Movie Review: Jojo Rabbit

Although this film was initially released in October of last year, I was only just recently able to sit down and watch Taika Waititi’s most recent directorial offering. The premise alone hooked me, as I have never seen a comedy which also critiques the Nazi regime in World War II Germany. I figure that reviewing this film before the Academy Awards on February 9th is justified, as Jojo Rabbit is nominated for Best Picture among other categories. I would describe this film as a dark comedy which attempts to make a larger anti-war and pro-inclusivity statement, but at times struggles with tone, pacing, and impact. Let’s get into what I liked and didn’t like about this movie.

I have to start by praising the performances given by the stellar ensemble cast. Roman Griffin Davis makes his feature-film debut here, and at only twelve years old, delivers a very strong lead performance that showcases his impressive range. This was also the third portion of Scarlett Johansson’s trifecta year, having starred in Avengers: Endgame, Marriage Story, and now Jojo Rabbit all in 2019. Her performance as Rosie in this film is magnetic and charming, worthy of the Best Actress nomination that it received. The rest of the ensemble cast rounds out and boosts this film, with other notable performances from Sam Rockwell, Thomasin McKenzie, and Taika himself as imaginary Hitler, a role only he could play and pull off.

The first two thirds of this movie are very comical with several laugh-out-loud moments. That is the part of the film that I enjoyed most. There’s a tonal change entering the third act that completely shifts the overall mood of the story, and the shocking twist included feels somewhat unearned, unable to leave as much of an emotional impact as it intends to. This film also has a generally positive message, but I feel that Waititi could’ve made that message even more evident and impactful than the final product offered here just by tweaking a couple of story details. That isn’t to say that this movie is tone-deaf toward a sensitive subject, but instead, it just doesn’t live up to the potential that the beginning of the film set it up for.

Overall, I enjoyed watching Jojo Rabbit. It’s a well-made, funny, heartfelt, and poignant movie. There are some changes that I would’ve made to the pacing, tone, and story, but that isn’t to say that it’s bad by any means. It’s good. This film is deserving of the multiple Oscar nominations it received, but I don’t see it winning Best Picture. What did you think of this movie? What would you have changed? Octopuses, rhinoceroses, or rhinoctopuses? Gesundheit. Thanks for reading.

Score: 7/10