UPDATED: Starts with an impressive 92 on Metacritic, based on six reviews. It’s now the frontrunner to win the Best Animated Film Oscar.
EARLIER: It’s very hard to decipher the general reaction for “Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio.” Only five major media have weighed in: IndieWire and The Wrap rave, Variety and THR are positive but with reservations and Deadline pans it.
The stop-motion film was directed by del Toro from a from the Mexican filmmaker and Patrick McHale. The film’s voice cast is staggering and includes Ewan McGregor, Cate Blanchett, John Turturro, Ron Perlman, Tim Blake Nelson, Christoph Waltz and Tilda Swinton.
One thing I find fascinating about this ‘Pinocchio’ adaptation is that it’s set just before the rise of Fascism in pre-WWII Italy. Del Toro’s Pinocchio is recruited by the military because the fascist army believes that if this puppet cannot die then he would make the perfect soldier.
I counted 10 contenders for the five slots available in the Best Animated Film category: Guillermo Del Toro’s Pinocchio, Turning Red, Marcel The Shell With the Shoes On, The Bad Guys, The Sea Beast, Lightyear, My Father’s Dragon, Wendell & Wild, Inu-Oh, and Strange World.
Del Toro’s film is, more or less, the frontrunner now. Maybe Pixar’s “Turning Red” has a shot as well. We’re still waiting for Disney’s “Strange World” to screen, also, no word yet on whether “Marcel the Shell with The Shoes On” will be deemed eligible for Oscar consideration in the category.