I don't think that all of this movie works.

The idea of Nazis being portrayed as complete oafs could be considered very irresponsible. I don't think Nazis are gonna look at this and think they are redeemed by any means, because they definitely hate not being taken seriously (which is why most of them reclaim images of Nazis that are supposed to be horrifying i.e. Cabaret & American History X). However, I can see how this portrayal can be polarizing as Nazis are a serious problem that continue to kill people to this day.

The other issue I have is that the one Jewish character, Elsa, does not really have much ties to Judaism... at all really. Waititi doesn't really make it a focus, which I think is a problem because that could have really helped in humanization and her experiences. It is a real missed opportunity and I think more people (including me) would have liked it more if Elsa was more of the focus.

However, I think it works more times than it doesn't. But don't listen to me, please look at reviews from other Jewish critics. Their opinions are WAY more important than mine.

I am definitely curious to see how this compares to other satires on a similar subject matter such as Mel Brooks' The Producers and Charlie Chaplin's The Great Dictator.