Reviews of Napoleon Dynamite

Napoleon Dynamite

Posted : 1 week, 5 days ago on 20 November 2008 01:57 (A review of Napoleon Dynamite)

Napoleon Dynamite (Jon Heder) is a high school student from Preston, Idaho who lives with his Grandma, his brother Kip and their pet llama, Tina.

Kip Dynamite (Aaron Ruell) is an unemployed, 32-year-old who boasts of spending hours in Internet chat rooms with ‘babes’ and training to be a cage fighter. Napoleon daydreams his way through school, doodling fantastic magical creatures and getting bullied. Naploeon and Kip's Grandma is admitted to hospital after she has a dune riding accident whilst visiting friends.

Believing her grandsons cannot be trusted to look after themselves, she asks Uncle Rico (Jon Gries) to stay with them while she recovers. Uncle Rico is a middle-aged failed American football quarterback who lives in an orange 1975 Dodge Santana campervan and is stuck in the year 1982 (a fact which caused a breakup with his girlfriend). His presence, although increasingly irksome to Napoleon, is a boon to Kip as he and Uncle Rico embark on a joint project to become door-to-door salesmen selling a Tupperware-like product. Kip reveals that he would like to earn some money to enable him to meet his new Internet girlfriend from Detroit, Lafawnduh Lucas (Shondrella Avery). Uncle Rico is not averse to using Napoleon's name to gain credibility in his attempts to sell herbal breast-enhancement products to Napoleon's school mates, causing increasing friction between Uncle Rico and Napoleon.

As the plot progresses, Napoleon makes two new friends from high school, Deb and Pedro. Deb (Tina Majorino) is a shy and sensitive girl who seems to take a liking to Napoleon. The two have a fight however, when Uncle Rico attempts to sell her breast-enhancement herbs and implies that Napoleon suggested it. Pedro (Efren Ramirez) is a transfer student from Juarez, Mexico, who promptly decides to run for class president against the popular ‘babe’, Summer Wheatly (Haylie Duff). Despite a couple of hiccups, the campaign goes well right up until the time Pedro is just about to deliver his final speech at which time he realises that each candidate has to perform a skit afterwards. Having not prepared any such routine, a despondent Pedro gives a short speech believing that his candidacy is over. However, Napoleon displays uncharacteristic quick-wittedness by giving the tape in his Walkman to the sound engineer and performs a well-rehearsed, energetic dance routine, which wins a standing ovation from the school audience.

The film closes out with a montage of scenes showing a happy ending for all concerned. Pedro wins the class presidency. LaFawnduh, having journeyed from Detroit to visit Kip, is immediately smitten with Kip. After she transforms Kip's fashion, they leave town together. A fully recovered Grandma returns and has clearly missed Tina, the llama, more than her grandchildren. Uncle Rico's girlfriend, who is mentioned earlier in the movie when Rico and Kip are eating lunch, returns to Rico and his van, as well. And finally, Napoleon is playing tetherball by himself until Deb shows up and starts playing with him, having forgiven her friend.

A post credits scene reveals Kip and LaFawnduh getting married.



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dumb yes, but frickin funny!

Posted : 4 weeks ago on 3 November 2008 06:29 (A review of Napoleon Dynamite)

Napoleon Dynamite is dumb I admit, but it is hilarious dumb. It is just John Heder walking around doing funny things and that is good enough to make this movie great. Excellent dumb comedy.

full rating: 9.2/10

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I'm not voting for anyone!

Posted : 9 months, 4 weeks ago on 8 February 2008 04:43 (A review of Napoleon Dynamite)

I'm inclined to agree with the person below me.

There are worse films out there but this film doesn't do much to keep out of the bracket.

Jon Heder pulls off the 'Kevin the Teenager' routine poorly and then doesn't really resolve or change anything. The dance is not at all amusing.

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?!?

Posted : 1 year, 10 months ago on 16 January 2007 10:48 (A review of Napoleon Dynamite)

Am I the only humanoid in this galaxy that hates this movie...guess so.

4 comments, Reply to this entry

Pointless, in a good way

Posted : 2 years ago on 7 November 2006 11:34 (A review of Napoleon Dynamite)

Napoleon Dynamite is a pointless, plotless, slow and unmotivated movie, yet I can't help but laugh all the way thru.

Don't be expecting a story line or even a point to the movie, and you'll love it. And that one scene where the uncle throws the OTHER guy's steak at Napoleon on the bike. Ah man, that scene is permanently etched into my brain. LOL

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