Cody's Movie Minute

Jojo Rabbit Review This fall movie season shows no signs of slowing down, with incredible films like Jojo Rabbit adding itself to the list. Jojo Rabbit is an anti-hate satire following a young German boy named Jojo during World War II. Jojo is an aspiring Nazi who is forced to question his blind faith in his country after he discovers that his mother is sheltering a young Jewish girl in their home. Joining him along the way to give him ‘advice’ on what he should do is Jojo’s imaginary friend: Adolf Hitler. The entire cast of the film is incredible. With great performances from Sam Rockwell, Rebel Wilson, Alfie Allen, Scarlett Johansson, Thomasin McKenzie, and of course Jojo himself Roman Griffin Davis, they all do a fantastic job. Taika Waititi, the director and writer of the film, also plays ‘Hitler’ in the movie. He does a great job of acting as this imaginary version of the real world dictator. The biggest strength Jojo Rabbit demonstrates is its’ excellent sense of balancing hilarious comedy with very heavy and dramatic real-world occurrences. In a lesser film, a joke would come much too soon after an emotional beat in the story. Or a lighthearted joke would be followed much too quickly by a dramatic change in tone. Here, however, it all comes off very well. It brings both tears of laughter and sadness and it does this very well. There is a big challenge in attempting to make a satirical black comedy around some of the darkest and most horrific things in history, specifically the Nazis in World War II. Jojo Rabbit rises to that challenge, being one of the greatest comedies of the decade. But it never forgets the weight which comes with these events in the real world. For every Hitler-related joke made, there are also reminders and glimpses into how awful it really was to be alive during this period of hate in Germany. Jojo Rabbit is a film that teaches how love triumphs over hate. This is an incredibly peculiar movie that works on so many levels. It is a fantastic comedy with jokes that will leave you gasping for air after laughing. It is an incredible drama that gives you the highest of highs and lowest of lows in terms of emotion. It is an excellent historical film that tackles one of the worst periods in world history. Jojo Rabbit is above all else simply a great movie, and so far the best I’ve seen all year. 5 stars.