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Taika Waititi’s brand of humor has taken over the entertainment industry. After the success of his early independent films, such as Eagle vs. Shark, What We Do In The Shadows, and Hunt for the Wilderpeople, Waititi brought his idiosyncratic flavor to the Marvel Cinematic Universe with Thor: Ragnarok. Even for those who felt that the Marvel brand had become stale, Ragnarok felt like a breath of fresh air. In recent years, Waititi has taken his talents to television as well, as he’s overseen the FX continuation of What We Do In The Shadows, the acclaimed HBO series Our Flag Means Death, and several episodes of The Mandalorian.
However, Waititi reached a creative and critical high point in 2019 with his World War II satire Jojo Rabbit. Trying to introduce humor into a story about fascism, violence, and discrimination could have easily been disastrous, but Waititi was able to show own of the ugliest periods in human history through the eyes of a child. The film follows the young German boy Jojo (Roman Griffin Davis), whose admiration for the Nazi Party changes when he discovers that a Jewish girl, Elsa (Thomasin McKenzie), is hiding in his house.
Jojo learns about empathy from his loving mother (Scarlett Johansson), but he gets some tough lessons on life from his best friend, an imaginary version of Adolf Hitler (Waititi). Jojo Rabbit earned Waititi his first Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay. If you loved Jojo Rabbit, check out these films as well.
Life is Beautiful (1998)
Jojo Rabbit expertly navigates the difficult topics of World War II and the Holocaust by showing how a child would interpret them. This was a major theme in another Academy Award-winning classic, Roberto Benigini’s Life is Beautiful. Benigni stars as Guido Orefice, a charming Italian Jew whose family is taken captive during the occupation of Italy. In order to shield his young son, Giosuè (Giorgio Cantarini), from the horrors of war, Guido goes to elaborate lengths to convince him they are part of a “great game” and are destined to win a prize.
The Great Dictator (1940)
Waititi himself took inspiration from Charlie Chaplin’s classic satire, as he was apprehensive about playing a comedic version of Hitler. Chaplin takes on two roles in this Academy Award-nominated classic; he plays both a good-natured Jewish Private (simply known as “The Barber”) and the fascist dictator Adenoid Hynkel (and amalgamation of Adolf Hitler and Benito Mussolini). Although their obvious similarities lead to a comedy of errors, Chaplin made his point clear in the film’s fiery ending monologue, where he delivers a stirring condemnation of fascism, extremism, and militarism.
Empire of the Sun (1987)
Steven Spielberg has always been interested in telling the stories of “lost boys” and broken families, and Empire of the Sun took on the World War II era through the perspective of a young boy. Like Jojo, Jim Graham (Christian Bale) isn’t an initially likable protagonist; he’s a privileged British child with no awareness of the context of the world’s events. When Jim is separated from his family in Japan, he comes of age as he meets survivors, and sets out on the long voyage home to see his family once more.
Good Morning, Vietnam! (1987)
Like Waititi, Robin Williams can make us laugh, even when it’s about a dark subject like war. Williams received his first Academy Award nomination for Best Actor for his performance as Adrian Cronauer, an American radio disc jockey who offers his brother-in-arms a break from the trials of the Vietnam War with his eccentric commentary. Although Williams’ humor makes Good Morning, Vietnam! a heartwarming classic, it does not shy away from the nature of America’s role in the combat, or disrespect the men who lost their lives.
The Book Thief (2013)
Jojo Rabbit showed that even within the disparity of World War II, brighter things could emerge. Jojo shares some tender moments with Elsa as they read together. This is a major topic in The Book Thief, the 2013 adaptation of Markus Zusak’s acclaimed novel. The film follows the orphaned girl Liesel (Sophie Nélisse), who is taught to read by her adopted father, Hans Hubermann (Geoffrey Rush). Liesel’s family is put in danger when Hans begins aiding the escaped Jewish man Max (Ben Schnetzer) from his Nazi pursuers.
Pan’s Labyrinth (2006)
Although Jojo begins to learn about the world around him, he explains things that he does not understand by using his imagination. Guillermo del Toro embodies these themes with his 2006 dark fantasy film Pan’s Labyrinth. Set in fascist Spain during the 1940s, the film follows the young girl Ofelia (Ivana Baquero), whose mother Carmen (Ariadna Gil) is set to be married to the cruel military leader Captain Vidal (Sergi López). Ofelia escapes her reality by retreating to a fairytale underworld, where she is crowned a princess by an unusual group of magical creatures.
Hunt for the Wilderpeople (2016)
If you enjoyed how Waititi balanced comedy and drama in Jojo Rabbit, then you might also enjoy his earlier film Hunt for the Wilderpeople. Like Jojo Rabbit, it’s a film about coping with tragedy. The orphaned boy Ricky Baker (Julian Dennison) shockingly loses his adopted mother, Bella Faulkner (Rima Te Wiata). This forces him to bond with his steely adopted father, Hec (Sam Neill), as they go on the run from local hunters and authorities.
Moonrise Kingdom (2012)
Jojo Rabbit is remarkably tender in its depiction of young love. Wes Anderson also showed the beauty of childhood innocence in his 2012 dramedy Moonrise Kingdom; sometimes, the ignorance of a child is much more insightful than those that claim to be “intellectuals.” Both feeling out-of-place on separate slides of the social hierarchy, the orphaned Boy Scout Sam Shakusky (Jared Gilman) and the rich girl Suzy (Kara Hayward) decide to run away together in this distinctly “Wes Anderson-y” adventure.
Isle of Dogs (2017)
Anderson proved that he could bring his signature style to children’s animated films with Fantastic Mr. Fox, but his second animated film, Isle of Dogs, took on more serious topics of dictatorship and the mistreatment of the natural world. Isle of Dogs is set within fascist Japan, where mass pollution has created an island of trash, which is home to the dogs Chief (Bryan Cranston), Rex (Edward Norton), Duke (Jeff Goldblum), King (Bob Balaban), and Boss (Bill Murray). When the young boy Atari (Koyu Rankin) travels to the island in search of his missing dog, Spots (Liev Schreiber), Chief and his gang agree to help him in his search.
The Florida Project (2016)
In many ways, seeing true disparity through the distorted viewpoint of a child that does not know any better makes it even more tragic. Sean Baker didn’t shy away from the truth about poverty with his powerful 2017 drama The Florida Project. Set amidst the backdrop of Disney World, the film follows the six-year-old girl Moonee (Brooklyn Prince) during her childhood in the Magic Castle motel with her mother, Halley (Bria Vinaite). Although Moonee is protected by the motel’s kindly owner (Willem Dafoe), her childhood innocence comes to a halt when Halley is investigated by child protective services.
Belfast (2021)
Jojo Rabbit certainly felt like a passion project for Waititi, and his fellow Thor franchise director Kenneth Branagh earned similar acclaim for his semi-autobiographical coming-of-age dramedy Belfast. Belfast explores “The Troubles” in Northern Island during the 1969 August riots through the perspective of one family; Buddy (Jude Hill) fears that his parents (Jamie Dornan and Catriona Balfe) will be separated due to the political turmoil.
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