Where & When: Arclight Cinemas, Hollywood, CA. October 16, 2019 7:30 PM
The idea of a movie about an enthusiastic Nazi youth who discovers a Jewish girl hiding in his home and has an imaginary friendship with the Führer himself, Adolf Hitler may sound off-putting and offensive to quite a few people. That was certainly my initial reaction when I heard the plot for "Jojo Rabbit", a pitch black WWII farce from Taika Waititi. Yet in the hands of this New Zealand actor/filmmaker, who brought us the hilariously eccentric comedies, "What We Do in the Shadows" and "Hunt for the Wilderpeople" and most famously invigorated the Marvel Universe by adding his offbeat wit to the conventional super-hero antics in "Thor: Ragnarok", he has managed to make one of the most absurd, charming, poignant and laugh-out-loud funny movies I have seen, not only this year but in a really long time.
This is quite an achievement considering how "Jojo Rabbit" could have easily gone extremely distasteful and intolerable due to the tricky story which is based on the book, "Caging Skies" by Christine Leunens. And after seeing the film, it's really no surprise that it won the Audience Award at this year's Toronto Film Festival as "Jojo Rabbit" has given Mr. Waititi the perfect opportunity to use his taste for weird, wild comedy while making a thoughtful and powerful statement on love and tolerance.
Our story starts in the middle of World War II Germany where we meet the ten year old Johannes Betzler (Roman Griffin Davis) who is known as "Jojo". With his father off somewhere fighting in Italy and recently losing his older sister to illness, Jojo now only has his mother, Rosie (Scarlett Johansson) who remain upbeat, giving him plenty of love and support. Oh, and then there is Hitler (played by Waititi), who the nefarious Nazi Leader is conjured up when Jojo needs advice from an apparent father figure.
Jojo attends a youth training group where the students learn the fine art of killing and the dangers of Jews from the Nazi perspective. When he is brought up to prove his murderous spirit by killing a rabbit, Jojo winds up setting it free and runs off crying, earning him the nickname, "Jojo Rabbit". After Hitler offers him some advice to prove his bravery, Jojo returns with a live hand grenade. But his plan backfires (literally) and leaves him seriously injured.
While at home recuperating, Jojo discovers someone hiding upstairs in the attic. She is Elsa Korr (Thomasin McKenzie), a friend of his late sister and Jewish. Jojo threatens to turn her over to the police but she informs him that they would arrest his mother as well for hiding her. He decides to use this situation to his advantage, insisting Elsa reveal "Jew secrets" to help him write a useful book on the subject. Deciding to play along with this ignorant boy, she confirms the wild stories Jojo has learned of Jews in school like them reading minds and drinking blood.
Mr. Waititi was aware that he would be drawing criticism from some corners for his lighthearted depictions of murderous Nazis, despite them being portrayed as bumbling idiots. One major change he made from Leunens' novel was the addition of the imaginary Hitler who is viewed as a wacky goofball and even somewhat likable. But the director obviously had no interest in making Nazis sympathetic or inoffensive. The aim was to consider that beneath these monsters were still human beings, with some very likely brainwashed to blindly hate. Drawn to the themes against hate and war in the book, Waititi has added his unique comic spin as a way to counterbalance the seriousness of this dark story.
As a mother who secretly has political beliefs that do not line up with her son's, Ms Johansson has never been more charming and intriguing. There is great supporting comedic work from Rebel Wilson, Stephen Merchant and Sam Rockwell as an army officer who runs the Nazi youth camp. But it is the eleven year old Griffin Davis who impresses in his first leading film role. The expressive young actor handles the confusing, conflicting messages that Jojo receives about Jews, Nazis and his own mother with considerable skill and expert comic timing. And special mention must be made about Archie Yates who plays Jojo's buddy and fellow Nazi-in-training, Yorki. Yates is adorable, hilarious and steals every scene he's in.
In this era of wokeness and #MeToo, filmmakers seem even more reluctant to stick their necks out to make anything that would be considered objectionable to the overly sensitive minds of today's audience. I think of Mel Brooks whose classic yet un-PC comedies, "Blazing Saddles", "Young Frankenstein" (who some might find mocking the living dead) and "The Producers" (which features a musical love story about Hitler) I'm certain would not be made today or at least not in their current form. Trust me, I'm fully aware Hollywood does not have a great track record on being sensitive or considerate to the images of people of color, the LGBTQ community and women that have been put on the big screen. Yet it does seem like we are moving to the extreme of being overly careful not to offend anyone which I think can be potentially dangerous in creating art.
With "Jojo Rabbit", Mr. Waititi took a big risk in making a comedy set during one of the most horrific, contentious and emotionally fraught periods in human history. And because of that, it may be hard to convince people that they should see this film. But I really think "Jojo Rabbit" should not be missed.
We are made to laugh hysterically throughout most of "Jojo Rabbit" until there is an unexpected moment that is shocking to the core and completely heartbreaking. This shift makes us realize that the director wants to use his film to not only entertain but also offer insight and inspire conversation. I think Waititi has an extraordinary gift to make us feel many different emotions throughout his films; laughter, tears, hope and joy. And that remarkable experience is what going to the movies is really all about.
No comments:
Post a Comment