::A specific sense of humor will find this movie 'flippin' sweet::

Upon seeing Napoleon Dynamite, I knew very little about the cast involved in the film and the crew behind the camera. Twenty-five year old filmmaker Jared Hess proves himself as a young up-and-coming director in an industry full of “new” directors trying to make a name for themselves. This being his first full-length directorial debut, a lot was riding on Hess’ shoulders. A very unique approach was taken during the making of this film resulting in a fresh, anti-stylish comedy that will score constant laughs in any age demographic. With much personal anticipation surrounding this movie, I had a high bar set for what was to unfold.

::Napoleon Dynamite::

It’s an understatement to say that this film is difficult to explain to others. The story that surrounds the film is for the most part straight forward, but the humor found in the dialogue needs to be seen and heard to truly be appreciated.

Jon Heder plays the lead character “Napoleon Dynamite,” who’s a high school student that can best be described as trying to fit a rectangular block in a wall of circles. What makes him unpopular in the world this film entails is his outrageous lies that he creates to fellow-classmates, the rationing of “tater-tots” in his pant pockets, or his offbeat dialogue that takes over the audience each and every scene. He may not be the most popular guy in his high school, but he manages to create a motley crew of friends. Unlike his fellow classmates, us as the audience is cheering him on.

Each scene in this film seems to be oozing of hilarity as natural performances from Jon Heder, Aaron Ruell (who plays his brother, Kip), Jon Gries (Uncle Rico) and some other notable performances make this $400,000 marvel seems like a priceless slice of comedy for the 86 minutes the film occupies.

Simply the nonsensical dialogue found in this film is more than enough to spring some laughter from its viewers, but there is a good portion of physical comedy found as well. Truly comical dialogue is hard to come by; it seems that most comedies these days are too formulaic. Napoleon Dynamite goes off the beaten path to get the goods. Sometimes you may have no idea where the film is going next or what it’s all about, but the scene-to-scene comedy is more than enough for you to not care about such things.

I must give Jared Hess huge credit for both co-writing (with his brother, Jerusha) and directing this film. Constantly throughout “Dynamite,” we are given laughs that may have no character development found in them, nor will they progress the story, but are nonetheless hilarious. I am reminded of the scene where Uncle Rico throws a steak at Napoleon’s face while riding a bike, leaving Napoleon to crash. Another quick comic interlude comes from Pedro riding his bike off a ramp; we then see Napoleon try the same thing, resulting in the destruction of the ramp as well as physical pain to his pelvis. We are not supposed to find this smart, but we are supposed to take it for what it’s worth and let the story unfold as it may.

With the funny gags found in the film, a story is built around it that not only keeps his interested on what’s going on and cheering for Napoleon, but it becomes extremely redeeming once the credits start to roll.

Behind the comedy, there is “a true underdog story” here that was not touched upon in “Dodgeball.” Napoleon is ignorant to the world and is weary to anyone around him, but we feel bad as he gets picked on, beat up and given a bad time by virtually everyone in his life. We are rooting for him throughout the film. I will not disclose any details as far as how it ends, but as much as this movie seems far-fetched; you can’t help but draw similarities between this movie and real high school life. And so, this movie gets down to a much more personal level. It attempts to make us laugh, and dares to make us care.

In the end, Napoleon Dynamite is a story to laugh until you cry, but don’t be surprised if you end up caring about the characters and their fate. If you like Adam Sandler movies, you will most likely not fully-appreciate the humor found in this film. But if you like something a bit more subtle or different, this is where you can find the goods. So far it’s the funniest film I’ve seen this year; and seeing what’s coming out in the next few months, it may hold this title for 2004. Enjoy checking this movie out and make sure you see it on an empty bladder; you may laugh until you have an accident…gross.

* * * * 1/2