Napoleon
Dynamite is an odd character for sure, with his shaggy red
afro, moon boots (he wears them year `round), and t-shirts
usually featuring those glossy iron-ons so popular in the 70's
(he seems to purchase much of his wardrobe at the local thrift
store) with a penchant for drawing mythical creatures,
boasting about fictional girlfriends who live in other states
(don't they always?), and touting his non-existent martial
arts abilities, "You know, there's like a b*tt-load of gangs
at this school. This one gang kept wanting me to join because
I'm pretty good with a bowstaff". Oh yeah, he breathes mostly
through his mouth, and his vernacular includes, but isn't
limited to, the liberal usage of such words like sweet,
flippin', gosh, freakin', and heck, and he, along with his 32
year old brother Kip ( Aaron Ruell), live with their
grandmother (the brilliant Sandy Martin), who owns a llama
named Tina. After an ATV accident sends grandma to the
hospital, Uncle Rico ( Jon Gries who garnered an IFA acting
nod for Best Supporting Actor) arrives to watch over the boys,
and involves Kip in his schemes to make some sweet cash.
Napoleon, meanwhile, finds a friend in a newly arrived
Hispanic student named Pedro (played to perfection by Efren
Ramirez) and he and their shy and kinda dorky friend Deb (
Tina Majorino) assist Pedro in his bid to become the next
student body president, their competition being Summer (
Hayley Duff), member of the cheerleading squad and the most
popular girl in school. Do the trio have a chance in beating
the juggernaut that is Summer? Perhaps, but it requires
Napoleon to pull forth from within something no one would have
realized he had, not even himself...
The film is wonderful...it's kind of a mix of the Coen
brothers (Fargo, Raising Arizona), John Waters (Crybaby), and
the earlier films of John Hughes (Sixteen Candles). There's
not much of a story at the beginning, more of a series of
innocuous, unrelated, comical events, but later on we do see
some development in this area with regards to Napoleon and Deb
helping Pedro in his running for student body president. Some
scenes will make little or no sense in relation to what you
may perceive as the story, so my recommendation is to just let
it go, and enjoy the film for what it is, whatever it is...the
real fun lies within Heder and his complete submersion into
the character of Napoleon, wallowing in his own uncoolness.
Initially most will probably find him annoying and
off-putting, but he sort of grew on me, and I actually found
myself quietly rooting for him, in his most simple of
endeavors (like trying to find a sweet fanny pack at the local
thrift store), but don't get the wrong impression. This isn't
a triumphant nerd film (the nerd beats the jocks and/or gets
the head cheerleader in the end), but a character-driven slice
of weirdness that has a tendency to amuse. The dialog contains
tons of quotable lines, and comes across genuine sense of
realism. The composed music by John Swihart and chosen
pre-recorded material used to make the soundtrack complemented
the film very well. I think my favorite scene is when Napoleon
discovers his uncle's crude time machine (which he purchased
of the Internet), and decides to give it a try...does it work?
Well, it does something, but I won't tell you what...one thing
I really noticed was an absolute absence of profanity. I'm not
against its' usage in films, and have even become used to it
(for better or worse), so it was kinda refreshing.
The picture quality, presented in both 1.85:1 anamorphic wide
screen and 1.33:1 full screen (both sides of the DVD are
used), looks sharp and clear, with the Dolby Digital 5.1 audio
coming through very well. Special features are numerous and
include a commentary track by the director/writer Hess, actor
Heder, and producer Jeremy Coon, along with deleted scenes
(with optional commentary), a short film entitled `Peluca'
(basically the original concept for the character of Napoleon
Dynamite, also with commentary), a number of MTV promotional
spots, a still gallery, a featurette on the shooting of the
final scene (keep watching the film after the credits to see a
newly filmed 4 minute sequence shot a year after the film was
released, made especially for the DVD release).
Cookieman
