- JOJO RABBIT
- Starring: Roman Griffin Davis, Thomasin McKenzie and Scarlett Johansson
- Fox Searchlight
- Running Time: 108 mins
- Film: 5 out of 5 stars
- Extras: 4 out of 5 stars
Nominated for six Academy Awards and much-deserved winner of the Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay, “JoJo Rabbit” is unlike anything you’d ever expect to see. Unless, of course, you were looking to see a film about a young German boy during World War II whose best (and imaginary) friend is Adolf Hitler.
10-year old JoJo (Davis) lives with his mother, Rosie (Johansson) in a small town in Germany. It is the time of the second world war and, like a good German boy, JoJo is anticipating his upcoming trip to the Kinderlandverschickung, which was a camp designed to indoctrinate young boys and girls into the ways of the Nazi party. Think of it as the boy/girl scouts but with grenades. JoJo can’t wait to wear the uniform and display the dagger given to all of the Hitler Youth. However, after declaring that he is ready to kill for the Fuhrer, he is given a rabbit to kill to prove his fierceness. Unable to do so, he attempts to set the rabbit free, earning him the mocking laughter of his fellow campers and the nickname “JoJo Rabbit.” Despite this shame, he is encouraged to walk the Nazi Party line by his imaginary friend, Hitler himself (played by the film’s writer/director Taika Waititi), To make matters worse, JoJo discovers that his mother is hiding a young Jewish girl (McKenzie) in their house. Whatever is a young Nazi to do?
Brilliantly written and skillfully directed, “JoJo Rabbit” is well deserving of its Oscar nominations, among them Best Picture. You have to walk a fine line to be able to laugh at one of the most horrible times in our world’s history and Mr. Waititi walks it like he was a member of the Wallenda family. The film is also carried by the amazing performances delivered. Mr. Davis, who was eleven years old when he made the film (his first professional acting gig) received a Golden Globe nomination for Best Actor in a Comedy or Musical and, if not for the strong field this year, could have quite easily been up for an Oscar as well. Also turning in fine work are Ms. McKenzie and Ms. Johansson, who was named the year’s Best Supporting Actress by the readers of Media Mikes earlier this year for her work here. Strong supporting work from Sam Rockwell, Rebel Wilson, Stephen Merchant and Mr. Waititi round out a flawless cast.
There are some great supplements included under the EXTRA tab, including three deleted scenes, Outtakes, a nice behind-the-scenes featurette and an insightful audio commentary by writer/director Taika Waititi. Also included are the film’s teaser and theatrical trailer.