Based on that headline alone, you know we’re in for a wild ride with Jojo Rabbit, the highly-anticipated new film from the wacky and wonderful mind of Taika Waititi. Following this morning’s news of Jojo Rabbit’s upcoming premiere at the 2019 Toronto International Film Festival, Waititi has revealed the first trailer for his latest effort, a dark comedy set during World War II—a series of words only Waititi could make charming:
The film follows a lonely young German boy who concocts an imaginary friend who just so happens to be Adolf Hitler to cope with the bullying from his peers. But things take an interesting turn when he strikes up a real friendship with a very real girl who challenges his beliefs. It sounds oddly sweet, which is the sort of thing we’ve come to expect from the director of What We Do In The Shadows and Hunt For The Wilderpeople—oh, and that Thor movie.
Jojo Rabbit stars Thomasin McKenzie, Roman Griffin Davis, Rebel Wilson, Alfie Allen, Sam Rockwell, Stephen Merchant, and Scarlett Johansson, and hits theaters on October 18.
54 Comments
inb4 that the hard right, regardless the plot of the movie, will treat this as a rehabilitation or apology of Hitler.Let’s be frank, any satirical work is not bad by itself. However, too many people are so dumb or mean, that they will take it literally. A good deal of people can no longer comprehend complex ideas and messages, thus they are not capable to distinguish between good and evil. Freedom is a great thing to have, but not so much when too many people demostrates over and over they cannot handle it and use it properly. Beacause they have interiorized such evil and wrong ideas, they are using their freedom to hurt other people or destroy the enviroment, which hurts even the people that hasn’t even born.This is unpopular, but it is time to erase subtleness and fight against evil and wrong ideas clearly without place to any doubt. This kind of art, in the long run, have hurt societies and too many (one is one too much) opressed people.
Hard but polite disagree. This is, if the trailer is anything to go by, far too satirical to be taken seriously by anyone on the alt-right. They don’t want a silly portrayal of Hitler as a bumbling clown, they want him heroic (at least, those that identify as neo-nazis do). This won’t appeal to them at all.Second, but more important, the moment we start regulating what media we put out based on the intelligence of our perceived audience, we have put stock in a tangible dumbing down of society. I don’t think this is a time to ‘erase subtleness’ but a time to embrace the truth that the world is complicated and to make sense of it, we need to be able to view and appreciate some strange takes on it.
Exactly. Check the popularity of “Hitler Finds Out…” videos on Youtube. This looks fantastic. Mel Brooks said the best thing to do to people who spew hatred is laugh at them.
I think this is a great concern, I was a little worried at how “fun” this trailer was cut. I’m optimistic in the sense that Taika has a good handle at making fun of racism and the futility and banality of hive-thinking, but I’m still cautious.Also, have you seen this video? Interesting analysis.
Another video essay from another ego spouting grandiose bullshit under the guise of cultural concern.
Great video! I’m also cautiously optimistic given all the same reasons you mentions here, along with this: .
If I wanted a chubby woman to lecture me for an hour I’d go back on Tinder.
You’re actually just wrong here. Having read the script, there’s literally no way anyone who watches this movie would come out of it thinking that Hitler was somehow a cool guy, just that Taika making fun of Hitler is an absolute joy.
Shuuuuuuuuut the fuck up.Oh my god, reading Twitter hot takes so much that practically it’s a hobby does not make you a sociologist. Stop talking about “evil” and “oppressed people” like you some kind of goddamn member of the Jedi council.
As cap_n_jack said, the alt-right isn’t attracted to a buffoonish portrayal of Hitler. They want to be seen as badass.Compare The Producers to American History X. Both are clearly anti-Nazi in their texts but the former portrays Nazis and fascist iconography as a punchline to a joke while the latter has been appropriated by Nazis because they think the protagonist is a badass.Lindsey Ellis did a video on Mel Brooks’ movies that goes into this.
I’m not sure I entirely agree. The constant “Do I mean that or don’t I” that goes on in alt-right circles isn’t a bug, it’s a feature. The relevant case here is the “manifesto” that was left by the Christchurch shooting, which was half racist screed, half 4chan in-joke. All the humor’s barbed, desperate, and cynical, but, deep down, the people making the jokes are really, really cynical, which is just about as useful to political extremists as actual malevolence.
I mean, they may have issues with their masculinity too. But the way they get their message out is cartoon frog memes. This ain’t your father’s neo-Nazi here.
There are precisely zero human beings who wouldn’t have been Nazis otherwise but then they saw a comedy and decided they were.
I partially agree, but I think they’re trying to guard against people taking this film seriously by labeling it a satire that goes to war on hate, per the trailer.
Oh, you again. The same racist that said they would “like to equip a drone with an AK-47 to shoot their shaking reggaeton asses” in response to a story about a guy shooting fireworks at a street party. Your ideas do not deserve discourse on a civil level. Especially now that you’re seemingly advocating some kind of Darwinian censorship.
Concern troll? Concern troll.
Making fun of Nazis only hurts Nazis. Look at The Producers, compare that to American History X which makes Nazis look cool and forbidden
You can have my Taika Waititi when you pry him from my cold, dead hands!
“inb4 that the hard LEFT, regardless the plot of the movie, will treat this as a rehabilitation or apology of Hitler.”Fixed that for you.
Hitler is an imaginary friend of the protagonist, probably because as a fatherless Hitler youth who is being bullied, he needs some kind of masculine, powerful role model. No doubt by the end of the movie, he’ll have learned that the real person Hitler is a very bad man and that hatred, bullying, and toxic masculinity are awful. It’s a story. The characters start out one place and end up another. You can all drop the false outrage now.
Two words for you “The Producers”.
From the God of Comedy, Mel Brooks.“After all the people that he was responsible for killing and after utterly destroying half the world, I just thought the only weapon I’ve really got is comedy. And if I can make this guy ludicrous, if I can make you laugh at him, then it’s a victory of sorts. You can’t get on a soapbox with these orators, because they’re very good at convincing the masses that they’re right. But if you can make them look ridiculous, you can win over the people.”So you can fuck off.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1zY1orxW8Aw
You weirdo internet social justice warrior have taken the place of the conservative Christian right in terms of trying to monitor everyone’s habits in case a bad idea gets through.Movies ain’t gonna damn the world. They’ll get closer to saving it but they ain’t gonna do that either. You worried about Nazis? Good, Nazis suck. Go and support a meaningful left wing alternative. Leave movies alone.
“I’m not saying life would be better if we had an authoritarian government deciding what we feel and think but…”
Well this is totally racist and should be banned. Having someone dress like Hitler is just as bad as using black-face. You can get the story across without using such horrible imagery.
It’s not the end of the world:
Exec 1: How the hell are we going to market this movie?
Exec 2: Better put “SATIRE” in big red letters in the trailer.
Exec 3: And make the first trailer be a low-res postage stamp so they can’t see if there’s anything they’d be offended by.
You can actually make it bigger!
Exec 3: “And don’t forget to write ‘That Goes to War ON HATE ’. That way absolutely no one can say this is a glorification of Hitler.”[Trailer is released]Internet: “This is a glorification of Hitler.”Exec 4: “You weren’t clear enough. You’re all fired!”
You saw that as a glorification of Hitler?? like, really?
I don’t think he did, he was parodying those on the internet who did.
I’ll be 100% honest, I don’t think that’s the case but you might be right.
The internet has like 12 weirdos who will go into bad faith attacks on pretty much anything (actually 24 weirdos – just 12 that identify as “left” and 12 that identify as “right) just because, I dunno, they’re bored and have some deep underlying issues they should deal with.It’s a small little bloc, but social media is such the wild west that big corporations kind of have to assume they’ll spiral out of control.
Is his username “Internet”?
This trailer is literally Hitler.
The real Hitler was the imaginary friend we made along the way.
“You could really say that New York is its own character in our film. And that character is Hitler.”
This trailer was born in Austria in 1889?
I wasn’t sure about this film until I saw my first glimpse of Taika as Imaginary Hitler.I’m sold.
I was down when the one kid through the knife and it bounced into the other kids leg. That is grade A humor right there
This stuff and people comically overreacting get me every time. Recently finished Detroiters and they both had me in stitches for that.
The upbeat music and Hitler literally appearing from behind a tree just sweeten the incredible trailer.
But, Rebel Wilson. I’ll be there opening weekend if they can make it through marketing with her doing a fat joke (assuming the above trailer didn’t include one; had to watch without sound on at work).Also, Taika Waititi? more like Taika away-titi all of my money. [ba-dum tish]
I have faith in Taika that he made sure to steer clear of those types of jokes.
The man who gave us a house full of lovable vampires…Is there nothing he can’t do?
What a guy.
Ach du lieber! Das ist nacht eine booby!
Oh Hitler. You so crazy!
See, this is why ScarJo wants to play Asians and trans people and trees, because if she doesn’t she’ll just get typecast as Aryan types in historical films about Hitler’s Germany!
“No … not much fun in Stalingrad …”
It is important to note here that Taika Waititi is JEWISH. His mother is Jewish which makes him Jewish by literally any standard on Earth (and he identifies as Jewish himself). He is also a person of color, an indigenous person. This isn’t some white guy making this movie. This is a Jewish Maori man making this movie. And as a Jewish person myself (not to mention a descendant of those run out of Russia by Cossacks and an indirect descendant of Holocaust survivors) I anticipate this film with excitement and hope.
Lost in all this discussion of Comedy Hitler is the groundbreaking casting of Sam Rockwell, breaking out of his comfort zone by playing a white nationalist.