Napoleon Dynamite-DVD

Napoleon Dynamite (2004), Dir. Jared Hess

Everyone kept telling me how funny this movie is. How much I was going to love it. That's where the trouble started. I actually expected something wonderful from it. Actually, I'm not going to be too hard on this one. It was pretty decent. I just have a hard time looking at mouth breathers for long periods of time.

There is this wonderful matter-of-fact-ness about the writing that is really quite refreshing. It feels like they recorded some actual conversations of misfit kids and transcribed them straight into the script. And what's really wonderful, is that these kids- Napoleon, Deb, and Pedro- don't see any difference between themselves and the Summer Wheatleys of the world. They don't feel inferior in their school. They fight back and have real emotions and arguments like everyone else.

I also have an affinity for films in rural towns that don't harp on that fact. It reminds me of where I grew up. (kind of nostalgic, actually) Despite the FFA competition (which is disgusting, and funny, but I still relate to it), there isn't the feeling that any of these people are bumpkins. They could be in an urban setting and the human elements would remain pretty much the same.

One thing that confused me for the duration of the film was the time. What year is this supposed to be taking place? And what time of year? It almost seems like the film is suffering from the same condition as Uncle Rico: living in the past. At times it looks like the late 70's, other times the late 80's, and sometimes it could be today. But it seems to hinge on Rico's idea that if this one thing could have been different, his whole life would have been different. Only Napoleon takes his chance to work magic and possibly make life better for everyone.