I knew from the opening credits – in which he likens the hysteria of Nazi Germany to that of Beatlemania – that Taika Waititi had me hooked once again. His superb knack for comedy, farce, and satire are paralleled by few working today and would likely get a great big belly-laugh from those who’ve done it best over the years. The influence of Mel Brooks and other elders are obvious, but Waititi has carved out his own satirical voice that may rival the masters.
The approach Waititi takes to Jojo Rabbit, his latest film, is likely to turn many off, but I assure you it has much more on its mind than a comedic romp through Hitler’s Reich. While very funny, Jojo is also immensely sobering, offering a first-hand look at the civilian cost of war and the courage it takes to resist in the face of radical fanaticism. This is not a movie that makes light of tragedy but uses it to point out the failings of contemporary society.
Waititi (who also wrote the film) builds an easily recognizable bridge between the horrors of World War II and today’s political, cultural, and social climate. To that end, Jojo isn’t really a movie about World War II at all. It’s about you and me and the choices we’re making right now about what evils we will tolerate and what we will allow our world to become.
Jojo Rabbit is also about the masks we put on in an effort to fit in. Most of the film’s characters are only going through the motions of what is expected of them. 10-year-old Jojo (Roman Griffin Davis) is outwardly fanatical but clearly doesn’t have it in him to be a true Nazi (he relies on a buffoonish version of Adolf Hitler – played by the director – to motivate him in proper Nazi words and actions). His mother, Rosie (Scarlett Johansson), appears to be a vibrant, loyal German woman but is a secret dissenter and anti-war activist, while Elsa (Thomasin McKenzie), plays up the highly propagandized role Jojo has been taught is true of all Jews. Even the drunken incompetence of Sam Rockwell’s Captain Klenzendorf is hiding something surprising.
The film surmises that the natural state of humanity is to be kind, loving, and forgiving. In the world of Jojo Rabbit, this is an unacceptable and dangerous mindset that must be either hidden from sight or systematically eradicated from the human psyche. By extension, of course, Waititi telling us that if Jojo and the others can break free of their conditioning – at least when it counts the most – so can we. And he does a damned hilarious job of it, too.
James is a writer, record collector, wrestling nerd, and tabletop gamer living with his family in Asheville, North Carolina. He is a member of the Southeastern Film Critics Association, the North Carolina Film Critics Association, and contributes to The Daily Orca, Razorcake Magazine, Mountain Xpress, and Asheville Movies.