As befitting the director of Pan’s Labyrinth and The Shape of Water, Guillermo del Toro’s grown-up, soulful take on Carlo Collodi’s 1883 fairytale is a visually stunning mediation on death and loss – and one of the Oscar winner’s most personal films yet.

During WWI, carpenter Gepetto (David Bradley) tragically loses his young son in an air raid. Years later, in a drunken rage, he tries to re-create him by carving a boy from wood – who is then magically given life. Christened Pinocchio (Gregory Mann), he ventures into the world, experiencing Mussolini’s Italy firsthand as he navigates exploitative con artists and fascists.

Oscar nominee for 2023 for Best Animated Feature Film.