If only Napoleon Dynamite hadn't gotten so popular.  It's funny how a film's legacy can forever be tarnished thanks to its immense popularity.  For instance, take a film like Wet Hot American Summer.  That film flopped at the box office, became a cult hit upon its release on DVD, and now is regarded as an underground comedy classic.  The same would have likely happened to Napoleon Dynamite, if it weren't for, you know, that unexpected monstrous box office success.  After the initial hype, and the subsequent overexposure, the inevitable backlash occurred.  I can't blame people for hating on Napoleon Dynamite after its success; the film's fans became unbearable.  Napoleon Dynamite became the worst kind of cultural phenomenon: t-shirts were worn (“Vote for Pedro”), the quotes came flying at you from all sides by those lacking the wit to create their own material, and every man, woman and child were exposed to amateurs impersonators giving their best Napoleon Dynamite voice. 

And, just as quickly, everyone was burnt out on Napoleon Dynamite.  It came and went like any cultural phenomenon does.  Napoleon Dynamite is “Achy Breaky Heat.”  Napoleon Dynamite is Beanie Babies.  Napoleon Dynamite is the Rubik's Cube.  

Napoleon Dynamite stars Jon Heder as the titular lead.  He's a nerd going to public school in Idaho, in one of those towns where pop culture is a decade behind the big cities.  There isn't much of a plot to be had.  Mostly, Napoleon and his new friend Pedro try to get dates to the prom.  However, if you strip away all the hype, the backlash, the incessant quoting, Napoleon Dynamite is a very funny film.  It's offbeat, has a handful of unique and endearing characters, and is the rare PG-rated comedy aimed at the alternative crowd.  

I was lucky enough to see Napoleon Dynamite before anyone told me I had to see it, before people were wearing the t-shirts and before hipsters deemed it terrible.  My brother and I saw the 30-second commercial for the film airing on MTV, thought it looked weird and funny, and caught a matinee at a normally-second run theater on Napoleon Dynamite's opening day.  We laughed our asses off.  We had no idea what to expect, and Napoleon Dynamite provided us with something totally unique.  As I like to tell people, you can't judge a product by the make-up of its fans. 


-Oscar Dahl, BuddyTV Senior Writer
(Image Courtesy of FOX Searchlight)