“JoJo Rabbit” (2019)
Highly recommended satirical comedy.
Highly recommended satirical comedy.
The film begins with rapid, quick fire cuts of “Jojo” (Roman Griffin Davis) dressing himself impeccably for his impending weekend camp away from home as a 10 year old member of the Jungvolk or Hitler Youth. First we only see half of JoJo’s face who’s full name is “Johannes Betzler” before a further cut now shows the young boy fully dressed and now fully in frame as he talks to himself excitedly about the weekend ahead and how “you’re going to become a man” amid a continuing narration to camera of devoting all his energy to our country “and Adolf Hitler”. It’s at this point that an adult figure walks in front of the camera, a Swastika armband flashing by in a second before disappearing amid JoJo’s still continuing narration to “give up my life for him” whilst the same unseen, armband wearing man now walks from left to right behind him and off screen once more as the unseen character announces proudly and excitedly “Yes, that’s right!”.
We cut quickly back to JoJo on his own again but despite having the determination to succeed and enjoy the coming weekend, he’s simply not ready. “Adolf” (Taika Waititi) is now seen fully for the first time as he bends down to fill the frame with his young would be apprentice. Full of reassuring smiles, he jokingly chides the young boy that he may be “scrawny” and “unpopular” and unable as a 10 year old boy to tie his own shoelaces, but JoJo is “the best little Nazi I’ve ever met!”. Rapid cuts follow between the young boy and the man he’s been propagandised to idolise as Adolf seeks a suitably devoted cry of “Heil Hitler”. He cheerfully admonishes the young boy to scream this cry of devotion until the camera cuts away to the two figures now screaming and shouting this cry as they stamp their feet excitedly in rhythm to this hymn of devotion.
A further cut now sees JoJo leaving his house and as he excitedly screams direct to camera, a German version of The Beatles song “I want to hold your hand” begins over the film’s opening credits. As these continue, JoJo runs and skips up to and in between the passers by on the street repeatedly shouting the refrain “Heil Hitler” as the opening credits flash by in a blur of an excited 10 year old boy and grainy, black and white stock footage of the time of massed adoring crowds greeting their national leader with the same adulation. Continuing, JoJo meets and embraces his similarly attired friend “Yorki” (Archie Yates) who asks excitedly “You ready for the best weekend ever?” before the merger of these friends running to their weekend continues with the black and white stock footage of World War II Germany before, and now in slow motion, we see a still excited yet tired and exhausted JoJo running through a forest as he makes his way to the weekend camp as the opening credits come to an end with a red, white and black “JOJO RABBIT” in the centre of the screen amid stock audio of the time of the same adoring crowds loudly cheering for their national leader.
Following the opening credits we are immediately introduced to a disinterested and seemingly disgruntled “Captain Klenzendorf” (Sam Rockwell) addressing the young boys and girls of the camp (JoJo is always seen in the centre of the frame). Flanking Klenzendorf is “Finkel” (Alfie Allen) a somewhat deputy to the captain and “Fraulein Rahm” (Rebel Wilson) but it’s Klenzendorf who holds court with tales of who he is, why he’s here and the sacrifices he’s already given to a war that “even though we’re on the backfoot and there isn’t much hope of us winning this war, we’re doing just fine!”. The camera pans to a now downcast set of youthful new recruits for a war being lost before Klenzendorf announces the two days of exciting warlike drills ahead of them and with his new recruits excitedly cheering in response, he dismisses them. A quick cut returns to Klenzendorf taking a glug of alcohol from his hip flask before uttering a low “God help me”.
We cut to a variety of war drills being completed by excited boys and girls alike but constantly the camera frames an uncomfortable, worried and hesitant JoJo. This is spotted by the older superiors in the watching group but taking encouragement from the others in the group, JoJo joins in. A further cut now takes us inside an outdoor classroom setting with Fraulein Rahm acting as a teacher as she outlines the horrible depiction of Jews as the devil before a further cut now sees the end of the first day and the excited reaction of the group at a mass bonfire as books are burned in a huge pyre. Again JoJo is seen as somewhat disconsolate and downcast before eventually joining in with the rest of his new friends with glee as the camera pans behind him showing a disinterested Klenzendorf drinking once more from his hip flask. The day ends inside the tent shared by JoJo and Yorki as they worry about spotting the enemy before they remember that they “smell of Brussel Sprouts” and have “Horns” with JoJo stating that killing an enemy and showing a scalp to Adolf Hitler would mean they would be “best friends”. Yorki is crestfallen at this, believing he to be JoJo’s best friend to which JoJo responds that he’s his second best friend and “unless your Hitler hiding in a fat little boy’s body, I’d be happy with second place”. Yorki is still crestfallen as JoJo turns over in his sleeping bag to practice stabbing someone with his knife.
Day two begins with the group assembled in the forest with JoJo, as ever, front and centre of the frame looking uncertain. Sensing this, he’s picked from the group to demonstrate his willingness to kill. Presented with a rabbit, an immediate cut back to the young boy sees him cuddling the animal and refusing to kill it and instead, he tries to shoo it away into the forest and to freedom. Teased and called “JoJo Rabbit” by friends and superiors alike, he runs crying from the group into the forest where, after a further cut, he’s seen crying alone when Adolf appears smiling from behind a tree. After a motivational pep talk to “be the rabbit” and after being tracked down by his worried friend Yorki, JoJo (and Adolf) now run screaming and shouting through the forest and back toward the camp as Captain Klenzendorf demonstrates to the group how to prime and then throw a hand grenade. Running through the smoke comes a still screaming JoJo and Adolf with JoJo snatching a hand grenade from Klenzendorf before priming it and throwing it into the distance. Alas, the hand grenade hits a nearby tree, returning to his feet with both Adolf and JoJo stating deadpan and separately, “shit”, before the hand grenade explodes, sending JoJo flying violently into the air and many feet sideways from the explosion.
A final cut rests on Klenzendorf as he dismissively says to his group of would be warriors “don’t do that!”.
There ends the first fifteen minutes of the Taika Waititi directed JoJo Rabbit.
JoJo Rabbit had long been on my radar to watch and during a particularly wet and cold April morning recently, my son surprisingly chose this at random and we had a riot of fun into the bargain. Brilliantly funny and darkly satirical, there’s a crushing left turn mid-way through the film from which it never really regains the momentum it achieved in the superb hour leading up to it, with Roman Griffin Davis incredible as the titular JoJo and director Taika Waititi outlandish as a camp, joke telling Adolf Hitler. My run of films containing the genius that is Sam Rockwell continues with the character actor of his generation stealing every scene with more than an air of drunken disinterested despondency. Scarlett Johansson lights up the screen as JoJo’s secretive and ultra protective mother and whilst there’s an incredible performance from Thomasin McKenzie that spoilers won’t allow elaboration, please also strap yourself in for a blackly comedic cameo from Stephen Merchant as a Gestapo officer straight from the set of Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark.
Yes this Oscar winning film will be, and no doubt has been, incredibly divisive. Similarly yes, Adolf Hitler as a wise cracking imaginary friend is a little difficult to imagine and no, the holocaust isn’t mentioned. At all. There are issues and omissions too numerous to mention and I’m sure even the language I’ve used in the brief dissection of the opening fifteen minutes will be seen as distasteful by many and to which I’d retort that you need to take up these issues with the director or the writer of the book (Caging Skies by Christine Leunens) upon which the film is based.
For what it’s worth, I saw JoJo Rabbit as shining a light on the power of overwhelming propaganda, mind control, group think, mass hysteria and the demonization of sections of the populace as a rampant, rampaging oligarchical master class run roughshod over everyone, everyone, beneath them, and that ultimately the power of human love has to triumph over the darkness of truly despicable, abhorrent, anti-human evil. You will have your own view come the closing credits and David Bowie singing Helden (Heroes) in German, and I’m sure they will be far different and far more lucid than mine.
Highly recommended, and after now seeing the three most recent directorial releases from Taika Waititi (JoJo Rabbit as well as his two Thor films from the Marvel Universe), I now have Hunt for the Wilderpeople, What We Do in the Shadows and Boy on my “Watch List” slate.
Coming soon!
Thanks for reading. There are now over 300 articles with a combined 600+ film reviews contained within my “Film” library here. Alternatively, please see the links below to three of my most recently published spoiler free articles:
“The Hatchet Wielding Hitchhiker” (2023)
Truth is stranger than fiction. Again.medium.com
“Tetris” (2023)
Final Countdown to the Gamer Wars.medium.com
“Inside” (2023)
Willem Dafoe and a Pyramid Song to Hell.medium.com