetto in a Tuscan ...
. The Sprite meets Sebastian and promises to grant him a wish, which he intends to use to become famous, in exchange for acting as Pinocchio's guide.
Geppetto later discovers that Pinocchio is alive and is not willing to have him as a son. Geppetto then locks him in a closet while he goes to church, but Pinocchio follows him, frightening the villagers. The next day, Geppetto sends Pinocchio to school, but the puppet is intercepted by
a man and his performing monkey, aristocrat-turned-
showman
Showman can have a variety of meanings, usually by context and depending on the country.
Australia
Travelling showmen are people who run amusement and side show equipment at regional shows, state capital shows, events and festivals througho ...
Count Volpe and Spazzatura, respectively.
Count
Count (feminine: countess) is a historical title of nobility in certain European countries, varying in relative status, generally of middling rank in the hierarchy of nobility. Pine, L. G. ''Titles: How the King Became His Majesty''. New York: ...
Volpe convinces Pinocchio to join his
circus
A circus is a company of performers who put on diverse entertainment shows that may include clowns, acrobats, trained animals, trapeze acts, musicians, dancers, hoopers, tightrope walkers, jugglers, magicians, ventriloquists, and unicyclist ...
and gets him to sign a contract. After Geppetto arrives to take him home, he and Volpe have a tug-of-war that results in Pinocchio being thrown to the road, where he is hit by a car. Due to this, Pinocchio is sent to the afterlife where he meets the Black Rabbits. He is then sent through the doors to meet Death, the sister of the Wood Sprite. She explains to Pinocchio that he is immortal, and that he will return to the mortal realm once an hourglass has emptied, cautioning that the time he spends in the afterlife will increase each time he returns.
Returning to the mortal realm, Pinocchio decides to join Volpe's circus, both to earn money for Geppetto and to avoid being conscripted into the ''
Regio Esercito
The Royal Italian Army ( it, Regio Esercito, , Royal Army) was the land force of the Kingdom of Italy, established with the proclamation of the Kingdom of Italy. During the 19th century Italy started to unify into one country, and in 1861 Manfre ...
'' (Italian Royal Army) during the
Second World War
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
by the strict village ''
Podestà
Podestà (, English: Potestate, Podesta) was the name given to the holder of the highest civil office in the government of the cities of Central and Northern Italy during the Late Middle Ages. Sometimes, it meant the chief magistrate of a city ...
''. However, Volpe secretly keeps the money to himself, which Spazzatura secretly tells to Pinocchio through his puppets. When Volpe discovers it, he tries to beat up Spazzatura until Pinocchio attempts to defend him.
When Sebastian and Geppetto search for Pinocchio at sea, they are swallowed by a giant
sea monster
Sea monsters are beings from folklore believed to dwell in the sea and often imagined to be of immense size. Marine monsters can take many forms, including sea dragons, sea serpents, or tentacled beasts. They can be slimy and scaly and are of ...
. During one of his performances, Pinocchio sings a disparaging parody of a patriotic song to
Benito Mussolini
Benito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini (; 29 July 188328 April 1945) was an Italian politician and journalist who founded and led the National Fascist Party. He was Prime Minister of Italy from the March on Rome in 1922 until his deposition in 194 ...
as revenge for Volpe's abuse and is summarily executed.
Once revived, Pinocchio finds himself taken by the ''Podestà'' to a training camp where other small boys are trained to fight in the war. Pinocchio befriends the ''Podestàs son,
Candlewick Candlewick may refer to:
*Candle wick, a part of a candle or oil lamp
*Candlewick, a style of glassware made by the Imperial Glass Company
* Candlewick (fabric), a thick, soft cotton fabric
*Candlewick, an element in financial candlestick charts
* ...
, who is scared of disappointing his father and being seen as weak. Per Pinocchio's advice, Candlewick stands up to his father, but the training camp gets bombed by enemy aircraft, killing the ''Podestà''. The blast of the bomb causes Pinocchio to be thrown into the air.
Pinocchio manages to escape and is captured by Volpe, who tries to burn him in revenge, but is stopped by a reformed Spazzatura. They are sent over a cliff and Volpe falls to his death, while Pinocchio rescues Spazzatura. Soon after, they are swallowed by the sea monster and reunite with Geppetto and Sebastian in its stomach. Pinocchio lies to make his nose grow, thus forming a bridge leading out of the monster's
blowhole. Just as they escape, the monster attempts to eat them again, causing Pinocchio to sacrifice himself by detonating a
naval mine
A naval mine is a self-contained explosive device placed in water to damage or destroy surface ships or submarines. Unlike depth charges, mines are deposited and left to wait until they are triggered by the approach of, or contact with, any ...
that the monster is in the process of swallowing. Upon meeting Death again, Pinocchio demands to be sent back early so that he can save Geppetto from drowning, despite the fact that this will make him mortal. After rescuing Geppetto, Pinocchio dies, prompting Sebastian to use his wish to bring Pinocchio back to life, which the Wood Sprite grants.
Pinocchio and the others return home to live as a family. However, Pinocchio outlives all of his loved ones. Ultimately alone, Pinocchio decides to travel to parts unknown for new adventures.
During the credits, Sebastian sings his song for the Black Rabbits in the afterlife.
Voice cast
*
Ewan McGregor
Ewan Gordon McGregor ( ; born 31 March 1971) is a Scottish actor. His accolades include a Golden Globe Award, a Primetime Emmy Award, and the BAFTA Britannia Humanitarian Award. In 2013, he was appointed Officer of the Order of the British ...
as
Sebastian J. Cricket, a traveling
cricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by striki ...
and the
narrator
Narration is the use of a written or spoken commentary to convey a story to an audience. Narration is conveyed by a narrator: a specific person, or unspecified literary voice, developed by the creator of the story to deliver information to the a ...
of the story, who lives inside Pinocchio as his guide and conscience.
*
David Bradley as Master
Geppetto
Geppetto ( , ), also known as Mister Geppetto, is an Italian fictional character in the 1883 novel ''The Adventures of Pinocchio'' by Carlo Collodi. Geppetto is an elderly, impoverished woodcarver and the creator (and thus 'father') of Pinocch ...
, Pinocchio's father, a heartbroken Italian woodcarver grieving his deceased son Carlo.
* Gregory Mann as:
**
Pinocchio
Pinocchio ( , ) is a fictional character and the protagonist of the children's novel '' The Adventures of Pinocchio'' (1883) by Italian writer Carlo Collodi of Florence, Tuscany. Pinocchio was carved by a woodcarver named Geppetto in a Tuscan ...
, an exuberant and rowdy living wooden
puppet.
** Carlo, Geppetto's deceased son who was killed in a bombing raid. He is named after
Carlo Collodi
Carlo Lorenzini (24 November 1826 – 26 October 1890), better known by the pen name Carlo Collodi (), was an Italian author, humourist, and journalist, widely known for his fairy tale novel ''The Adventures of Pinocchio''.
Early life
Co ...
, author of the original book.
*
Burn Gorman as the
Priest
A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particu ...
, a Catholic priest and Geppetto's former client.
*
Ron Perlman as the ''
Podestà
Podestà (, English: Potestate, Podesta) was the name given to the holder of the highest civil office in the government of the cities of Central and Northern Italy during the Late Middle Ages. Sometimes, it meant the chief magistrate of a city ...
'', Candlewick's father and a
fascist
Fascism is a far-right, Authoritarianism, authoritarian, ultranationalism, ultra-nationalist political Political ideology, ideology and Political movement, movement,: "extreme militaristic nationalism, contempt for electoral democracy and pol ...
government official who turns Pinocchio into a soldier.
He is the film’s counterpart of the
Coachman
A coachman is an employee who drives a coach or carriage, a horse-drawn vehicle designed for the conveyance of passengers. A coachman has also been called a coachee, coachy, whip, or hackman.
The coachman's first concern is to remain in full c ...
from the original story.
*
John Turturro
John Michael Turturro (; born February 28, 1957) is an American actor and filmmaker. He is known for his contributions to the independent film movement. He has appeared in over sixty feature films and has worked frequently with the Coen brothers, ...
as the Dottore, a doctor at Geppetto's village.
*
Finn Wolfhard
Finn Wolfhard (born December 23, 2002) is a Canadian actor and musician. He gained recognition for playing Mike Wheeler (Stranger Things character), Mike Wheeler in the Netflix series ''Stranger Things'' (2016–present). His film roles include ...
as
Candlewick Candlewick may refer to:
*Candle wick, a part of a candle or oil lamp
*Candlewick, a style of glassware made by the Imperial Glass Company
* Candlewick (fabric), a thick, soft cotton fabric
*Candlewick, an element in financial candlestick charts
* ...
, the ''Podestàs son, who bullies Pinocchio before befriending him.
*
Cate Blanchett as Spazzatura, Count Volpe's mistreated
monkey
Monkey is a common name that may refer to most mammals of the infraorder Simiiformes, also known as the simians. Traditionally, all animals in the group now known as simians are counted as monkeys except the apes, which constitutes an incomple ...
assistant.
His name means "trash" or "garbage" in Italian and he is the film's counterpart of the
Cat
The cat (''Felis catus'') is a domestic species of small carnivorous mammal. It is the only domesticated species in the family Felidae and is commonly referred to as the domestic cat or house cat to distinguish it from the wild members of ...
from the original Pinocchio story. Spazzatura can only speak through the puppets he operates.
*
Tim Blake Nelson
Timothy Blake Nelson (born May 11, 1964) is an American actor and playwright.
Described as a "modern character actor", his roles include Delmar O'Donnell in '' O Brother, Where Art Thou?'' (2000), Gideon in '' Minority Report'' (2002), Dr. Pend ...
as the Black Rabbits, a flock of black rabbits with skeletal bodies who work for Death. They are based on the Undertaker Rabbits from the original story.
*
Christoph Waltz as Count Volpe, the film's main
antagonist
An antagonist is a character in a story who is presented as the chief foe of the protagonist.
Etymology
The English word antagonist comes from the Greek ἀνταγωνιστής – ''antagonistēs'', "opponent, competitor, villain, enemy, riv ...
, an ambitious former aristocrat-turned-
puppet master and
ringmaster living in destitution. His name means "fox" in Italian and he is a combination of the
Fox
Foxes are small to medium-sized, omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull, upright, triangular ears, a pointed, slightly upturned snout, and a long bushy tail (or ''brush'').
Twelve sp ...
,
Mangiafuoco
Mangiafuoco ( ; , literally "Fire-Eater") is a fictional character who appears in Carlo Collodi's 1883 Italian book ''The Adventures of Pinocchio'' (''Le avventure di Pinocchio''), serving as a secondary antagonist turning good.
Role
He is the the ...
, and the Ringmaster from the original Pinocchio story.
*
Tilda Swinton
Katherine Matilda Swinton (born 5 November 1960) is a British actress. Known for her roles in independent films and blockbusters, she has received various accolades, including an Academy Award and a British Academy Film Award, in addition t ...
as:
** The
Wood Sprite, a wise magical fairy who gives Pinocchio life. Her appearance is a humanoid with eight wings that have eyes on them and a snake-like tail.
**
Death
Death is the irreversible cessation of all biological functions that sustain an organism. For organisms with a brain, death can also be defined as the irreversible cessation of functioning of the whole brain, including brainstem, and brain ...
, the Wood Sprite's sister who oversees the afterlife. Her appearance is a
Chimera
Chimera, Chimaera, or Chimaira (Greek for " she-goat") originally referred to:
* Chimera (mythology), a fire-breathing monster of Ancient Lycia said to combine parts from multiple animals
* Mount Chimaera, a fire-spewing region of Lycia or Cilicia ...
with the face of a human, the horns of a
cape buffalo, the lower horns of a
Jacob sheep
The Jacob is a British breed of domestic sheep. It combines two characteristics unusual in sheep: it is piebald—dark-coloured with areas of white wool—and it is often polycerate or multi-horned. It most commonly has four horns. The origi ...
, the body of a
lion
The lion (''Panthera leo'') is a large Felidae, cat of the genus ''Panthera'' native to Africa and India. It has a muscular, broad-chested body; short, rounded head; round ears; and a hairy tuft at the end of its tail. It is sexually dimorphi ...
, the wings of a bird with eyes on them, and a snake-headed tail.
*
Tom Kenny
Thomas James Kenny (born July 13, 1962) is an American actor and comedian. He is known for voicing the titular character in ''SpongeBob SquarePants'' and associated media. Kenny has voiced many other characters, including Heffer Wolfe in ''R ...
as:
**
Benito Mussolini
Benito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini (; 29 July 188328 April 1945) was an Italian politician and journalist who founded and led the National Fascist Party. He was Prime Minister of Italy from the March on Rome in 1922 until his deposition in 194 ...
, the dictator of Fascist Italy.
** Benito Mussolini's right-hand man
** A
sea captain
A sea captain, ship's captain, captain, master, or shipmaster, is a high-grade licensed mariner who holds ultimate command and responsibility of a merchant vessel.Aragon and Messner, 2001, p.3. The captain is responsible for the safe and efficie ...
with a hook for a hand and a peg leg who tells Geppetto about the Dogfish.
Production
Development
![Guillermo del Toro by Gage Skidmore 3](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/dd/Guillermo_del_Toro_by_Gage_Skidmore_3.jpg)
In 2008,
Guillermo del Toro announced that his next project, a darker adaptation of the Italian novel ''
The Adventures of Pinocchio
''The Adventures of Pinocchio'' ( ; it, Le avventure di Pinocchio ; commonly shortened to ''Pinocchio'') is a children's fantasy novel by Italian author Carlo Collodi. It is about the mischievous adventures of an animated marionette named Pi ...
'', was in development. He has called ''Pinocchio'' his "passion project", stating: "No art form has influenced my life and my work more than animation, and no single character in history has had as deep of a personal connection to me as Pinocchio", and "I've wanted to make this movie for as long as I can remember". When he was a child, del Toro saw and liked
Walt Disney
Walter Elias Disney (; December 5, 1901December 15, 1966) was an American animator, film producer and entrepreneur. A pioneer of the American animation industry, he introduced several developments in the production of cartoons. As a film p ...
's 1940
animated film adaptation in
Guadalajara
Guadalajara ( , ) is a metropolis in western Mexico and the capital of the list of states of Mexico, state of Jalisco. According to the 2020 census, the city has a population of 1,385,629 people, making it the 7th largest city by population in Me ...
,
Mexico
Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...
, partially because he felt it like a "
horror movie
Horror is a film genre that seeks to elicit fear or disgust in its audience for entertainment purposes.
Horror films often explore dark subject matter and may deal with transgressive topics or themes. Broad elements include monsters, ap ...
" in its own way due to a few intense moments it included. Since his teen years, he had longed to make his own version of the story. In 2003, del Toro discovered
Gris Grimly's illustrations for the 2002 edition of Collodi's book, portraying Pinocchio as a puppet with a long, pointed nose and spindly limbs, with gestures that del Toro felt captured the energy of an unruly but otherwise goodhearted puppet. He concluded that Grimly's illustrations reflected the setting he had in mind for his own, more somber version of
Carlo Collodi
Carlo Lorenzini (24 November 1826 – 26 October 1890), better known by the pen name Carlo Collodi (), was an Italian author, humourist, and journalist, widely known for his fairy tale novel ''The Adventures of Pinocchio''.
Early life
Co ...
's tale.
On February 17, 2011, it was announced that Grimly and Mark Gustafson would co-direct a
stop-motion animated ''Pinocchio'' film written by del Toro and his long-time collaborator
Matthew Robbins, and that it would be visually based by Grimly's designs. Del Toro would produce the film along with
The Jim Henson Company
The Jim Henson Company (formerly known as Muppets, Inc., Henson Associates, Inc., and Jim Henson Productions, Inc.; commonly referred to as Henson) is an American entertainment company located in Los Angeles, California. The company is known for ...
and
Pathé
Pathé or Pathé Frères (, styled as PATHÉ!) is the name of various French people, French businesses that were founded and originally run by the Pathé Brothers of France starting in 1896. In the early 1900s, Pathé became the world's largest ...
.
Grimly devised Pinocchio's look for the film, depicting him as unfinished wood.
Though Grimly was initially set to direct the film and del Toro was set to produce it,
on May 17, 2012, del Toro took over as director. He then teamed up with Gustafson, a stop-motion veteran who had experience in similar stop-motion features like ''
Fantastic Mr. Fox
''Fantastic Mr Fox'' is a children's literature, children's novel written by British author Roald Dahl. It was published in 1970, by Allen & Unwin, George Allen & Unwin in the UK and Alfred A. Knopf in the U.S., with illustrations by Donald Ch ...
'' (2009), to assist him in achieving his ambitious vision for the project.
In February 2012, del Toro released some concept art of
Pinocchio
Pinocchio ( , ) is a fictional character and the protagonist of the children's novel '' The Adventures of Pinocchio'' (1883) by Italian writer Carlo Collodi of Florence, Tuscany. Pinocchio was carved by a woodcarver named Geppetto in a Tuscan ...
,
Geppetto
Geppetto ( , ), also known as Mister Geppetto, is an Italian fictional character in the 1883 novel ''The Adventures of Pinocchio'' by Carlo Collodi. Geppetto is an elderly, impoverished woodcarver and the creator (and thus 'father') of Pinocch ...
, the
Talking Cricket
The Talking Cricket ( it, Il Grillo Parlante) is a fictional character that appears in the 1883 Italian book ''The Adventures of Pinocchio'' (''Le avventure di Pinocchio'') by Carlo Collodi.
Role
The Talking Cricket, who has lived in Geppetto's ...
,
Mangiafuoco
Mangiafuoco ( ; , literally "Fire-Eater") is a fictional character who appears in Carlo Collodi's 1883 Italian book ''The Adventures of Pinocchio'' (''Le avventure di Pinocchio''), serving as a secondary antagonist turning good.
Role
He is the the ...
,
the Fox and the Cat
The Fox and the Cat ( it, Il gatto e la volpe; "the cat and the fox") are a pair of fictional characters and the main antagonists, along with the Terrible Dogfish, in Italian writer Carlo Collodi's 1883 book ''Le avventure di Pinocchio'' (''The ...
. On July 30, 2012, it was announced that the film would be produced and animated by
ShadowMachine
ShadowMachine is an American animation studio and production company for film, television, commercials and music videos.
Since its early days producing the stop-motion animation show ''Robot Chicken'', the company has been producing such shows ...
. It was originally scheduled to be released in 2013 or 2014,
but went into
development hell, with no further information forthcoming about it for years.
On January 23, 2017, ''
Over the Garden Wall'' (2014) creator
Patrick McHale was announced to co-write the script with del Toro. On August 31, 2017, del Toro told
IndieWire
IndieWire (sometimes stylized as indieWIRE or Indiewire) is a film industry and review website that was established in 1996. The site's focus was predominantly independent film, although its coverage has grown to "to include all aspects of Hollyw ...
and at the
74th Venice International Film Festival
The 74th annual Venice International Film Festival was held from 30 August to 9 September 2017. The jury president was announced as the actress Annette Bening on 5 July 2017. '' Downsizing'', directed by Alexander Payne, was selected to open ...
that the film would need a budget increase of $35 million or it would be cancelled. On November 8, 2017, he reported that the project was not happening because no studios were willing to finance it. At one point, Matthew Robbins considered making a 2D-animated version of the film with French artist
Joann Sfar
Joann Sfar (; born 28 August 1971) is a French comics artist, comic book creator, novelist, and film director.
Life and career
Sfar was born in Nice, the son of Lilou, a pop singer, who died when he was three, and André Sfar, a lawyer well know ...
to bring the costs down, but del Toro decided that it had to be stop-motion, even if the higher budget made it harder to get it
greenlit
To green-light is to give permission to proceed with a project. The term is a reference to the green traffic signal, indicating "go ahead".
Film industry
In the context of the film and television industries, to green-light something is to ...
. On October 22, 2018, it was announced that the film had been revived, with
Netflix
Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a fi ...
acquiring it, and Pathé no longer involved.
Almost all the years of development were spent by del Toro and Gustafson defining the designs for the principal characters, basing them on either Grimsly's designs or letting del Toro's frequent collaborator
Guy Davis, who joined the project as co-production designer with ''
The Boxtrolls
''The Boxtrolls'' is a 2014 American stop-motion animated fantasy comedy film directed by Graham Annable and Anthony Stacchi (in their feature directorial debuts) loosely based on the 2005 novel ''Here Be Monsters!'' by Alan Snow. It is produc ...
'' (2014) and ''
Isle of Dogs
The Isle of Dogs is a large peninsula bounded on three sides by a large meander in the River Thames in East London, England, which includes the Cubitt Town, Millwall and Canary Wharf districts. The area was historically part of the Manor, Ham ...
'' (2018) art director Curt Enderle, to design them. They then turned the animation models to
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
's Mackinnon & Saunders stop-motion puppet firm, which are considered by del Toro as the "best in the world", and they fabricated the designs of Pinocchio, Gepetto, Sebastian J. Cricket, Count Volpe and Spazzatura the Monkey.
The antagonist Count Volpe is a combination of Mangiafuoco and the Fox from the original story. Mangiafuoco was originally supposed to appear in the movie as an antagonist, but he was removed halfway through production as del Toro disliked the character and thought he was a
cliché
A cliché ( or ) is an element of an artistic work, saying, or idea that has become overused to the point of losing its original meaning or effect, even to the point of being weird or irritating, especially when at some earlier time it was consi ...
; as a character model had already been made for Mangiafuoco, to not waste the model, Mangiafuoco's original design was used as a background character for Volpe's circus.
[''Guillermo del Toro's Pinocchio: Handcarved Cinema'' (2022)] The Cat, who was shown in a concept art, was replaced by Spazzatura, while the
Land of Toys
The Land of Toys ( it, Paese dei balocchi) is a fictional location in the Italian novel ''The Adventures of Pinocchio'' (1883) that is disguised as a haven of freedom and anarchy for boys and occasionally girls, but is eventually discovered to be f ...
was replaced with an Italian kids training camp.
Writing
Guillermo del Toro was intrigued by similarities between
Carlo Collodi
Carlo Lorenzini (24 November 1826 – 26 October 1890), better known by the pen name Carlo Collodi (), was an Italian author, humourist, and journalist, widely known for his fairy tale novel ''The Adventures of Pinocchio''.
Early life
Co ...
's ''The Adventures of Pinocchio'' and
Mary Shelley
Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley (; ; 30 August 1797 – 1 February 1851) was an English novelist who wrote the Gothic fiction, Gothic novel ''Frankenstein, Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus'' (1818), which is considered an History of scie ...
's ''
Frankenstein
''Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus'' is an 1818 novel written by English author Mary Shelley. ''Frankenstein'' tells the story of Victor Frankenstein, a young scientist who creates a sapient creature in an unorthodox scientific ex ...
''. Both tell of a childlike figure, brought to life and thrown into the world by a father figure who expects him to discover, on his own, the qualities that make us human, such as love and the capacity to distinguish between right and wrong. These themes reminded del Toro of his childhood. ''Frankenstein'' partly inspired del Toro to give his ''Pinocchio'' a gothic direction, but the film was still crafted to be family friendly. He sought to make connections across generations, and convey compassion, a value del Toro feels is essential for children faced with the tremendous complexity of today’s world.
In del Toro's ''Pinocchio'', the wood used to construct the puppet is carved from a tree that grows over the grave of Carlo, Gepetto's son. Pinocchio’s arrival provides his grief-blinded father another opportunity for fatherhood. However, Pinocchio is rowdy, exuberant, and wild, in contrast to the well-behaved and docile Carlo. The characterization of Sebastian J. Cricket, the talking cricket, is also changed. Sebastian somewhat ponderously takes on the role of Pinocchio’s conscience. His self-importance annoys Pinocchio, causing him to escape Sebastian’s supervision. The cricket comes to see that Pinocchio must discover certain things for himself, such as love, humility, and how to behave. As in the original book, Sebastian is “killed” a number of times over the duration of the film, but always comes back in order to fulfill his
character arc
A character arc is the transformation or inner journey of a character over the course of a story. If a story has a character arc, the character begins as one sort of person and gradually transforms into a different sort of person in response to ch ...
.
Del Toro did not wish to overly rely upon magical creatures in the film. Desiring more realism, he eliminated the Fox, the Cat, and the Land of Toys. Also, del Toro created Count Volpe, as an homage to, and an amalgation of, the Fox, the Cat and Mangiafuoco. In the donkey subplot,
the Coachman
The Coachman ( it, Il Conduttore del Carro), also known as The Little Man (''L'Omino''), is a fictional character and a major antagonist who appears in Carlo Collodi's 1883 book ''The Adventures of Pinocchio'' (''Le avventure di Pinocchio'').
In ...
is replaced by the ''
Podestà
Podestà (, English: Potestate, Podesta) was the name given to the holder of the highest civil office in the government of the cities of Central and Northern Italy during the Late Middle Ages. Sometimes, it meant the chief magistrate of a city ...
'', a fascist official who, realizing that Pinocchio cannot be killed, strives to recruit him into Italy's military.
Candlewick Candlewick may refer to:
*Candle wick, a part of a candle or oil lamp
*Candlewick, a style of glassware made by the Imperial Glass Company
* Candlewick (fabric), a thick, soft cotton fabric
*Candlewick, an element in financial candlestick charts
* ...
is changed into a bully who eventually redeems himself.
Most versions of the story take place in a
fairy tale
A fairy tale (alternative names include fairytale, fairy story, magic tale, or wonder tale) is a short story that belongs to the folklore genre. Such stories typically feature magic (paranormal), magic, incantation, enchantments, and mythical ...
environment. Del Toro’s film resituates the story in
Fascist Italy between
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
and
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...
, during the rise of
Benito Mussolini
Benito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini (; 29 July 188328 April 1945) was an Italian politician and journalist who founded and led the National Fascist Party. He was Prime Minister of Italy from the March on Rome in 1922 until his deposition in 194 ...
. Pinocchio thus awakens in a society of people who behave like obedient puppets. By contrast, Pinocchio is independent and irrepressible.
He cannot bring himself to abide by the rules or submit to authority figures, even when he encounters Mussolini himself, and then the spirit of
Death
Death is the irreversible cessation of all biological functions that sustain an organism. For organisms with a brain, death can also be defined as the irreversible cessation of functioning of the whole brain, including brainstem, and brain ...
, in
limbo
In Catholic theology, Limbo (Latin '' limbus'', edge or boundary, referring to the edge of Hell) is the afterlife condition of those who die in original sin without being assigned to the Hell of the Damned. Medieval theologians of Western Euro ...
. Gustafson was drawn to this characterization of Pinocchio, newly born, arriving in the world fresh and unaware of consequences. Over the course of the narrative, Pinocchio awakens to his latent humanity, and in the end chooses to become mortal in order to save the life of Gepetto.
Del Toro chose to move away the original book's apparent agenda, which seemed to seek to repress the spirits of children. It seemed to encourage blind obedience, to parents and other authority figures. He saw the development of Pinocchio’s autonomy as a virtue. Del Toro’s film is oriented around self discovery and moral agency. Del Toro's sought to explore aspects of father-son relationships, such as Gepetto’s initial inability to accept Pinocchio as his own being, more than just Carlo's replacement. Gepetto struggles with guilt about the disruptiveness of the "freakish monster" that the town rejects initially.
Some themes of this work may seen in previous works such as ''
The Devil's Backbone
''The Devil's Backbone'' ( es, El espinazo del diablo) is a 2001 gothic horror film directed by Guillermo del Toro, and written by del Toro, David Muñoz, and Antonio Trashorras.
The film is set in Spain, 1939, during the final year of the ...
'' (2001), ''
Pan's Labyrinth
''Pan's Labyrinth'' ( es, El laberinto del fauno, lit=The Labyrinth of the Faun, links=no) is a 2006 dark fantasy horror film written, directed and co-produced by Guillermo del Toro. A Spanish-Mexican(78% Spanish production, 22% Mexican productio ...
'' (2006), and ''
The Shape of Water
''The Shape of Water'' is a 2017 romantic fantasy film directed by Guillermo del Toro and written by del Toro and Vanessa Taylor. It stars Sally Hawkins, Michael Shannon, Richard Jenkins, Doug Jones, Michael Stuhlbarg, and Octavia Spencer ...
'' (2017). These three films also explore the humanity of those, like Pinocchio, who are perceived as different.
Most previous renditions of this story feature the necessity of physical transmutation from wooden puppet to flesh and blood. Del Toro explicitly rejects this conceit, that Pinocchio must physically change in order to be loved by his father and find happinness. The film asserts that the essence of humanity lies in the feelings of interiority and the expressions of exteriority, especially as behavior.
Pinocchio is therefore unconcerned with whether or not he turns into a ‘’real boy’’. The basis of the transformation is instead Geppetto's journey to accepting and loving Pinocchio for who he is. In the end he loves him as fiercely as he did Carlo. This reminded del Toro of his relationship with his father Federico.
Casting
In assembling the film's cast, del Toro and Gustafson chose multiple
Oscar
Oscar, OSCAR, or The Oscar may refer to:
People
* Oscar (given name), an Irish- and English-language name also used in other languages; the article includes the names Oskar, Oskari, Oszkár, Óscar, and other forms.
* Oscar (Irish mythology), ...
winners and gifted performers with past creative ties with the former.
On January 31, 2020, it was announced
Ron Perlman,
Tilda Swinton
Katherine Matilda Swinton (born 5 November 1960) is a British actress. Known for her roles in independent films and blockbusters, she has received various accolades, including an Academy Award and a British Academy Film Award, in addition t ...
,
Ewan McGregor
Ewan Gordon McGregor ( ; born 31 March 1971) is a Scottish actor. His accolades include a Golden Globe Award, a Primetime Emmy Award, and the BAFTA Britannia Humanitarian Award. In 2013, he was appointed Officer of the Order of the British ...
,
Christoph Waltz and
David Bradley had joined the cast of the film.
Daniel Radcliffe
Daniel Jacob Radcliffe (born 23 July 1989) is an English actor. He rose to fame at age twelve, when he began portraying Harry Potter in the film series of the same name; and has held various other film and theatre roles. Over his career, Rad ...
,
Tom Waits
Thomas Alan Waits (born December 7, 1949) is an American musician, composer, songwriter, and actor. His lyrics often focus on the underbelly of society and are delivered in his trademark deep, gravelly voice. He worked primarily in jazz during ...
and
Christopher Walken
Christopher Walken (born Ronald Walken; March 31, 1943) is an American actor. Prolific in film, television and on stage, Walken is the recipient of numerous accolades including an Academy Award, a BAFTA Award, and a Screen Actors Guild Awar ...
were previously considered. Waits was reportedly considered to voice Geppetto and del Toro was reported by
/Film
''/Film'', also spelled ''Slashfilm'', is a blog that covers movie news, reviews, interviews, and trailers. It was founded by Peter Sciretta in August 2005.
Podcasts
Six podcasts have run on the site. ''The /Filmcast'', hosted by David Chen, De ...
to be floating up casting Walken as the Fox, though he was also considering
Donald Sutherland
Donald McNichol Sutherland (born 17 July 1935) is a Canadian actor whose film career spans over six decades. He has been nominated for nine Golden Globe Awards, winning two for his performances in the television films ''Citizen X'' (1995) an ...
for that part. Radcliffe would later instead remain as executive producer of the movie. Early on during the film's development, del Toro first approached
John Hurt
Sir John Vincent Hurt (22 January 1940 – 25 January 2017) was an English actor whose career spanned over five decades. Hurt was regarded as one of Britain's finest actors. Director David Lynch described him as "simply the greatest actor in t ...
, with whom he had worked in ''
Hellboy
Hellboy is a fictional superhero created by writer-artist Mike Mignola. The character first appeared in ''San Diego Comic-Con Comics'' #2 (August 1993), and has since appeared in various eponymous miniseries, one-shots and intercompany crossovers ...
'' (2004) and ''
Hellboy II: The Golden Army'' (2008), to voice Gepetto, but Hurt passed away long before recordings could begin. Hurt's ''
Harry Potter
''Harry Potter'' is a series of seven fantasy literature, fantasy novels written by British author J. K. Rowling. The novels chronicle the lives of a young Magician (fantasy), wizard, Harry Potter (character), Harry Potter, and his friends ...
'' co-star Bradley was chiefly chosen instead due to his past collaborations with del Toro in ''
The Strain
''The Strain'' is a 2009 vampire horror novel by Guillermo del Toro and Chuck Hogan. It is the first installment in ''The Strain Trilogy'', and was followed by '' The Fall'' (2010) and ''The Night Eternal'' (2011).
Plot synopsis
A Boeing 77 ...
'' and in Netflix's ''
Trollhunters: Tales of Arcadia''. He felt his role as Geppetto was a "real emotion rollercoaster" of a part, feeling it to resemble more ''
King Lear
''King Lear'' is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare.
It is based on the mythological Leir of Britain. King Lear, in preparation for his old age, divides his power and land between two of his daughters. He becomes destitute and insane an ...
'' than the ''Pinocchio'' story he had heard as a kid.
Perlman was originally cast to voice Mangiafuoco, but once del Toro decided to remove the character in favor of Count Volpe, Perlman was recast as the ''Podestà'' while Waltz was cast to voice Volpe, whom del Toro regards as the film's closest character to the
Devil
A devil is the personification of evil as it is conceived in various cultures and religious traditions. It is seen as the objectification of a hostile and destructive force. Jeffrey Burton Russell states that the different conceptions of t ...
, a more over-the-top character than the Fox and the Cat and a comically evil man who seems like taken out from the cartoonish and fantastical tone of the original book.
On August 19, 2020, Gregory Mann,
Cate Blanchett,
Tim Blake Nelson
Timothy Blake Nelson (born May 11, 1964) is an American actor and playwright.
Described as a "modern character actor", his roles include Delmar O'Donnell in '' O Brother, Where Art Thou?'' (2000), Gideon in '' Minority Report'' (2002), Dr. Pend ...
,
Finn Wolfhard
Finn Wolfhard (born December 23, 2002) is a Canadian actor and musician. He gained recognition for playing Mike Wheeler (Stranger Things character), Mike Wheeler in the Netflix series ''Stranger Things'' (2016–present). His film roles include ...
,
John Turturro
John Michael Turturro (; born February 28, 1957) is an American actor and filmmaker. He is known for his contributions to the independent film movement. He has appeared in over sixty feature films and has worked frequently with the Coen brothers, ...
and
Burn Gorman joined the cast of the film. For Pinocchio, del Toro sought a child actor who sounded like a normal kid instead of a cute one, which led him to cast Mann due to his phenomenal vocal range that made him sound like a natural kid, yet one absolutely emotional.
Mann's vocal performance as the title character gave him a "silly and sunny" personality who longs to learn about the world and meet everyone, but given how he was created with the wood of the tree next to Carlo's grave, his roots are somewhat sad.
Wolfhard doesn't particularly enjoy
voice acting
Voice acting is the art of performing voice-overs to present a character or provide information to an audience. Performers are called voice actors/actresses, voice artists, dubbing artists, voice talent, voice-over artists, or voice-over talent ...
due to feeling himself not as talented as professional voice actors, but felt relaxed enough due to being able to record some of his lines as Candlewick together with Mann, as he feels that he works better with people around instead of alone in a
recording booth, thanking del Toro and Gustafson for allowing him that. Blanchett approached del Toro about joining his ''Pinocchio'' film as they filmed ''
Nightmare Alley'' (2021), who told her that all roles had already been cast minus that of Spazzatura the Monkey, which Blanchett glady accepted as long she could work with del Toro. She further suggested that the
monkey
Monkey is a common name that may refer to most mammals of the infraorder Simiiformes, also known as the simians. Traditionally, all animals in the group now known as simians are counted as monkeys except the apes, which constitutes an incomple ...
is her spirit animal as del Toro prepared to commence production of ''Pinocchio'' to ensure her casting. For the role, Blanchett performed the voice-over shot-by-shot instead of making different emotion sounds to be edited later on like it's usually done in other productions.
Filming
Filming commenced at the
Portland, Oregon
Portland (, ) is a port city in the Pacific Northwest and the largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon. Situated at the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers, Portland is the county seat of Multnomah County, the most populous co ...
offices of ShadowMachine by January 31, 2020.
Production continued through early Summer 2022, with some select sequences being handled by del Toro's own Centro Internacional de Animación (CIA) local studio, settled on
Guadalajara, Mexico
Guadalajara ( , ) is a metropolis in western Mexico and the capital of the state of Jalisco. According to the 2020 census, the city has a population of 1,385,629 people, making it the 7th largest city by population in Mexico, while the Guadalaja ...
since 2019 to foster local talent from Mexico. All sets, props and character costumes were crafted to the same historial and realistic standards del Toro's live-action work has often contained, hence the production's decision to not overly stylize buildings through methods like stylizing them in a curvy, stretched and leaning way, leading to a mix of stop-motion and live-action styles that support the film's themes. Animators were also encouraged to achieve
naturalistic performances from the puppets by making them "commit mistakes" like itching, sneezing or looking away if embarassed or scared in order to shoot the characters thinking and listening, traits not usually shot in animation.
For Count Volpe's carnival, Davis and Enderle drew from the reference material library collected for del Toro's previous film ''Nightmare Alley'', which prominently starred a 1930s carnival and in which Davis had previously worked as a concept artist, even though that film's carnival was one settled in the
American Midwest
The Midwestern United States, also referred to as the Midwest or the American Midwest, is one of four census regions of the United States Census Bureau (also known as "Region 2"). It occupies the northern central part of the United States. I ...
rather than in
Europe
Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...
, so despite the great overlap between American and European carnivals, the filmmakers developed looks for both carnivals that were similarly downtrodden and threadbare. Some ''Nightmare Alley'' early shots featuring
Bradley Cooper
Bradley Charles Cooper (born January 5, 1975) is an American actor and filmmaker. He is the recipient of various accolades, including a British Academy Film Award and two Grammy Awards, in addition to nominations for nine Academy Awards, si ...
's Stanton Carlisle arriving at the carnival inspired the sequence that establishes Volpe's carnival. The afterlife sequences and the end credits scene were animated by studio El Taller de Chucho in Guadalajara,
Mexico
Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...
.
Visual effects
The film's production quality was formed through the ornate detail of the sets and characters with their own textures in order to reinterpret Collodi's work in a way that differed from the
Disney
The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was originally founded on October ...
animated version. Del Toro told ''
Vanity Fair'': "I have been very vocal about my admiration and my great, great love for Disney all my life, but that is an impulse that actually makes me move away from that version. I think it is a pinnacle of
Disney animation
The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment industry, entertainment conglomerate (company), conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios (Burbank), Walt Disney Stud ...
. It’s done in the most beautiful,
hand-drawn 2D animation".
He saw as "beautiful" the idea of using puppets to create a movie about a puppet, while pushing the boundaries of stop-motion as much as possible to create a "heartfelt" movie any audience could watch.
Moving Picture Company
The Moving Picture Company (MPC) is a multinational company providing visual effects, CGI, animation, motion design and other services for the film, TV, brand experience and advertising industries.
Their artists have produced Academy Award W ...
worked on the visual effects, with Bot VFX and Mist VFX.
Music
On January 8, 2020,
Alexandre Desplat
Alexandre Michel Gérard Desplat (; born 23 August 1961) is a French film composer and conductor. He has won many awards, including two Academy Awards, for his musical scores to the films ''The Grand Budapest Hotel'' and ''The Shape of Water'', ...
started composing the film's score and original songs.
It is Desplat's and del Toro's second collaboration, after ''The Shape of Water''.
Roeban Katz was the
lyricist
A lyricist is a songwriter who writes lyrics (the spoken words), as opposed to a composer, who writes the song's music which may include but not limited to the melody, harmony, arrangement and accompaniment.
Royalties
A lyricist's income ...
.
On August 23, 2012,
Nick Cave
Nicholas Edward Cave (born 22 September 1957) is an Australian singer, songwriter, poet, lyricist, author, screenwriter, composer and occasional actor. Known for his baritone voice and for fronting the rock band Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, Ca ...
was attached to compose the score, but he was replaced by Desplat eight years later.
Release
In November 2018, Netflix set the film's release date for 2021. In January 2021, Netflix CEO
Ted Sarandos
Theodore Anthony Sarandos Jr. is an American businessman who serves as the co-chief executive officer and chief content officer for Netflix.
Early life
Sarandos was born in Phoenix, Arizona. His father was Ted Sarandos Sr, an electrician, and ...
revealed that the release could be moved to 2022 or later, with Netflix's notion of releasing six animated films a year. In December 2021, del Toro stated it will be released in the last quarter of 2022. In January and July 2022, with the release of the film's first teaser, it was announced for a December release.
''Pinocchio'' premiered at the
BFI London Film Festival on October 15, 2022. It debuted in the United States at the 2022
AFI Fest
The American Film Institute (AFI) is an American nonprofit film organization that educates filmmakers and honors the heritage of the History of cinema in the United States, motion picture arts in the United States. AFI is supported by private fun ...
on November 5, 2022. It was released in select cinemas on November 9, 2022, and began streaming on Netflix on December 9, 2022. One of the theatres scheduled to show the film on November 11, 2022 was the
TIFF Bell Lightbox
TIFF Bell Lightbox is a cultural centre in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, located in the first five floors of the Bell Lightbox and Festival Tower on the north west corner of King Street and John Street.
TIFF Bell Lightbox features five cinemas, two ...
in
Toronto
Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...
,
Ontario
Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...
.
In the case of Mexico, the director's country,
Cinemex
Cinemex is a Mexican chain of cinemas. It operates multiplexes in cities such as Mexico City, Guadalajara, Monterrey, Toluca, Cd. Juarez, Leon, Tijuana, Mexicali, Puebla and other Mexican cities.
In 2015, Cinemex began to expand into the United ...
movie theater chain —one of the largest exhibitors suspended the screenings that were scheduled, causing protests by Del Toro, who wants most of the people in his country to see the film. In response, on November 25, the filmmaker made a call on his Twitter account to show the film in independent theaters throughout the country, and some thirty independent theaters and clubs joined the call to show the film, including the country's
Cineteca Nacional, where an exhibition of the figures used in the film was also set up in its central courtyard. On December 18 it was announced that on December 30 a massive screening will be held in Mexico City's main square, the
Zócalo
The Zócalo () is the common name of the town square, main square in central Mexico City. Prior to the European colonization of the Americas, colonial period, it was the main ceremonial center in the Aztec city of Tenochtitlan. The plaza used t ...
.
Reception
Critical response
Accolades
References
External links
*
*
Official screenplay
{{Netflix original animated series and films
2022 films
2020s American animated films
2020s musical films
2020s stop-motion animated films
2022 animated films
2022 fantasy films
American comedy films
American fantasy films
American musical films
American musical comedy films
Mexican animated films
Mexican children's films
Mexican comedy films
English-language Mexican films
English-language Netflix original films
Animated films set in Italy
Animated musical films
Dark fantasy films
Films about Fascist Italy
Films about fascists
Films directed by Guillermo del Toro
Films scored by Alexandre Desplat
Films set in 1916
Films set in the 1930s
Films shot in Mexico
Films shot in France
Films shot in Portland, Oregon
Films with screenplays by Guillermo del Toro
The Jim Henson Company films
Magic realism films
Netflix Animation films
Pinocchio films
Stop-motion animated films
World War I films
World War II films
American children's animated musical films
American children's animated comedy films
American children's animated drama films
Films produced by Lisa Henson
2020s English-language films
2020s Mexican films
Cultural depictions of Benito Mussolini