Director:
Jared Hess
Cast:
Jon Heder …. Napoleon Dynamite
Jon Gries …. Uncle Rico
Efren Ramirez …. Pedro Sanchez
Aaron Ruell …. Kip Dynamite
Diedrich Bader …. Rex
Tina Majorino …. Deb
Sandy Martin …. Grandma
Haylie Duff …. Summer Wheatly
Trevor Snarr …. Don
Shondrella Avery …. LaFawnduh Lucas
Bracken Johnson …. Randy
Carmen Brady …. Starla
Ellen Dubin …. Ilene
The Movie:
This is a movie that the viewer will either love, hate or love to hate. It is a completely random series of events that take place in the title character’s ‘normal’ life. Napolean Dynamite is a special human being. One that suffers many misfortunes much to the delight of audiences everywhere.
Dynamite lives at home with his brother Kip, his grandmother and his Uncle Rico. He takes the bus to school everyday, is often picked on as bullies try to steal his tater tots and is just looking for any form of acceptance. While he would prefer it to come from a girl, he befriends new student Pedro, and the two combine for an excellent adventure of ridiculousness. Their exploits primarily involves your average high school activities, inviting girls out to dances and participating in student council elections, but the way that Napolean and Pedro do these normal things is what is at the heart of the movie.
Many regard this as the most quotable movie of all time, and it is possible. Almost every line that Heder delivers is quotable. From his “special skills”, to his “Ohmygosh” to his “Lucky” to his “I spent three hours doing the shading on your upper lip” each line is rip-roaringly funny and is the reason that the viewer will remember this movie.
It is not so much about what happens. It’s about who it happens to. And Heder and Ramirez deliver truly unforgettable performances with no exaggeration or hyperbole.
The DVD:
The Video:
There is a lot of similarity in terms of picture quality to the movie’s initial release. The 1.85:1 anamorphic transfer to widescreen is clean and really compensates for the fact that the movie was produced on almost no budget (given today’s standards).
The Audio:
The Dolby Digital 5.1 mix sounds great, although there have been some mild audio issues with this movie from the beginning, although these are believed to be intentional. For example, if Pedro or Deb did not speak quietly, their dialogue would not have nearly as much charm as it does.
Like, the Best Special Edition, Ever! (Special Features)
The special features on this disc are simply the best on any DVD in a long time. There is material for every Napolean Dynamite fan. In fact, they are so good, that it would be difficult to accurately describe them without giving too much away.
The DVD comes on a two-disc set. The first disc has the movie, but features two commentary options. The first involves Jon Heder (Napolean Dynamite), Jared Hess (Director/Co-Writer), and Jeremy Coon (Producer).
The second is with many cast members including Aaron Ruell (Kip Dynamite), Efren Ramirez (Pedro Sanchez), Jon Gries (Uncle Rico), and Tina Majorino (Deb).
The really good stuff comes on the second disc. There are 11 deleted/extended/outtake scenes. They run for 20 minutes in total and are presented in the widescreen format. The option is also there to listen to each scene with commentary from Jared Hess, Jon Heder and Jeremy Coon. If for no other reason, these scenes are worth the purchase. The key with deleted scenes is usually to have moments that just didn’t make the final cut. And almost every deleted scene here could have been included. Examples included an extended take of how Napolean managed to pay for the suit that he wore to the dance, an longer look at how he unsuccessfully tried to get his brother to pick him up from school (or at least to deliver him chapstick), and more of him being mocked in the locker room. In addition, there is a great clip of Kip typing his love song to La Fawnduh.
There is one clip that stands out above all the others, and it involves an explanation to the viewer which details how the director, Jared Hess, found himself with some extra film left in the camera and so he decided to point it at Jon Heder and told him to do something while he ran the film out. When Heder started dancing, this became the inspiration for the end of the movie.
In addition to the deleted scenes, there are also a pair of documentaries that run for about 90 minutes combined. The first features an on-location shoot. This features plenty of behind-the-scenes footage and outtakes that did not make the movie. This doc runs 41:35.
The second documentary is called World Premiere: Jared Hess and it serves as kind of a take on MTV’s Diary. The diary talks to the director right before the film premieres at Sundance, during the presentation and after the movie concludes. It offers a great insight into what a film festival is like for a budding director, as he bites his fingernails and explains how he can’t buy anyone liking the movie. This runs for 43:28.
For the record, we’re not even close to being done.
More Flippin’ Features
This is an additional menu on the second disc and it features a handful of Napolean and Rico sightings as they promote the film. In addition, there is an option called ‘Casting Napolean Dynamite’ which features an interview with casting director Jory Weitz (13:04), and audition videos of Tina Majorino, Efren Ramirez, and Haylie Duff.
Also present is Hess’ 2002 short film called Peluca (8:47) which the director says inspired Napolean Dynamite. Also coming back from the first release is the ‘Wedding Of The Century’ featurette, some other stuff (like Napolean and Nicole Ritchie playing tetherball at the 2004 Teen Choice Awards) and the still gallery.
This DVD goes beyond your average disc, because it includes a lot of original material. There is a clip from ESPN featuring a national spelling bee contestant quoting the movie and that is something that you would not find anywhere else.
