Napoleon Dynamite Story & SE DVD Review

There will always be a place in my heart for Napoleon Dynamite. I'll give you a little background as to why so that even if you perhaps hate the film you will understand my position. I give a brief review of the DVD as well at the end (so skip down if you want) with all the special features.
It's very apt to discuss it here on my pop culture section of my website because this movie HAS invaded our pop culture. Love it or hate it, it's everywhere.

2004, Spring. My dad calls to tell me that he has gotten free tickets to see this movie called Napoleon Dynamite and asks if Joe and I would like to tag along with him and my sister (who at the time is about fifteen). Sure, no problem, I say. It was quite a drive to get to the screening theater- over an hour I'm sure - and I honestly am not sure why we even went when I think back. Still, the point is, we went. We were greeted by some young MTV-hipsters who gave us free T-Shirts, stickers, and buttons. Cool, I thought, although I had no idea why I would want a pin that said "Vote for Pedro." The screening was before all the funny MTV promos and previews so we really had no clue what we were going to watch.

So we settle in, the movie starts, and it's the most bizarre thing I've ever seen. No one in the theater really laughs, except when Napoleon takes his bike off a "sweet jump" and crashes. I giggled once or twice but overall when I left the theater I was kind of unsure of the whole thing. Joe, of course, loved the entire movie. Dad, my sister, I, and dad's friend Steve left the theater dazed and parted ways to mull over what we had seen.

Fast forward a week. Joe and I have begun talking about the movie to death. We imitate Napoleon's voice (now way overdone by the youth of today I may add) and my dad, sister, and I all begin quoting the movie. Then the MTV promos begin to air and we call each other to ask "Did you see the one where Napoleon calls the zoo about Ligers?" Then the extended ending was added and Joe and I went to the theater to see it again. This time, the theater was pretty full and people were BUSTING out laughing.

I'm not quite sure how that phenomenon works. Why did I not "get" the film at first? How has it become so popular and so quoted today? That doesn't really matter I guess. This will always be a classic film for me, especially when I consider that I saw it before most people did and how it really brought my family closer. Plus, it's so refreshing to watch a comedy where the "F" bomb isn't thrown out there every few sentences. There is no cursing, no serious adult themes, nothing that would make this movie "bad." Some would say it has no plot. What movie did they watch? Work hard, be sincere and maybe your wildest dreams will come true.....

Anyway, onto my review...

Napoleon Dynamite - Like, the Best Special Edition Ever! DVD Review
The case for this edition is fun - a goofy lenticular of Napoleon's dance, which almost was worth the price of the DVD alone. The commentary is okay (done by the director, and all the major actors). Nothing that is crack-up hilarious but it's still interesting and not as dull as I thought it may be. The best part is the second DVD with all sorts of goodies: ALL the MTV promos, Jon Heder's SNL monologue and appearances by Napoleon all over the place. The best "treasure" is probably Napoleon and Pedro promoting the Utah State Fair, something that you would never have seen unless you 1.lived in Utah or 2. bought this DVD. All the goodies from the first film are here as well so no need to have both editions. The transfer looks about the same as the first edition visually and the sound is perfectly acceptable. Overall, for a hardcore Napoleon fan, a must-have. I sold me old DVD on Ebay to upgrade, and I'm glad I did.