2019, Recent Reviews, Reviews

In Fabric (2019): Killer Clothes

Leave a comment

In Fabric is the story of a killer dress – literally. Somewhere in England, Sheila Woodchapel (Marianne Jean-Baptiste; Without a Trace), a divorced mom, eyes a striking red dress on sale at a local department store and, after speaking with the strange staff, she decides to buy it for an upcoming date. Later in the film, the dress is worn by a soon-to-be-married appliance mechanic named Reg Speaks (Leo Bill; 28 Days Later) as a joke for his bachelor party. In both cases the dress interferes with their sanity and has a devastating impact on their lives.

Director Peter Strickland (Berberian Sound Studio) attempts an eerie tone that doesn’t culminate in anything. The film’s style is a mix of giallo and David Lynch that seems intriguing at first. The visuals, the film’s strongest component, are filled with the searing reds and greens from the giallo genre and the acting would easily fit into most of Lynch’s films. The department store workers speak as if from another reality with flowery, verbose descriptions of clothing and an unnatural cadence. They, with their powdery white makeup, are practically an entire team of lesser Mystery Men from Lost Highway. Their dialect implies some ulterior motive, but what that motive is or how it relates to the Sheila or Reg is never explained or made meaningful. It’s hinted that it may be the dress itself, somehow sentient, that is behind the tormenting of its wearers, but its purpose is also unexplored.

The store staff ultimately adds very little to the film.

The first half, focused on Sheila, is by far the stronger story. Jean-Baptiste is sympathetic as a mom providing for her adult son, but also lonely after her divorce and her simple goal of looking sharp and meeting someone is very relatable. She works as a bank teller and reports to a pair of middle managers that appear to be Strickland’s attempt at satire of convoluted corporate procedures. These two repeatedly call in Sheila for minor transgressions, like the use an informal greeting, and have an interesting dynamic as they finish each other’s sentences but feel like they were pulled out of Terry Gilliam’s Brazil rather than this film. After the narrative changes protagonists, it loses most of the minor interest it had created. When Reg enters the film, he encounters many of the same issues Sheila had with the dress in the same exact way. His section adds little to what has been shown as the film essentially repeats itself with the dress targeting a new victim.

Films can be obtuse and open-ended, but In Fabric fails to create and maintain emotional investment. At times, it appears to be a horror movie about a cursed garment, but the changing characters and lack of background prevent the viewer from being engaged with the horror. There isn’t a human slasher villain, only a literal piece of cloth. This is a gigantic hurdle for Strickland to overcome to create any fear in the audience and he, unfortunately, is unable to. There seem to be moments of satire aimed at consumerism, characters constantly talk about sales, or potentially materialism, the store staff is aroused by their mannequins, but these are at the periphery. Its vivid colors and attempts at a surreal tone are not enough to compensate for In Fabric’s lack of emotional connection and tension in its horror premise.

2/5 stars.

2019, Recent Reviews, Reviews

Richard Jewell (2019): Media Frenzy

Leave a comment

In an age of pivotal news breaking every moment, the story of Richard Jewell may not be known to younger audiences, but it is one relevant to our modern times. Jewell (Paul Walter Hauser; I, Tonya) is a former police officer now working security at the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta. He asks the local police to call in an unidentified package when he spots a discarded backpack only to discover a live bomb in the bag. He works to evacuate people from the area before the bomb explodes, saving many lives, and is an immediate hero for his actions until public opinion starts to change. A local paper reports that he was being investigated as a suspect in the bombing, a routine part of the FBI’s process, and he soon becomes the media’s villain.

The film boasts a strong cast with Hauser up to the task of playing the maligned, but well-meaning lead. He shows Jewell’s naïve trust of authority and his true devotion to justice, but also how this can negatively impact others when he is too adherent to the letter of the law. Jewell is shown as a simple man whose main goal in life is to be one of the good guys which makes the sudden shift in public opinion all the more hurtful. By his side is Sam Rockwell (Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri) as his lawyer, who seems to have carved out a niche for himself playing these types of roles. Rockwell is straightforward and sharp, unafraid to tell Jewell what mistakes he is making or to tell off the authorities when needed.

Rockwell, as the lawyer, provides some much needed support to Jewell’s family.

The main antagonists become the media and law enforcement. Jon Hamm (Mad Men) plays the FBI agent that leaks Jewell’s name and becomes fixated on convicting him. He seems selfish and willfully oblivious as he ignores facts and relies on unproven hunches to continue the investigation. The brunt of the blame for Jewell’s ordeal is placed on Kathy Scruggs (Olivia Wilde; TRON: Legacy), the local reporter that first lists Jewell as a suspect. The real-life Scruggs has passed away so there is no way to know how realistic her portrayal is, but Wilde does her no favors. Scruggs is shown as a mean, slimy, immoral reporter that will sleep with people for info just so she can get a story with little regard for its consequences or veracity.

While the film is right to indict the press and police in Jewell’s living nightmare, the story plays this too safe. The legal battle that ensues as Jewell is brought in by the FBI and his trusting nature is taken advantage of to trick him into implicating himself is appropriately infuriating and Hauser and Rockwell are likable leads. The issue is that the film doesn’t attempt to grasp the full picture of what caused the situation. It never addresses the public’s role in feeding the media’s focus on Jewell over other possible suspects and the ease many felt with stereotyping Jewell based on his background. This is a noticeable but not debilitating omission that would have made for a much more complex, challenging film. As it stands, Richard Jewell is a safe, but effective drama about the damaging impact of a media frenzy.

3/5 stars.

2019, Recent Reviews, Reviews

Dolemite is My Name (2019): Stylish Underdog Story

Leave a comment

As the story of a surprise hit film, Dolemite is My Name, is itself a surprise success. The story follows Rudy Ray Moore (Eddie Murphy; Coming to America) who, at the start of the film, is a failed singer working in an LA record store. He works part-time as a comedian, but is limited to introducing acts rather than performing due to his poorly received material. After hearing the ranting of a local homeless man, he decides to use his stories as the basis for his own comedy act which launches an unlikely career in show business and the production of Dolemite, a blaxpoitation classic.

Rudy is a true dreamer. He is his own biggest cheerleader who, despite constant rejection, perseveres in his pursuit of becoming an entertainer. He seems fully confident in all his abilities from singing to comedy to acting even as he fails in front of crowds. Rudy is willing to reshape himself to be accepted as he forms the Dolemite character to impress. His source material, recording homeless men talk in exchange for buying them liquor, is morally questionable as he profits off people in dire straits without adequately compensating them, but his performances are a huge hit. He tells stories that seem like Aesop’s fables where every other word is a profanity or vulgarity. Some will find the clever wordplay entertaining, but the sheer obscenity of the language will turn others off.

Snipes’s disapproving expressions are hilarious.

It’s the shift to Rudy’s film career that makes the film. Unsatisfied with his album success, Rudy tries to star in a movie only to produce and finance it himself when turned down by movie studios due to his race, age, and body type. At this point, the film brings in a colorful cast of characters led by Lady Reed (Da’Vine Joy Rudolph; People of Earth), Rudy’s comedy associate and co-lead in his movie, and D’Urville Martin (Wesley Snipes; Blade), the movie’s director and only actor with any notable experience. These two spice up the film with Martin believing himself to be too good for the material and Lady being completely supportive and excited about the opportunity.

In its best moments, Dolemite is My Name resembles the tone of The Disaster Artist. It’s a story of misfits and outcasts on a seemingly impossible journey to make something high-quality despite their lack of resources. This tireless optimism is infectious as the film positions Rudy as the ultimate underdog, risking everything for his dream of making a feature that caters to a neglected audience, people like him. Eddie Murphy is at his best here and mixes Rudy’s ambition with kindness. He gets frustrated, but ultimately he believes in his friends and the gentle conversations he has with Lady about their own insecurities are touching. All of this wrapped in an aesthetic that would make the Dolemite character proud. Director Craig Brewer (Hustle & Flow) literally pimps out his film with flamboyant outfits, glittering colors, and a fun, fast pace.  As larger than life as the Dolemite character was, Eddie Murphy and team have done an incredible job bringing the film’s production down to earth and showcasing the spirit and conviction that earned its classic status.

4/5 stars.

2019, Recent Reviews, Reviews

The Irishman (2019): Crime and Consequence

Leave a comment

The Irishman is Martin Scorsese’s longest film and a fitting maturation of the topics, themes, and genre he has developed over his vast and accomplished career. The film stars Robert De Niro (Heat) as Frank Sheeran, an Irishman who worked closely with the Italian mafia. He becomes a trusted confidant of Russell Bufalino (Joe Pesci; Goodfellas) and later union leader Jimmy Hoffa (Al Pacino; Heat).

Running three and a half hours, the film pulls out every trick available to keep the audience interested. It employs multiple framing narratives, from Sheeran in an assisted living facility, to Sheeran late in life, to the chronological events of his involvement in the mafia, to prevent the story from growing stale and, to Scorsese’s credit, it mostly works. There is a period later in the film, before a critical action must be completed, that it starts to drag as we wait for the inevitable, but overall the lengthy runtime seems appropriate given the decades of story covered. Digital de-aging is used on the main cast, now in their late-70s, to distinguish the numerous time periods and the technology is effective in making the actors appear different, but not to the necessary degree. De Niro appears younger in early sections, but he never appears young and while the aging process is noticeable, it is strange to see that Sheeran never seems much younger than 50.

The Irishman strikes a noticeably different tone than much of Scorsese’s other crime movies. While there is a rise and fall of criminals, the way their lifestyle is portrayed is unique. Unlike Goodfellas or The Wolf of Wall Street, Sheeran’s acceptance and growth within the mafia isn’t, even momentarily, glorified. He seems to be financially stable, but the film doesn’t have the exorbitant displays of wealth, like drug-filled parties on yachts, we would expect. Crucially, extra effort is taken to reinforce the short-lived nature of their successes and the long-term consequences of their crimes. As each new gangster is introduced, a title card lists their age and cause of death, almost always showing a brutal act and brief life expectancy. The tone falls closer to Silence, Scorsese’s story of migrant priests in feudal Japan, with the actions onscreen being fueled by duty rather than greed.

As usual, the period details are perfect.

This change is most evident in De Niro’s performance. He may be the lead character but, unlike Henry Hill or Jordan Belfort, he is not the driving force of the plot. Early on he explains that after serving in the military, he learned to take orders and follow direction without much thought for their consequences or morality. He never seems enticed by crime as much as he is a dutiful cog in the gears of a criminal organization which allows for the supporting cast, Pesci and Pacino, to provide most of the dramatic moments.

The film offers Al Pacino many chances to deliver the kind of performance he has become notorious for. His Hoffa is an overconfident asshole that is always in the middle of a condescending rant against someone and Pacino appears to be relishing the opportunity to deliver numerous verbal beatdowns. His energy provides a welcome contrast to Sheeran’s reserved nature and effectively steals the majority of the film. The Irishman is less about Sheeran’s individual life and more him caught in the pull of Hoffa’s ambitions and the complications that arise due to their connection to mafia. With this unique, more austere tone, Scorsese has created a crime epic with a charismatic cast and a moral compass that grounds the violence onscreen in somber consequences.

4/5 stars.

2019, Recent Reviews, Reviews

Waves (2019): Intense, but Overlong

Leave a comment

After successfully directing a thriller, Trey Edwards Shults (It Comes at Night) has returned to making family dramas. Waves is the story of teenagers and their emotional journeys. Tyler (Kelvin Harrison Jr.; It Comes at Night) is a popular kid on the wrestling team driven by a strict, unforgiving father (Sterling K. Brown; This is Us). The film follows his relationship with his father and his girlfriend then shifts to his younger sister Emily (Taylor Russell; Escape Room) and her boyfriend Luke (Lucas Hedges; Manchester by the Sea).

Shults shoots Waves in a heightened reality. This is the brief period of adolescence on the cusp of adulthood where everything is felt deeply. The vibrant palette of the streets of Florida are slightly oversaturated with colors like Tyler’s bleached blonde hair and the deep blue skies popping out onscreen. His camera moves with a ferocity, constantly tracking in or swirling around his characters, that is matched by the film’s music. Composed by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross, the score brings its own intensity that creates an entrancing effect.

This energy extends to the acting as well. All the dialogue is delivered for maximum impact. Nothing here is meant to be lighthearted. Brown, as Tyler’s agressive father, is never at ease. Even in moments that should be playful, like when he arm-wrestles his son, he brings a fervor to his actions that is unsettling. He behaves as if each action is the most pivotal moment in his life. This style of deliberately melodramatic performance, when combined with the visuals and soundtrack, is initially intoxicating.

Shults creates a volatile chemistry between Tyler and his father.

The film’s first half is a tour de force of urgent, impassioned filmmaking. Tyler’s commitment to his athletics, his relationship with his girlfriend, and the impossibly high standards his father sets for him are vividly brought to life. It’s a testament to Shults’s abilities as a writer and director that Tyler’s world is set up using little to no exposition. The relationships are established through the expressive, but authentic performances. Tyler’s arc unfolds explosively with each story beat barreling forward to the next and is consistently gripping with Harrison deftly handling the changes to his character. As his story reaches its crescendo, the film seems to have perfectly captured Tyler’s life and all of its complicated emotions with an intensity that leaves the audience mesmerized and exhausted from its pulsing energy.

Then, unfortunately, Waves continues for another hour. The story shifts focus from Tyler to his younger sister Emily and her relationship with Luke, but the new plot can’t match the impact of the Tyler’s story. It feels unnecessary after what preceded it. Many of the complaints normally thrown at melodramas, that Waves had been able to avoid in its first half, suddenly become relevant. The acting style feels unnecessary when Emily and Luke’s story has significantly lower stakes than Tyler’s story and the new actors aren’t able to match the earlier performances. As a film of two distinct plots, Waves is a mixed bag. It’s an intense emotional rollercoaster followed by an unworthy second story that never justifies its inclusion.

3/5 stars.

2019, Recent Reviews, Reviews

The Lighthouse (2019): Strange, but Not Scary

Leave a comment

Refusing to fit the mold of standard horror films, Robert Eggers (The Witch) has created another hyper-specific period piece, albeit with poor results. Winslow (Robert Pattinson; Good Time) is brought to a remote island to work as a lighthouse keeper under the supervision of Wake (Willem Dafoe; The Florida Project). The men begin a terse working relationship, but animosity grows as the two develop suspicions about each other’s intentions.

If nothing else, the film is devoted to its aesthetic. Eggers, a former production designer, has created a world worn down by the ocean. The lighthouse has a brick façade with weathered paint and the ramshackle house they live in is cramped and broken-down. The buildings are built for functionality, not comfort and it adds to the prison-like feeling of the location. Eggers also chooses to avoid modern conventions by neither shooting his film in color nor in widescreen to add to the period’s authenticity. While other filmmakers often use black and white out of nostalgia or beauty, Eggers uses it for its harshness. The visuals are in the vein of German Expressionism and hint at the potential for insanity, even if the film isn’t able to add meaning to that insanity.

The film’s cohesive visuals are its strongest asset.

Pattinson and Dafoe carry nearly the entire film and are fully invested in their roles. Neither Winslow nor Wake seem like the kind of people anyone would want to be stuck on a remote island with. Both appear to be hiding some part of their past. Pattinson’s Winslow is, comparatively, the relatable character. He wants to avoid small talk or drinking and focus on the work ahead until their tour of duty is over. Dafoe’s Wake has other interests in mind. He is cranky, impulsive, and enjoys his power over Winslow as he demeans him and has him slave over difficult, unnecessary tasks for his own sadistic pleasure. There are moments when he appears to be kind as he invites Winslow to drink with him, but behind each of these actions is a short, potentially dangerous temper. His impulsiveness and cruelty is what allows for the Winslow’s suspicions to form.

Eggers uses the dynamic between Winslow and Wake and their isolation to fuel to film’s mystery. As Winslow is mistreated by Wake, he begins to doubt Wake’s intentions. He suspects that Wake is hiding something from him when he refuses to let him onto the top floor of the lighthouse. Additionally, in his loneliness, Winslow begins to see strange occurrences like animals behaving oddly and images that may or may not be hallucinations. The unknown combined with the potentially unhinged thoughts lead to several strange scenes of erratic behavior that range from rude to oddly humorous to aggressive. As unique as the situations may be, the film’s failing is that these moments don’t progressively build on each other. They instead feel like only partially connected abnormalities. In The Witch, a film that was also built on mistrust with a potentially supernatural bent, every scene escalated the story’s tension in a cohesive direction that built to a conclusion in line with the bizarre events that preceded it. In The Lighthouse, committed performances and distinctive visuals can’t save a narrative that never unites its unusual digressions to create tension, horror, or an ending that gives meaning to the bizarre occurrences.

2/5 stars.

2019, Recent Reviews, Reviews

The Current War: Director’s Cut (2019): Power Games

Leave a comment

After premiering at the Toronto International Film Festival in 2017 to negative reviews, The Current War: Director’s Cut has been overhauled with new scenes and editing that form an exciting historical rivalry. Thomas Edison (Benedict Cumberbatch; The Imitation Game) seeks to power the country with his patented direct current and uses his fame to spread the technology. His rival, George Westinghouse (Michael Shannon; Take Shelter), favors using alternating current for the distance it can travel and the two become locked in a battle to electrify the nation.

Despite its appearances, The Current War is not a lethargic period piece. The film moves at a brisk pace and never lingers too long on a single moment, ironic considering one of Westinghouse’s earliest inventions was a braking system. The camera is also always on the move tracking characters, often at oblique angles, and there is an interesting use of repeated cut-ins, timed rhythmically during pivotal decision moments, to add weight to situations. Director Alfonso Gomez-Rejon (Me and Earl and the Dying Girl) never allows the period or its trappings to prevent the film from appealing to modern sensibilities.

In his portrayal of these pivotal historical figures, Gomez-Rejon is fairly kind. Cumberbatch, utilizing a slightly improved version of the annoyingly flat fake American accent from Doctor Strange, makes Edison a bit of an egotist, but not quite the ruthless businessman many accounts have described him as. He’s relentless in his pursuit and unwilling to conform to the ideas of others, but his moral digressions are shown as lapses in judgement caused by desperation rather than standard practice for his business. Even as he uses underhanded tactics to smear his opponent, he never becomes a villain.

Edison uses extravagant reveals to sell his technology while Westinghouse relies on plain economics and functionality.

Westinghouse, on the other side, is the practical industrialist. Shannon makes him seem like a no-nonsense proprietor who manages his affairs with integrity. Unlike Edison, he seems principled and focused on the work rather than its marketing. Where Edison will step into the spotlight, speak to reporters, and sign autographs, Westinghouse refrains from spectacle. In a crucial sales opportunity, he ignores any sort of demonstration and instead lets the buyers know his product is better and cheaper, hands them evidence, shakes their hands, and walks away. Shannon’s pragmatic gruffness and his laconic lines reveal Westinghouse to be the true lead of the movie, with a ethical code worth rooting for.

The film also features Nikola Tesla (Nicholas Hoult; About a Boy) in a minor role as a brilliant inventor that briefly works for Edison only to later develop a key technology for Westinghouse. His role in the real events may have been significant, but his limited screentime make him feel like an afterthought, used mostly for his now ubiquitous name recognition and for one particular line that winks directly at the audience.

The competition between Edison and Westinghouse becomes an exciting horse race. The men are shown as always being on the verge of winning the battle, but also precariously close to complete failure with media issues, personal problems, and financial worries constantly threatening to thwart their success. Their strategic moves, and their impulsive decisions, create an engaging chess match, even though the outcome of their rivalry is known. The Current War: Director’s Cut is an involving, bustling drama about two great titans of industry locked in a literal and figurative power game.

4/5 stars.

2019, Recent Reviews, Reviews

The Death of Dick Long (2019): Dark Comedy-Thriller with a Secret

1 Comment

After friends Zeke (Michael Abbott Jr.; Loving), Earl (Andre Hyland; The 4th), and Dick (Daniel Scheinert) finish band practice, Dick asks them, “Wanna get weird?”. Since this is a film directed by Daniel Scheinert (one half of the duo behind Swiss Army Man), the answer is most definitely “Yes”. The three go all out drinking, smoking, and setting off fireworks, until the film cuts to Zeke and Earl carrying a bleeding Dick to a hospital emergency room before leaving without a trace. Later, they discover that Dick didn’t survive the night.

Visually, the film is less interesting than Scheinert’s previous work. Swiss Army Man featured creative production design and artful practical effects that would have fit in a Michel Gondry film. Scheinert shows elements of that aesthetic in the film’s opening wild night, but mostly focuses on creating the grounded setting, even down to its music choice. The soundtrack features bands like Creed and Nickelback that are regularly ridiculed in mainstream press but are successful in rural areas. The film’s visuals may not be particularly imaginative, but it does carry an authentic backwoods country vibe.

The opening wild night is the most visually exciting part of the film.

Scheinert straddles a difficult line between thriller and comedy. The death, and its horrific cause, give the film a slightly dangerous edge. Zeke and Earl are not only trying to hide their involvement with whatever led to Dick’s demise, they won’t even mention what caused it. This casts suspicion over their actions. If it was an accident, what would they have to hide? It seems unlikely that they would deliberately harm their friend, but why else would they deny their involvement? What other sort of illicit activities could have happened that night? Zeke and Earl’s behaviors raise questions about their culpability.

The comedy comes from their reactions to the situation and their poor attempts at hiding their connection to the death. Zeke and Earl argue about movie references while cleaning bloodstains out of a car and awkwardly hide the facts from their significant others. Their position becomes increasingly complicated as they run into the two local police officers at inconvenient times and have to weasel their way out of the interactions. It isn’t overtly going for laughs the way a regular comedy would, but the film’s incompetent leads get themselves into several difficult, but humorous situations when avoiding being caught.

The end result of the strange balancing act is an enjoyable film, but one that doesn’t exceed expectations in either area. The film isn’t quite a thriller, but the central mystery is still involving. It isn’t necessarily tense, but Scheinert is able to maintain enough intrigue to keep the audience tuned in. The humor isn’t gut-busting, but there is enough of it to amuse. When the story finally unravels with an answer that is shocking beyond belief, something out of the territory for a resolution to most stories, it provides ample reason for all of the preceding behavior. The Death of Dick Long is a dark comedy-thriller that, given its subject matter, balances tones enough to entertain the audience until it reaches its outrageous reveal.

3/5 stars.

2019, Recent Reviews, Reviews

The Day Shall Come (2019): Failed Satire

Leave a comment

Chris Morris (Four Lions) returns to cinema with another satire in a setting that doesn’t seem appropriate for humor. While his previous film followed terrorists, The Day Shall Come flips the script and centers on a team of FBI counter-terrorism agents in Miami. The agents, featuring Anna Kendrick (Pitch Perfect), have their eyes on the leader of a small religious group named Moses (Marchánt Davis).

Morris has spent most of his career deriving comedy from subject matter that should be off limits. He was thrust into the spotlight when making jokes about pedophilia on British TV then again when he made Four Lions, a comedy about four would-be suicide bombers. With Four Lions, there was an initial period of discomfort when faced with the idea of laughing at their lethal behavior, but it quickly dissipated after realizing how incompetent and misguided they were. Morris was able to deftly balance viewing the farcical nature of the ideology behind suicide bombings, the damage they cause, and the fragile mental state that allows regular people to become expendable tools in other people’s wars.

Moses has his own goals, but isn’t the violent terrorist the FBI wants him to be.

The Day Shall Come doesn’t share that level of nuance. Despite a great cast that is, in other works, very likable, the proceedings are in bad taste. Unlike the terrorists from Four Lions, Moses and his followers pose no real threat. He talks about an mutiny against the oppressors but is unequivocally against using guns, turning them down when offered. Furthermore, he has no actual power. His group has only a handful of people and they are dirt poor. They can’t afford rent for their run-down home and his wife goes dumpster diving to provide food for his followers and his children. He has goals of starting a revolution, but will clearly never be able to. His group has outlandish beliefs like being able to summon dinosaurs with an air horn or that Moses has telekinetic powers showing that he is delusional, but not harmful.

This is what creates the dilemma of the film. The FBI agents aren’t interested in actual counter-terrorism. Their work shown in the film consists of them hiring actors or blackmailing other convicts to set up possible criminals and have them engage in an illegal activity. In some cases, these are actually violent people intending to do harm, but that seems inconsequential. The agents appear to only want to increase their own notoriety by racking up convictions to advance their career. After they botch a potential arrest, they become more desperate and use Moses as their next target. As they try to get him to participate in illegal activities, he makes things difficult for them by not actually being a criminal. He goes to the FBI to report that others are trying to engage in arms trafficking, hoping to prevent the act as well as earn the reward money needed to pay his rent. In moments like this, where someone not committing a crime is viewed as a hindrance to the FBI agents and their purely self-serving goals, the film crosses the line of satire and the characters become despicable. This doesn’t appear to be a failure to achieve Morris’s intended goals, he may have wanted the agents to be received this way, but it is a creative misfire. The film is a failed satire, unable to sustain humor in the face of its reprehensible characters and their shameful, short-sighted manipulation.

2/5 stars.

2019, Recent Reviews, Reviews

Jojo Rabbit (2019): Nazi Comedy

Leave a comment

Using the increased clout afforded to him after revitalizing a Marvel franchise with Thor: Ragnarok, Taika Waititi (Hunt for the Wilderpeople) has gone to much riskier material. Jojo Rabbit is a comedy set in Germany near the end of WWII. Jojo (Roman Griffith Davis) is a boy who is obsessed with Hitler and fully indoctrinated by his ideals. His world becomes more complicated when he discovers his mother is hiding a Jewish girl (Thomasin McKenzie; Leave No Trace) in their home.

Waititi gets great work from his main cast. As Jojo, Davis has the wide-eyed look of an innocent, but easily impressionable kid and it allows him to get away with reciting Nazi propaganda. While what he says is hateful, it is obvious that he is only a child repeating what he has been mislead to believe is true. McKenzie brings a surprising amount of strength to her role. As the lone Jewish character, reduced to hiding in the walls of a house, it would have been easy for her to be a victim, but instead she comes off as resilient and bold. Her use of Jojo’s misconceptions to terrify and control him are an unexpected treat as she deliberately moves like a ghost in a horror movie to play into his fears. Scarlett Johansson (The Avengers), as Jojo’s mother, is warm and loving, but has an hilariously antagonistic side. Since she secretly despises Nazi beliefs, she subtly teases Jojo to get him to understand that his beliefs are wrong by telling him about the importance of love while also gently taunting him by calling him “Shitler” or tying his shoelaces together.

The supporting roles have their moments as well with Yorkie (Archie Yates) deserving high praise. As Jojo’s chubby, bespectacled second-best friend, Yorkie is the film’s funniest character. His sweet nature and complete obliviousness to the events around him are hilarious. Every moment he shares with Jojo is heartwarming and cute as he finds himself inexplicably resilient and makes his way through one precarious situation after another.

Waititi uses overly exaggerated facial expressions that detract from the humor.

The exception to the excellent casting unfortunately comes in Waititi himself. A self-described “Polynesian Jew”, Waititi playing Hitler is, in theory, a perfect fit. He is a talented comedian and the idea of casting a non-white Jewish actor as Hitler is in itself appropriately insulting to Nazi beliefs, but Waititi overacts in the role. It’s important to distinguish that this is not Hitler, but rather a 10 year old’s imaginary version of Hitler, so he only has the mental faculties of a little boy. This leads to some moments of levity as Waititi is confused by things a child wouldn’t understand, but his facial expressions are often too much to handle. He spends most of his screentime trying to make funny faces to get easy laughs, but this is distracting and undermines much of the humor leading to a film with jokes that miss as often as they land.

Setting a feel-good comedy in Nazi Germany is not a normal premise and it has understandably offended some. Jojo Rabbit doesn’t portray Nazis as good-hearted, but it does make them seem like incompetent buffoons in an aesthetically pleasing Wes Anderson-like world that only lightly touches on the atrocities they were so efficient in executing, which is a tonal mistake. That being said, the Nazis themselves are not the focus of the film. Jojo Rabbit, like many of Waititi’s works, is a coming of age story, this time in the midst of warped society. It is ultimately about a child learning to embrace love over hate and disregarding the alleged differences between various people. It doesn’t have the sustained laugh rate it aims for, but Jojo Rabbit is still enjoyable for its lead cast, goofball humor, and a few poignant moments.

3/5 stars.