JOIN OUR WHATSAPP CHANNEL
Jojo Rabbit Review: Roman Griffin Davis is the cherry on top of Taika Waititi's delectable dish
Jojo Rabbit Movie Review: Taika Waititi's social satire based on the World War II setting is a delectable dish with Roman Griffin Davis' heartwarming performance being the cherry on top. Read Pinkvilla's review below.
Jojo Rabbit
Jojo Rabbit Cast: Roman Griffin Davis, Thomasin McKenzie, Scarlett Johansson, Taika Waititi
Jojo Rabbit Director: Taika Waititi
Jojo Rabbit Stars: 4/5
"Let everything happen to you; beauty and terror. Just keep going. No feeling is final," Austrian poet Rainer Maria Rilke had penned. These were the very words Taika Waititi chose as parting wisdom when Jojo Rabbit reached its conclusion. In stark contrast, we begin the same movie with the German version of The Beatles cult hit I Want To Hold Your Hand, as a black and white montage of Nazi salutes hits your eyes. It's obvious mimicry that we can't help laughing over now, no matter how grave the situation, i.e. World War II was.
With his inimitable wit and addictive charm, Taika weaves a tale of social satire, with his eccentric twist and brings forward a new outlook at history, while giving us important lessons for the present and especially, the future. Jojo Rabbit is seen through the eyes of a 10-year-old boy Johannes Betzler (Roman Griffin Davis), who is indoctrinated by the mad principles of the führer and sees the destruction of Jews as his sole goal in life. Just how gullible is the young boy? His imaginary friend just happens to be Adolph Hitler (Taika Waititi) or more like a 'mean girl' version of the tyrannical leader. It's not a friendship that Betzler seeks, rather it's the space left behind by his father that the boy wants to be filled in his life.
Johannes is tormented by his peers for failing to strangle a rabbit during a drill exercise, hence the Jojo Rabbit nickname, and is also left with scars after an overambitious grenade mishap. Jojo's life is further turned upside down when he finds out that his mother, Rosie Betzler (Scarlett Johannson) is illegally harbouring a teenage Jewish girl Elsa Korr (Thomasin McKenzie) inside the walls of his late sister's bedroom. We then see Jojo embroiled in his own mind's struggles of either ratting out on Rosie to Gestapo or keeping his family safe. Over time, we see the indoctrination draining away piece by piece as the circumstances rise to the occasion and Germany is in the brink of a complete takeover.
The star of the show is the young Roman, who delivers a masterful performance at such a tender age. The varying range of emotions of a young boy being ripped off of his innocence is so genuinely portrayed by Davis that you can't help be charmed. You can feel the conundrum Jojo is in; between his faithfulness for his country and just being a young boy with zero worries in life. I mean, he can't even tie his own shoelaces. A chilling sequence that comes into play for the conclusive twist as well is when Rosie makes Jojo stand in front of several Jewish people being hanged to death and showcased in public to instill fear of resistance. However, Jojo's immediate response is "Yuck." On the other hand, in his attempt to mess with Betzler's mind, Jojo concocts a fake letter from her fiance Nathan breaking the young girl's heart. Upon seeing such an emotional response, the same fiery individual turns to mush and writes another fake letter to make it up to his supposed 'enemy.'
Even Thomasin, as the feisty and savage Elsa, is the perfect match for Jojo. Yoo-Hoo Jew is the name of the illustrative book Jojo is authoring by listing down information on Jewish people from Elsa; the latter of whom breaks down the stereotype, one epic comeback after another! It's their back and forth that keeps the pace of the tone light, inspite of the gloomy atmosphere. Taika Waititi as Hitler is not something we dreamed of, but it's something we needed. You can tell how much Taika hates Hitler and the filmmaker creatively uses humour as a character sketch to shed light on just how truly horrible one human being can be. It's an interesting symbolism on the führer as Waititi's version of Hitler had Unicorn heads for dinner and gives what he deems as 'friendly' advice to his 'friend.'
Scarlett Johansson as the complex Rosie gives us a breathtaking performance and is the heart of the film. Her screen presence is undeniable and she owns every frame that Taika has put her in. She's the singular hope string in her son's life while being an absolute badass, inspite of being a 'woman' during World War II. Sam Rockwell as Captain Klenzendorf, who is in charge of the Youth Camp Jojo is in, makes best work of his stereotypical one-toned character and infuses colour to the monochromatic character. However, at the end of the bargain, Rebel Wilson, Alfie Allen and Stephen Merchant suffer terribly and barely even deserve a mention.
Taika Waititi weaves a fictional take on World War II with Jojo Rabbit, which seems part realistic and a whole lot of cartoonish. However, underlying the theme is a message of hope and faith. As Jojo and Elsa "dance" away, the symbolism is all about the power of overcoming your own prejudice and having a little empathy. It just so happens to be with the help of Hitler! Irony at its finest!
Latest Articles
