JoJo Rabbit Film Review - Taika Waititi Directs Scarlett Johansson Doing Whatever She Can With A Hitler Mad Son, A Ghost In The Attic And Sam Rockwell Leading The German Camp

Rating: 10/10 (12 January 2020)

In the dying days of the Nazi Third Reich Taiki Waititi creates a film that lets us laugh at the comic Nazis, but throws in moments of peril. They might be goons during this springtime in Germany, but they still have guns.
Young Roman Griffin Davis's 10 year old JoJo is best friends with Taika Waititi's imaginary Hitler, and we meet the Führer encouraging timid JoJo to attend the local Hitler Youth Camp, with his 'second best friend' Yorki, played by Archie Yates. Both outsiders and happily so, running like demented leprechauns in the woods with the wacky Adolf.
The camp is designed for boys to learn to hunt, shoot and kill for Hitler, while the girls learn domestic science and how to be good Aryan mothers. Much to their disappointment! Rebel Wilson is hilarious as Fraulein Rahm. 18 babies for Hitler and counting. And Sam Rockwell as Captain Klenzendorf is comically brilliant, wounded earlier on the front line he now trains the Hitler Youth. With assistance from his Sergeant Finkel, played by Alfie Allen. A good German couple best keeping quiet. And our own good little German, so full of his hero worship and desire to serve Adolf, but cannot quite bring himself to kill a poor little rabbit. Hence the unfortunate nickname he picks up, as well as a hand grenade. This daring and (funny) action that nearly kills him, may just have saved his life.
Having Hitler as an imaginary friend is a pretty extreme affliction, but Taiki Waititi's Hitler does, among the Heil Hitlering, offer JoJo moments of support when he needs it most. Encouraged him to go to camp and JoJo Rabbit will be as welcome in the Third Reich as a lion. All helping the lonely boy.
Back home and off school recovering, the scarred and limping JoJo, no longer able to fulfil his dream to become one of Hitler's bodyguards, and still unable to tie his shoelaces, is taken by his mother Rosie to the local army office. Played by Scarlett Johansson, Rosie insists, in no uncertain terms, that Captain Klenzendorf include and make use of JoJo. And makes Klenzendorf, having been demoted there after the grenade incident, feel her and JoJo's pain!
While JoJo continues learning how to be a good Nazi with Hitler. Jews are bad, of course they are in Nazi Germany. But how do you know if you have met one? And what would you do if you did? For the small German town is a colourful and happy place for JoJo growing up, with no Jewish monsters lurking anywhere. And Rosie looking after her confused son, and washing down the craziness of her life with a bottle of red. Scarlett Johansson on top form.
But there are more ways to be a good German in Nazi Germany. Although many of them will get you hung in the town square. What did they do? JoJo asks Rosie. Whatever they could! And when JoJo finds 'ghost' Thomasin McKenzie in the attic eaves of his dead sister's room, he has a crisis of his Nazi faith. If he reports her, young Elsa warns him, it won't be just her who will be taken away, so will his beloved mother who has hidden her. So they agree to keep secret that JoJo knows about Elsa in the attic. While Rosie tells Elsa in their secret night meetings that JoJo is such a committed Nazi they cannot let him know. So begins the comedy of errors as JoJo and Elsa meet secretly every day for her to tell him all about being a Jew. Things like how she hangs upside down like a bat and will have horns when she's older. And she can read minds too. Although not German minds of course, they are too stupid! All details for the book JoJo is writing for Hitler. And perhaps moments of comedy and joy for the fragile Elsa, who has the heart of a lion, but whose very existence is dependent on this strange little 10 year old. And Elsa is a good influence on JoJo, with Adolf losing his grip on the love struck boy. And not happy about it. But Jewish Elsa may not be the monster after all, not when the Russians coming from the East allegedly eat people! Pick your villains wisely JoJo.
And while JoJo collects the town pots and pans as 'scrap' metal for Germany, Yorki is conscripted to the army and dressed in his new paper like uniform; cardboard! We know that the Reich is nearly done, sending prepubescent boys to fight. What a hoot Archie Yates is though, soon to be seen in the Home Alone reboot, and could have almost won the war singlehandedly for the Allies. But when Stephen Merchant and his Gestapo goons visit the house, the Heil Hitler comedy suddenly gets serious. With Klenzendorf and Fingel also turning up unexpectedly. One would almost think something was up. And as the house is searched, Elsa is found.
It seems far enough away from the horrors of WWII to be able to laugh, but at the time there was nothing funny about Elsa's experience. Yet Taiki has reimagined the horrors through the innocent eyes of a 10 year old, and cleverly turned them into laugh out loud comedy. After recounting his 'imaginary' interrogations of Elsa, Klenxendorf finds JoJo's ludicrous descriptions of Jewish people hilarious. And the sight of Klenxendorf and Finkel racing into battle with their trademarked uniforms, against the newly arrived Americans and Russians, was a camp sight to behold.
With a terrific cast of children the film had tremendous heart, and our hope that JoJo will do the right thing plays until the end. The vulnerable Elsa totally dependent on his decisions. We want him to be a good German just like Rosie. And he definitely needs a good slap. (Of course this was a different time!). But eventually there is hope.