Satire in its truest form

Rating: 9/10 (17 December 2019)

A satire in the truest form, Jojo Rabbit took a moment to get its tonal footing, but when it did: wow, it's a rollercoaster of sadness and humor that hits all the classic movie beats. I think this film and its anti-hate message has the chance to age really well, and definitely one I can see enjoying immensely on repeat viewings. Taika Waititi has cemented himself as a major filmmaker with this effort. Portraying "imaginary friend Hitler" himself--a bit that could've really ran itself into the ground if it wasn't deployed with such masterful restraint--Waititi deserves extra commendation for having directed such a great film while, you know, dressed like that. Predictably great performances abound from the two A-listers (+ a brief, but highly entertaining one-scene cameo by the great Stephen Merchant), but it's really the A+ acting of the young leads Roman Griffin Davis in the titular role and Thomasin McKenzie who tie it all together. I highly recommend it in spite of the German accents.
Also, one more thing that I debated even addressing with this review: I didn't realize how extremely polarizing this film was in the critical realm. The negative reviews are harsh as hell and all seem, to me at least, to miss the point entirely by focusing on the outlandish stereotype tropes, etc. I somewhat get the idea it is too fluffy given the underlying subject matter, but that feels like such an obvious choice; how can you slam it like it's the byproduct of neglect or laziness or whatever? I don't necessarily think it's a full-on classic but, A) I really liked it, and B) I do feel like history will be kind to it, even if (ironically?) its lack of regard for history seems to be the biggest collective knock against it right now.