JoJo Rabbit Review

    So here we are, a few months after the Oscars and I finally managed to watch one of the year's big nominees. Better late than never, hmm?!

    I have to start by addressing the unavoidable, indisputable, undeniable fact that Taika Waititi is completely insane. I mean stark raving mad. Just plain bonkers. And I, for one, love him for it! The concept of the film is already proof of this: a 10 year-old German boy has an imaginary friend that is none other than Adolf Hitler. And when you have a premise like that, then why not play the Führer yourself?! Campy, hilarious, both nurturing and terrifying, Waititi's performance both ridicules the man and manages to convey the charisma that captured the imagination of so many. Just watch the scene in which he works himself up into a frenzied speech: the body language, speech cadence, it's all on point and clearly studied; raise the voice another octave and you'd be convinced Hitler had given an impassioned address in English.

    But in terms of performances, step aside Scarlett Johansson (competent), move over Sam Rockwell (good), this is Roman Griffin Davis's movie from start to finish. Truly a natural actor, this pip-squeak is both endearing and disconcerting, making us question the importance of indoctrination at a young age. The rest of the cast works well with the tongue-in-cheekness of it all, no jarring moments (though I confess to smirking every time adorable Archie Yates, who played Yorki, desperately tried to put on a German accent yet failing miserably as his intrinsic Britishness came through instead!).

    Waititi's unique tone runs through the film in everything from writing to anachronistic soundtrack to quirky editing, as does his particular brand of humour. And I am a fan of tackling serious subjects in a whimsical way, making it feel "safe" for us to consider the different sides of a complex situation. However, I confess I suffered from severe mood whiplash at the "shoes" moment (if you've watched it, you'll know what I mean). Yes, I can see how it was important for JoJo's arc, the catalyst to make it all real and bring it home for him. But the contrast was too big, in my opinion, and the attempts to bring the film back to satirical whimsy afterwards felt forced. Not a huge point against it, though, in a film that was all in all quite good.

Conclusion: Solid [what's this?]

JoJo Rabbit came out in 2019.