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Netflix's Pinocchio hailed a "masterpiece" in first reviews

pinocchio, voiced by gregory mann, pinocchio
Netflix's Pinocchio hailed a "masterpiece" Netflix

The first reviews for Netflix's Pinocchio are out and critics are calling it a "masterpiece".

Directed by Guillermo del Toro and Mark Gustafson, this version of Pinocchio takes its inspiration from Frankenstein and is set in Italy in the interwar years of the 1930s.

Lending their voices to the classic fairytale, Ewan McGregor stars as Sebastian J Cricket and Tilda Swinton stars as The Fairy with Turquoise Hair.

Gregory Mann will voice Pinocchio and is joined by Stranger Things' Finn Wolfhard, David Bradley, Burn Gorman, Ron Perlman, John Turturro, Tim Blake Nelson, Christoph Waltz and Cate Blanchett.

So far, the reviews are mostly positive with The Wrap's Nicholas Barber describing Pinocchio as "a soulful stop-motion masterpiece".

Meanwhile, Next Best Picture's Jennifer Heaton wrote: "From its earliest moments, it's evident that this Pinocchio is a del Toro production, tonally sitting close to the fantasy of Pan's Labyrinth but with the horror and gore obviously scaled back for the kids."

"Guillermo del Toro's Pinocchio brings weirdness, darkness, and joyfulness to Carlo Collodi's tale of the little wooden puppet," wrote Hannah Shaw-Williams from Slash Film.

Photo credit: Netflix
Photo credit: Netflix

However, it's not all positive for Pinocchio – Variety's Guy Lodge found a slight flaw with the film's running time saying: "Unfolding over a faintly indulgent but never dull two hours, this is a rare children’s entertainment that isn’t afraid to perplex kids as much as it enchants them".

"It is what it is, and that’s perfectly imperfect," said Leslie Felperi of the Hollywood Reporter.

Deadline's Damon Wise suggested the film lacked "charm and wonder" and was "unmoving" as a result.

"For all its heartfelt homilies, however, Pinocchio is a strangely unmoving experience, and the intermittent musical numbers are nowhere near as memorable as the animation. Fans of del Toro’s effortlessly brilliant visual style won’t be disappointed, but like last year’s Nightmare Alley there are perhaps too many surface details and flourishes when what it really needs is a little more charm and wonder."

Pinocchio will stream on Netflix from December.


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