Analysis

Napoleon Is Dynamite

I have always loved popular films about teen culture, especially those lighthearted films that poke fun at high school life. Each generation seems to have their own film (or films) which makes the genre all the more interesting and useful as a sort of pop culture gauge.  Grease  is an outlier because it came out in the 70s but portrays the 50s. But in the 80s we had a series of great films by director John Hughes: Pretty in Pink, Sixteen Candles, Ferris Beuhler's Day Off, and The Breakfast Club. These movies really established the genre, and it has been parodied and reproduced frequently with mixed results. The 90s saw American Pie and 10 Things I Hate about You. The former is a certifiable hit, though its sequels fall short. The later was under the radar, though it boasted a star cast. The 00s lay claim to really only one solid effort at the genre, Napoleon Dynamite.

This film, a moderate theatrical success with a much more substantial post-big-screen following, differs from the others in a few key ways. To begin with, while the others are all set in mainstream suburban America (Hughes' films near and in Chicago, for example), Napoleon Dynamite takes place in Preston, ID. Furthermore, while the other films focus on cool kids, cool behavior, and fitting in (generally through the use and abuse of sex and alcohol), Napoleon Dynamite seems more concerned with the outcast finding peace with him/herself through individualism. Finally, Napoleon Dynamite stands alone as the least critical of teen culture. For these reasons, I find the film highly appealing (and hilarious).

Preston, ID is a real town. I want to make sure we agree on this point to begin with. It is often surprising to first time viewers of the movie that the setting is real; the film was made largely on site. This only tells half of the story, of course. While the town is real (you can find it in the extreme southeast corner of Idaho, if you have a map of Idaho handy), the portrayal of the town is at the very least exaggerated. At worst, it is patronizing as some residents of Preston have expressed. 

Preston may not be Detroit (Lafawnduh's home town), but it isn't the land that time forgot, either. But it would be hard to believe the Dynamites as a suburban Chicago family. For one thing, they clearly lack the financial status. This economic position is what makes Napoleon a sympathetic character for many viewers. If Napoleon seems awkward (he is) or even backward (he really isn't) it is easily excusable because he seems to lack the money to dress trendy, buy a car, or even pay for Tae Kwon Do lessons.

But Napoleon's outcast status, exacerbated by his truly uncomfortable (for us) awkwardness around girls, not only distances him from the cool crowd, it renders the notion of a cool crowd virtually ridiculous. There is, in fact, a cool crowd in the movie: Summer and Don. Yep, just the two of them. What results is a sort of inversion of the cool/uncool hierarchy. Pedro, Deb, and Napoleon become cool through their complete lack of interest in being cool. This lends weight to Napoleon's famous first line "Whatever I feel like. Gosh!" This individualism is part and parcel of what it used to mean to be an American--an ideal downtrodden in movies like American Pie.  

There is a certain criticism implicit in the attitude of Napoleon, but the movie never has that didactic moment when the character turns to the screen and delivers his sermon. Ferris does this (quite literally addressing the camera) on several occasions, and the group of students in The Breakfast Club spend the entire movie vocalizing the injustice of the teen social class system. It is good to be critical of these institutions, even overtly critical. This is what continues to drive strong interest in Hughes' films. But there is a sincerity in Napoleon's nonchalance that really makes the movie endearing. If you just want to laugh, the movie doesn't demand any more of you.

I have always been a fan of this genre, even the less quality products. However, I find Napoleon Dynamite to be a standout film with a number of really redeeming qualities. If you can get past the quirky music, the rapid and haphazard scene changes, and the uncomfortable dialogue, you can laugh at a movie that is more real than most people like to admit. Even the folks out there in Preston, ID.

 Work Cited

Napoleon Dynamite. Dir. Jared Hess. Perf. John Heder, Tina Majorino, Efren Ramirez. Fox Searchlight Pictures, 2004. Film.