Napoleon Dynamite Review
Sunday, 15. June 2008, 00:34:23
With a few days off work, nowhere to go and my sister’s DVD collection sitting unused I am on a mission to get up to speed on cultural awareness.
The first film I watched was Napoleon Dynamite. This was a great film, not just as good as the quotes on the DVD case, but up there around Nacho Libre. But one thing before I start into the content: the case has a note beside the BBFC PG triangle saying “Contains mild language”. BBFC: you phail at english comprehension.
I know a few people who, if they were merged together, would come close to being like Napoleon Dynamite, so in that way it was all the funnier for me, as well as seeing some of my own young teenage self in Napoleon. I also enjoyed comparing life in rural Idaho with rural Northern Ireland. I like my space, but not as much as would be afforded in Idaho. Idaho was portrayed beautifully by the cinematographer, but even Northern Ireland as the least wooded area of Europe has more trees, and I like green.
Getting onto the content though, even though it covered lots of issues, especially living in the past and making something of yourself, it didn’t seem to actually be about anything other than a few weeks of the life of a teenager. Then again it was a very funny few weeks. Plus, considering the tone of the film as being mostly humorous at the expense of the characters, I was very surprised by the happy endings everyone had, although you won’t see some of them unless you watch the whole end credits.
Content aside, the real quality in this film is in the performances of the actors, and it is impossible to single anyone out. You can see why in the deleted scenes the commentators lament at cutting out some actors who only had one line. Together with the cinematographer, director and wardrobe, all the actors stylise and caricature their characters so much that you laugh just looking at them and any jokes in their lines are a bonus.
The only problem I had with the film was that although John Heder was brilliant as Napoleon and he did look young when he was on his own, in real life he is seven or eight years older than the lead lady, Tina Majorino, and it shows when they are in a scene together. In those cases Tina really looks like she should have been in primary school instead of high school.
Overall, a very funny film, like a Cohen brothers film for high-schoolers, though I fear it may be a little slow for some.
The first film I watched was Napoleon Dynamite. This was a great film, not just as good as the quotes on the DVD case, but up there around Nacho Libre. But one thing before I start into the content: the case has a note beside the BBFC PG triangle saying “Contains mild language”. BBFC: you phail at english comprehension.
I know a few people who, if they were merged together, would come close to being like Napoleon Dynamite, so in that way it was all the funnier for me, as well as seeing some of my own young teenage self in Napoleon. I also enjoyed comparing life in rural Idaho with rural Northern Ireland. I like my space, but not as much as would be afforded in Idaho. Idaho was portrayed beautifully by the cinematographer, but even Northern Ireland as the least wooded area of Europe has more trees, and I like green.
Getting onto the content though, even though it covered lots of issues, especially living in the past and making something of yourself, it didn’t seem to actually be about anything other than a few weeks of the life of a teenager. Then again it was a very funny few weeks. Plus, considering the tone of the film as being mostly humorous at the expense of the characters, I was very surprised by the happy endings everyone had, although you won’t see some of them unless you watch the whole end credits.
Content aside, the real quality in this film is in the performances of the actors, and it is impossible to single anyone out. You can see why in the deleted scenes the commentators lament at cutting out some actors who only had one line. Together with the cinematographer, director and wardrobe, all the actors stylise and caricature their characters so much that you laugh just looking at them and any jokes in their lines are a bonus.
The only problem I had with the film was that although John Heder was brilliant as Napoleon and he did look young when he was on his own, in real life he is seven or eight years older than the lead lady, Tina Majorino, and it shows when they are in a scene together. In those cases Tina really looks like she should have been in primary school instead of high school.
Overall, a very funny film, like a Cohen brothers film for high-schoolers, though I fear it may be a little slow for some.
