Movie Review - Jojo Rabbit

Jojo Rabbit ****½ (out of 5) (PG-13) Of all the films that have lampooned Adolph Hitler and his Nazis, this is probably the most engaging and amusing of the lot that wasn’t written by Mel Brooks or Charlie Chaplin. New Zealand’s Taika Waititi has already put his stamp on plenty of offbeat comedies, from the character-driven outings for his countrymen Flight of the Conchords, to his recent, highly popular contemporary vampire feature film and TV comedy, What We Do in the Shadows.

This one opens in the waning months of WW II, with the focus on 10-year-old Jojo, who is so gung-ho for joining the Hitler Youth Corps that the Fuhrer appears regularly as his imaginary friend. Unfortunately, Jojo (Roman Griffin Davis) is quite the klutz, leading his peers to lay the eponymous derisive nickname upon him. Most of those young Aryans joyfully head to the front, while he labors to find useful war-effort errands to run in Berlin. His mom (Scarlett Johansson) is loving and sympathetic to her son, though not necessary to his political fervor... or even his leanings. Jojo swallows every morsel of the Party Line, including his believing all the outrageous slurs against Jews, and Germany’s destiny to win the war, even as the army is falling into disarray. Sam Rockwell adds a nice turn as an injured, cynical officer, who indoctrinates the kids in his charge, despite becoming all too aware of the hypocrisy and futility of doing so.

Jojo discovers something partway through the film that rocks his world, causing great difficulty in reconciling this new info with a lifelong force-feeding of propaganda. (Better to learn those specifics during the film, rather than before, if possible.) The satiric package adds up to a complete range of emotional triggers, from broad and subtler laughs to the sentimental, to elements of anger, sadness and dramatic tension. Unlike the variably zany Brooks offerings on this topic, the overall tenor here is closer to nuanced dramedies like Moonrise Kingdom or Grand Budapest Hotel.

The worst thing about this movie is its severely distressing timeliness. The evils of fascism should have long been obvious enough to everyone that we wouldn’t still need reminders of any type. But the global rise of factions pushing similar agendas - especially demonizing any group they can label as “others” - makes this one fill regrettable holes in our political and cultural fabric. Waititi’s script and direction are both first-rate. Performances are excellent all around, with particular praise due to young Mr. Davis for handling such a full panoply of moods, changes and physical demands for his character. This is one of those Indie gems that make reviewing a treat - the chance to preview and recommend such a worthy film that might otherwise be overlooked. (11/1/19)