As the year nears a conclusion, the final two weeks of December seem like an appropriate time to declare Netflix the streaming service champion of 2022. During the Summer, Stranger Things 4 yielded monstrous viewership numbers for the company, as expected. But the Fall and Winter belongs to a pair of shows that no one could have predicted would reach the same trajectory in terms of critically acclaimed original television and film productions on a streaming service. On September 14th, Netflix published DAHMER, a hit series starring Evan Peters that would go on to shatter viewership records and stir up a bevy of controversy en route to owning social media in the six weeks that followed. Eventually, the hype surrounding the show died down after a climactic Halloween night, opening the door for yet another record-breaking run for a Netflix original, Wednesday. The Addams Family spin-off starring Jenna Ortega broke DAHMER's record for streams, reaching 1 billion hours watched within less than a month. The storylines behind DAHMER and Wednesday each have a built-in audience steeped in American history. Hence, these productions brought forth societal issues that the mainstream had to address, both positive and negative. Now that consumers have binged and digested these original shows, another familiar story has captivated the minds of film critics and fans worldwide. 

Ten days ago, Netflix released the latest adaptation of Pinocchio, a stop-animation fantasy film by Academy award-winning director Guillermo del Toro. Unlike the previous fairytale-esque depictions of this iconic bedtime story originally written by Carlo Collodi (in 1983), Guillermo Del Toro took the happy-go-lucky ambiance of the traditional plot and ventured into the depths of his dark imagination. Guillermo Del Toro beautifully crafted this movie by incorporating murder, grief psychology, Catholicism, the consequence of war, spiritual deities, dark magic, poverty, and anti-fascism with the joys of fatherhood, unlikely friendships, good music, and love. Guillermo del Toro's Pinocchio is comparable to some of the legendary work by filmmaker Tim Burton.

One of the most talked about aspects of the film is Pinocchio's gloomy spiritual guide Blue Fairy (voiced by Tilda Swinton). Guillermo del Toro is said to have drawn inspiration for the character from Mexican mythology, a trademark tactic the director has used in previous dark-fantasy projects such as Pans Labyrinth. 

Pans Labyrinth carried a political undertone based on the infrastructure of America during the Bush Administration in the 2000s. In contrast, Guillermo del Toro's reimagining of Pinocchio is set in Italy during World War II, when Adolf Hitler and Benito Mussolini each led powerful fascist regimes in Europe. The infamous "Fascist Salute" can be seen on full display throughout the film as several characters raise their right arm and extended their fingers out with the hand facing down but Guillermo Del Toro brings balance to the imagery by using his main character to mock Mussolini. On the flip side, there are also components of Catholicism, such as when Pinocchio (voiced by Gregory Mann) has an outburst in his father's church and is forced out by the parish priest. There's even a scene where Pinocchio's father, Geppetto (voiced by David Bradley), the town's woodcarver, could be seen crafting a large crucifix with Christ's image on it.

Guillermo del Toro created a timeless tale in 2022 while giving Mussolini a heavy presence with a whimsical personality. This would almost be like a Hollywood director re-making a popular animated film with the details of the American Civil War as a backdrop and managing to pull it off; with a hint of humor. Guillermo del Toro's vision worked beautifully to the tune of a 97% rating on Rotten Tomatoes and Three Golden Globe nominations. The anti-fascist film by Guillermo del Toro has even been praised by Hollywood heavyweights such as Stephen King, who called the film "pure magic" on Twitter. 

 

Source: EW Weekly