Jojo Rabbit, or On Education: Taika Waititi’s Take on Childhood, Democracy, and Hope

Abstract

As fictional figures, children elicit strong emotional responses. This potential for identification presents a challenge in the case of Taika Waititi’s Academy Award–nominated film Jojo Rabbit (2019). Who would want to feel sorry for a Nazi child? Instead of portraying children as either inherently innocent or evil, the film shows that the Nazi regime has corrupted the child through humiliation and violence. This form of poisonous pedagogy is the root of his fanaticism. The author contends that the film illustrates how the grip of racist ideology can be loosened with love and empathy as its antidotes. More importantly, the film addresses issues of contemporary relevance. While a Hollywood film like Jojo Rabbit will not end political polarization or racism, its reassurance that everything could turn out all right is meant to provide comfort and foster hope. By making viewers aware that prejudice is a behaviour that can be unlearned, cinema thus becomes a tool for democratic education.