For me personally, one mark of a perfect film is being able to tell an entertaining story while having a relevant message and impassioned direction to fuel it all. Jojo Rabbit is an absolutely astounding anti-war satire that not only lets the audience know of the many terrifying similarities to their own reality but provides one of the most truly heartfelt and touching stories of this year. Taika Waititi is profound at being able to expertly balance the lightheartedness of a child's point of view with the bleakness of the real world that these characters were living in all the while playing a hilarious and imaginative rip of Adolf Hitler. Never would I have thought that I could be relating to a Nazi's struggles, but the way that Waititi develops these characters and tells their stories in the most human ways is unbelievable. Along with being injected with his witty, fantastical style, this film proves that whether you're in WWII or 2019, it's never a good time to be a Nazi.
Jojo (Roman Griffin Davis) is a young German boy during the Second World War who was raised to follow and believe in everything that the Nazi party stands for. All his life, he was taught to be repulsed by Jews and their faith, as any variation in his devotion to his country could lead to disastrous consequences. Along with the help of his imaginary friend Adolf Hitler (Taika Waititi), Jojo finds out that his mother Rosie (Scarlett Johansson) is harboring a Jewish girl named Elsa (Thomasin McKenzie), truly testing his morals and what he always thought to be true. Although not nearly as controversial as some might be led to believe, Jojo Rabbit's script is a thing of absolute beauty. There is no reason at all as to why a movie about a young Nazi should be so heartwarming and heartbreaking at the same time but if there was anyone I would believe could do it, it would be Waititi. Combining the dry, dialogue-heavy comedy of What We Do in the Shadows with the childish wonder of Hunt for the Wilderpeople, this film is an absolutely excellent blend of the kind of storytelling that he does best. Waititi is able to handle these themes of childhood with such grace and also knows how to destroy them by contrasting his characters with the harsh realities of war, particularly one so gruesome as WWII. This blend of comedy and drama was perfect and Waititi is able to balance them with grace. There was also a surprising amount of emotion in this film, especially towards the end, that I did not expect to be so moved by. While I know Waititi is able to tell an emotional story, I really did not think he would hit his audience on this level.
I adore the message that Jojo Rabbit sends its viewers and how Waititi delivers it through this anti-hate satire format. War is horribly atrocious, people need to learn to get along despite their differences and upbringings, and love really needs to conquer all. This is all Waititi wants from this world, as can be seen in the way he treats his characters and tells his stories, and I have nothing but praise for him and his dedication to getting this message across. While there are many parts of this film that are aimed towards directly targeting hate groups in our day and age (the reason this movie was made in the first place), I'm so glad that there were not any direct jabs or on-the-nose humor, but rather subtlety was used so creatively. Waititi's script might be a bit more mainstream, taking fewer risks than his previous directorial outings, but his storytelling ability is effective nonetheless. I did nothing but intensely care for these characters the entire time and the many full-circle gags and touching callbacks only improved my experience. Jojo Rabbit is a completely perfect film for me, as it hit everything that I wanted it to and more. I could completely understand why this type of satire might not work or be appealing to many people but there also has to be a knowingness of its sarcasm to make the satire work on both ends. It's hard to miss, however, because it is done in such an undeniably caring and genuine way that should not be offensive to anyone. Unless, of course, you're a Nazi. Then fuck you.
While Jojo Rabbit has such an authentically wholesome message, it could not have been delivered as well as it was if not for the performances from the entire cast. Davis is astounding as Jojo and the level of initial nonchalance he has towards Jews is actually quite scary. His development as a character was incredibly well-done, as he actually had a bit of a reverse character arc. Jojo himself started out as a desensitized war child but grew into a caring and understanding, young man. Davis embodies this quirky boy so well and has an amazing career ahead of him. All of the supporting characters were fantastic as well, including Johansson as Jojo's mother, McKenzie as Elsa, and of course, Waititi himself as the goofy caricature of Adolf Hitler. This whole cast has excellent chemistry together and work so well in this exaggerated and fictional slice of Germany. Along with being one of the absolute funniest and most moving films of this whole year, it looks gorgeous as well. The cinematography by Mihai Malaimare Jr. is so characteristic of everything that happens in this film, capturing every oddball moment and physical comedy bit perfectly.
Taika Waititi has done it once again, as he has absolutely never been more in touch with his emotional storytelling abilities than he is with Jojo Rabbit. I would not be opposed to him exclusively tackling political satire from here on out but since I know that won't be the case, I am just overjoyed to see him succeed in such a grand manner with this story. The arguably cheesy and clichéd message that Waititi wants to send might not be the most touching or aspirational thing for some people but this film simply struck me in all the right places.
My Rating: ★★★★★
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