When the National Fascist Party came to power in 1922, just after the terrible impacts of World War I, it irrevocably altered the face of Italy. Mussolini's Fascist movement imposed a totalitarian regime that encouraged strength and order by eradicating all individuality and freedom of choice.
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Although it was a horrible thing to happen, the fascist period is the ideal setting for a fairytale-like Pinocchio because the worst moments in human history are when people most need enchantment in their lives. Guillermo Del Toro makes full use of this uplifting and inspirational narrative in the middle of Italy's dread and conflict at the time, following in the footsteps of many other magical stories anchored in the realities of wars and tragedies, such as The Chronicles of Narnia films and The Shape of Water.
The fascist period was all about conformity, severely regulated rule and control, and many individuals were forced to utterly erase their way of life in order to support the controlled vision of those in authority, or suffer horrible repercussions. This is often repeated in many prior versions of Pinocchio's narrative, in which he defies the rules and is then transformed into a donkey and devoured by a big whale.
Guillermo Del Toro, on the other hand, decided to take a slightly different approach to the retelling of this well-loved classic, with many changes from the cartoon, stating that "Normally Pinocchio is about what Pinocchio learns in the world, and then becomes a good boy and thus becomes a real boy, and our Pinocchio is not that." Because he is so pure, he transforms everyone. He alters Geppetto, the cricket, Spazzatura, and everyone else, and he discovers who he is as a human being." Pinocchio, the wooden kid, represents freedom and opportunity in a fascist society that seeks to squash any dissent against the dictatorship.
There are three Pinocchio films released this year, but none compare to this one, which is produced in beautiful stop-motion animation and uses the fascist war as a really unusual background for the storyline. The animation teams produced the vivid, captivating worlds of individuals who maintain their uniqueness and oppose the dictatorial power of the state, such as Pinocchio and Geppetto, as well as the enigmatic and finely styled colours of the circus crew who transcend the confines of conventional society.
This, of course, provides a spectacular visual contrast to the colours of the soldiers, who are dressed in greys and blacks and live in a world that appears muted in every way to show oppression and forced adherence to the fascist way of life, such as in homes like Candlewicks', where the very walls take on a cold metallic appearance. There are places where the two divisions collide, such as during the fascist songs and performances that Vulpe forces Pinocchio to perform, which are a clever tool used by the animators to depict the propaganda of the time, and the way in which the National Party tried to portray their authoritarian values as alluring and beneficial to the country, but even within these scenes there is a sense of pastiche and farce, perpetuated by Pinocchio's beautifully rendered puppet.
Many characters in the film attempt to force Pinocchio into submission, to straighten him out into what their societal expectations of him should be, ranging from Geppetto and Sebastian Cricket, who approach this from a caring and wishful perspective, but over time learn to love and value him for who he is, to the Colonel of the army, who wants him to be a weapon in the war because he cannot die.
The regimental commander informs him, "Most of us have only one life to sacrifice for our fatherland, but you! You have no boundaries. You will be the ideal soldier if you follow my directions and learn to obey." But Pinocchio has no desire to be a soldier or to be flawless; he only wants to remain in the enchantment of life and care for his dad till the end of his days. Even death tries to teach him to obey the rules, despite knowing that they endanger the lives of those he loves, but by the end of the movie, even death must learn that he will break every rule in the book to protect his family, and it is this that makes him real, more real and true to himself than the 'perfect' well-behaved child that they all push him to be at the start.
Del Toro and his team managed to perfectly demonstrate why the pressures and conformities of war are futile when placed up against the power of love and hope, and the incredible human resilience that comes with believing in one's own voice, even when all other voices are trying to drown it out, through a mixture of dynamic stop-motion wonder, imaginatively crafted storytelling, beautifully painted scenes, and clever commentaries on some of society's most pressing questions. Del Toro effectively summarises this when he states, "Pinocchio is a movie with a great heart." It is about being genuine to oneself and not needing to alter in order to be accepted."
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