Jojo Rabbit Review

We should all be wary of films that make us say, “and Hitler was my favorite part.” More on that in a minute.

Jojo Rabbit is such a weird, wonderful delight. It’s a film set in Nazi Germany, its protagonist is a member of the Hitler Youth, and an imaginary Hitler is a key character. That may sound dark. And it is dark. But gosh darn if it isn’t sweet as hell, too.

Johannese “Jojo” Betzler is a young man who wants to be a hero of Germany during Germany’s least heroic hour in history. His best friend is his imaginary version of Hitler, played by Taika Waititi (director of this film, Thor Ragnarok, and The Hunt for the Wilderpeople). His second best friend is a bespectabled sweetheart named Yorkie.

Jojo has dreams of glory that are cut staggeringly short after a training accident, which leaves him as a social outcast. And then he receives a sudden shock that turns everything he knows upside down.

And I said it’s sweet. Remember that part? Because it is! Whether it’s Jojo’s mother, clearly disapproving of the Nazi party and trying to gently teach her son compassion, or Jojo and Yorkie hugging after a long, stressful day, or even just the unexpected kindness of other outcasts ends up making all the difference.

There’s a danger with movies based on historical periods, particularly those as unbelievably painful as World War II and the Holocaust, that the film will trivialize real issues. That risk is vastly higher when Hitler is doing a silly dance with the protagonist five minutes into the film. Waititi (of Jewish ancestry himself) seems to be keenly aware of this, and he makes the comedy work because, by and large, the joke is never about the historical situation itself. The situation is horrifying: people are dying, after all, and we’re not meant to enjoy it. The joke, really, is on Hitler. They’re about the stupid hypocrisy of his dream, the transparent insecurity of a repulsive historical figure, and seeing him turned into a cartoonish imbecile feels good. History has decided. The victims were the heroes. Hitler is a silly mustache and a lot of yelling. So, yeah. Hitler was my favorite part, and I laughed louder than was entirely appropriate.

And those laughs are very important, because when the darkness creeps back in, it cuts like a knife…

I love a film that is both childish and grown-up at the same time, as this film often is. I love a story about a selfish character learning to be better, and that’s the story this film tells. And though there were moments that made me gasp in horror and wonder if it had gone too far, there are also those moments of kindness and empathy that were skillful and deep. 5 “blame Winston Churchills” out of 5. It’s streaming on HBO Max, if you want to give it a try (though again, be warned. This is one of the harder PG-13’s out there).