Grade: 4/5
Another fantastic movie in the class of 2019! Would not have been surprised if JoJo Rabbit had won Best Movie, it was that good! The rating of PG13 was perfect as it allowed the young generation to be able to see a movie in this genre (which does have some tough moments) but is sprinkled in with alot of wit and humor, that makes it appropriate viewing.
Truth be told, the movie title initially lead to an erroneous assumption on my part that it was about a rabbit, reason why I saw it quite late from the time of release. There is a reference to a rabbit but the film is not centered around that.
Movie is set in the latter years of WWII and revolves around the story of a young 10 year old German boy, JoJo Betzler (played brilliantly by Roman Griffin Davis), heading to a Nazi summer camp (as funny as it sounds) where kids are indoctrinated with all type of false beliefs about Jewish people, how to hate them and adulate Hitler. Even though the premise sounds terrifying, it really isn’t. There is a plethora of jest and lightheartedness in most of the scenes that anything morbid, is transformed into a moment of learning. But yes, Hitler’s cruelty is shown at times to give context to the overall story. JoJo gets a rude awakening one day when he learns his mother is sheltering a teenage Jewish girl Elsa (Thomasin McKenzie), who he finds in their attic. He couldn’t comprehend why his mother would do such an abhorrent act. Movie then focuses on the interesting and comical relationship between JoJo and Elsa and how JoJo slowly changes his preconceived perceptions of the girl and of the Jewish people, that he had been taught to always despise and kill. The chemistry between the two is what propels this movie to an Oscar contender.
A brilliant addition to the movie is JoJo’s imaginary friend, a somewhat clownish Adolf Hitler, who basically acts as his evil guiding conscience and continues to sway JoJo towards all the bad things Hitler espoused – their continuous tussle done in a comedic fashion lends itself to copious laugh out loud moments. The cast is rounded out by Scarelett Johansson, playing Jojo’s mother Rosie and Sam Rockwell who plays Captain Klenzendorf , the Nazi summer camp director.
Side Note: JoJo’s imaginary Adolf Hitler is played by the director of the movie, Taika Waititi….”he thought the idea of a Polynesian Jewish man playing Hitler was the perfect insult to Hitler himself.” Taika accepted the Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay at the 92nd Academy Awards on Feb 9, 2020. JoJo Rabbit is based on the book “Caging Skies” by Christine Leunens however the novel had a somewhat darkish tone which Waititi made a deliberate attempt to change and add his own peculiar and whimsical touch for the movie.
Bottom Line: JoJo Rabbit is a satirical take on everything relating to Hitler, the Holocaust and WWII. The movie does a more than adequate job of combining the horrific tragedy of that time with a bit of levity to showcase the difference between good and evil from the eyes of a boy and a girl. Go watch it – worth the price of admission and more! (digital release Feb 18, 2020)
