on Napoleon Dynamite
Monday, January 03, 2005
Lets face it... you either loved this film, or hated it.
I'm on the "loved it" side.
It's hard to imagine that the below pic is the real Napoleon Dynamite... John Heder.
Why did I love the film? Well, first of all, it's my kind of humor. I take pleasure in the subtle imperfections of life... not of the silver screen. Even films like Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure had a certain "polished" sense to it. But in Napoleon Dynamite even the "cool" characters in the film are far from perfect. There's even a certain dorkiness in the school jock. During the whole film, he just makes this "cool guy" smirk at Napoleon which really looks like a constipated face while trying to say witty lines ... but he never bullies him, cos he's scared too. Whereas Napoleon, who is far from perfect brags how he's the best drawer in the school. His affection towards tater tots even gets some screen time. Everyone loves tater tots, but what other movie would ever give tots some screen time? Even Uncle Rico, who's always on the verge of looking like a heeby jeeby perv, is just too caught up in his glory days, to actually be one.
Another thing I noticed about this film is it's relative message. There is no time period in this film. Are they in Middle School or High school? What high school plays kick ball with over-sized balls? Is it the 80s or 90s? Why is there internet then? The film itself isn't made to encompass any of that. It's just made to highlight the universal stupidity that we've all gone through and thought about. I mean, how many times have I laughed at myself for cracking and singing out of key when no one else is in the car. Hahaha! When it comes down to it... even the coolest person is a huge dork in their own minds. Don't lie... YOU KNOW YOU ARE!
I'm on the "loved it" side.
It's hard to imagine that the below pic is the real Napoleon Dynamite... John Heder.
Why did I love the film? Well, first of all, it's my kind of humor. I take pleasure in the subtle imperfections of life... not of the silver screen. Even films like Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure had a certain "polished" sense to it. But in Napoleon Dynamite even the "cool" characters in the film are far from perfect. There's even a certain dorkiness in the school jock. During the whole film, he just makes this "cool guy" smirk at Napoleon which really looks like a constipated face while trying to say witty lines ... but he never bullies him, cos he's scared too. Whereas Napoleon, who is far from perfect brags how he's the best drawer in the school. His affection towards tater tots even gets some screen time. Everyone loves tater tots, but what other movie would ever give tots some screen time? Even Uncle Rico, who's always on the verge of looking like a heeby jeeby perv, is just too caught up in his glory days, to actually be one.
Another thing I noticed about this film is it's relative message. There is no time period in this film. Are they in Middle School or High school? What high school plays kick ball with over-sized balls? Is it the 80s or 90s? Why is there internet then? The film itself isn't made to encompass any of that. It's just made to highlight the universal stupidity that we've all gone through and thought about. I mean, how many times have I laughed at myself for cracking and singing out of key when no one else is in the car. Hahaha! When it comes down to it... even the coolest person is a huge dork in their own minds. Don't lie... YOU KNOW YOU ARE!
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