Jojo Rabbit
Taika Waititi’s surreal comedy set in Nazi Germany will not be to everyone’s tastes, but by using satire and humour to highlight the inherent absurdities that lie behind all prejudices and discrimination, he’s delivered a powerful “anti-hate” message, that makes you laugh while still packing an emotional punch.
Premise: In Germany during the later stages of World War II, lonely ten-year-old Johannes “Jojo” Betzler (Roman Griffin Davis) has been so indoctrinated by the Nazi propaganda of the Hitler Youth that his imaginary friend is a childish version of Adolf Hitler himself (Taika Waititi). But his life is complicated when he discovers that his mother (Scarlett Johansson) has been hiding a Jewish girl (Thomasin McKenzie) in their house.
Review:
It almost goes without saying that Jojo Rabbit will not appeal to everyone. Some people will consider that there are certain subjects that should never be considered “funny”, and clearly the Holocaust is no laughing matter. That is a perfectly valid viewpoint, and if you do feel that way, then this is not a film for you. But equally, there is an argument to be made that films can educate audiences more easily when they also entertain, and as amazing a film as Schindler’s List is, no one would describe it as “entertaining”.
There is also a long tradition in cinema of using humour and satire to mock real-life horrors, and in that respect, Jojo Rabbit perhaps has more in common with films like The Great Dictator, Dr. Strangelove and The Death of Stalin. But even then, Jojo Rabbit still feels like its own thing, distinct from those other political satires, and I think that is because the film effectively shows events from ten-year-old Jojo’s perspective, which means that the horrors of the Nazi regime are seen through the eyes of an indoctrinated, desensitised child, which allows Jojo (and the audience) to find moments of everyday humour, wonder and excitement among the darkness.
“…the central message of the film is that hate & prejudice are always based on lies…”
Taika Waititi’s Oscar-winning screenplay really hammers home the absurdities of hate-filled rhetoric, as the innocent Jojo naively recites the lies and propaganda he’s been taught about Jewish people. These prejudices and stereotypes are ridiculously unbelievable – and yet people did believe them at the time about Jewish people, and similar but no less farfetched lies are still being spread about various minority groups today, and are still being lapped up by gullible audiences who should know better. In this respect, the central message of the film – which is that hate and prejudice are always based on lies – could not be more timely or relevant.
Admittedly, some of the humour is a little broad, and a couple of the characters (Rebel Wilson’s Hitler Youth instructor, for example) come close to being “comedy spoof Nazis” – but you do have to remember that because we’re seeing events through the eyes of a ten-year-old, some subtleties are lost on him. For example, Jojo only sees Captain Klenzendorf (Sam Rockwell) as a war hero, so the Captain’s cynical comments muttered under his breath are completely lost on Jojo. Equally, Jojo’s idealised image of his father off fighting the noble fight in the war abroad is a simplistic notion, and one which seems to only tell half the story. There are many threads in the film, like the truth about Jojo’s father, or the true nature of the relationship between Captain Klenzendorf and his second-in-command (Alfie Allen), which go completely over Jojo’s head and so are never spelled out to the audience either.
“…Jojo’s not a lost cause, as he’s still an innocent ten-year-old underneath it all…”
Taika Waititi also captures the sense of just how all-encompassing the indoctrination was for those growing up in Nazi Germany, with scenes showing that to them “Hitler-mania” was like Beatle-mania in the 60’s. But the film also clearly shows that, in Jojo’s case at least, he’s not a lost cause, as he’s still an innocent ten-year-old underneath it all. This itself is one of the film’s central plot threads, as Jojo’s mother (Scarlett Johansson), who clearly does not approve of the Nazi ideology, desperately hopes that she’s not lost her only remaining child to hate and intolerance (the mystery of what happened to Jojo’s older sister is, like so many of the plot-threads that go over Jojo’s head, not explicitly spelled out for the audience). Meanwhile, Elsa (Thomasin McKenzie), the Jewish girl hiding in their house, sees right through Jojo, saying “You're not a Nazi – you're a ten-year-old kid who likes dressing up in a funny uniform and wants to be part of a club”.
In fact, I think there are only one or two scenes in the entire film which was not shown from JoJo’s perspective, and they’re between Jojo’s mother and Elsa. These insights into their characters are needed, as both put on masks when they’re around Jojo (his mother, to protect him, and Elsa, to hide her own vulnerability), but by seeing them interact together without Jojo in those few scenes, we get to see who they really are beneath their masks.
“…Scarlett Johansson is phenomenal…”
Scarlett Johansson is phenomenal in this role, and definitely deserved her Oscar nomination. In every scene, she’s playing two roles – the façade that she’s putting up to protect Jojo, and the fears, strength and idealism she has hidden underneath. She loves her son and would do anything to protect him, yet she also carries the pain of having resigned herself to the realities of raising a child in Nazi Germany. The relationship between her and Jojo forms the emotional heart of the entire film, and is one of the most poignant and touching parent/child relationships I’ve seen on screen in recent years.
The rest of the adult cast are also very good, but special mention has to go to Sam Rockwell’s portrayal of Captain Klenzendorf, which strikes a perfect balance between the idealised Nazi hero that Jojo sees, and the more cynical and world-weary persona underneath. Stephen Merchant also makes an impression as a Gestapo officer, hitting the right comic tone to highlight the absurd incongruities involved in trying to have everyday informal conversations against the backdrop of potential public executions. Taika Waititi chose to cameo as the imaginary version of Hitler, to avoid having a “famous” actor take the role and overshadow the main storylines, and I think this was the right decision. The imaginary Hitler isn’t actually in the film that much (despite the impression given by some of the marketing), and even when he is onscreen, you have to remember he’s just a personification of Jojo’s own internal thought processes, rather than actually being Hitler (which is also a point that appears to have been lost on some viewers).
“…the film still packs some emotional punches…”
I also have to mention just how good Roman Griffin Davis and Thomasin McKenzie are as Jojo and Elsa, as the film really lives or dies on the quality of their performances. I’m not a fan of “child actors” generally, but they are both fantastic at handling the slightly heightened comedy as well as the more genuinely emotional moments. Their scenes together are some of the highlights of the film, and I was genuinely impressed by both of them.
It’s also fair to say that for all the absurdist humour and heightened reality, the film still packs some emotional punches, and doesn’t hide away from the Nazi atrocities. The difference is that in Jojo Rabbit, these horrors are largely viewed from a distance through the eyes of an indoctrinated child who’s never known anything different, as opposed to the sensationalist approach taken in films like Tarantino’s Inglourious Basterds or the 2020 TV series Hunters. In some ways, the fact that such horrors are just part of “everyday life” for a ten year old like Jojo just makes them that much more horrific.
Ultimately, the film delivers its powerful anti-hate message through an effective combination of absurdist comedy and genuine heart, and while the arguably inconsistent tone may put some off, I thought it worked beautifully. The film’s optimistic message, and its poignant, near perfect final scene, could not be more needed in the world right now.
