Taikai Waititi’s Jojo Rabbit Is A Bold But Fumbled Entry In His Lost Boy Trilogy
Taika Waititi loves a lost boy. His latest, Jojo Rabbit, is the third coming-of-age comedy the Kiwi filmmaker has crafted that centers on a young boy facing trauma by embracing fantasy. 2010’s Boy ollowed a bullied 11-year-old, who fantasizes that his absentee father isn’t the despicable criminal everyone says, but instead a mix of a noble samurai and moonwalking Michael Jackson. In 2016’s Hunt For The Wilderpeople,a “bad egg” foster kid escapes the tragic realities of his life by clinging to hip hop culture, imagining himself as a Tupac-styled gangstar. Now, in Jojo Rabbit, a 10-year-old German boy tries to make sense of World War II with the help of his imaginary friend, Adolf Hitler. While this is by far the most outlandish premise Waititi’s has tackled in his Lost Boy Trilogy, the writer/director maintains his signature sweetness and zany brand of humor, making punch lines of Nazis and an unlikely hero of another bad egg.
Based on the novel Caging Skies by Christine Leunens, Jojo Rabbit follows plucky blonde Jojo Betzler (Roman Griffin Davis) on his quest to become a good German soldier. To that end, Jojo joins the Hitler Youth, covers his room in swastikas, and howls “Heil Hitler” with the enthusiasm modern tykes might sing “Baby Shark.” Plus, he spends days and nights frolicking with his imagined version of the Nazi leader (played by a potbellied and funkily mustached Waititi). Jojo doesn’t question the party…
