As deadpan comedies go, Napoleon Dynamite stands in a class all its own.
Played by John Heder, the title character is (in the words of critic Roger
Ebert) "the kind of nerd other nerds avoid," a mouth-breathing dweeb with a
mangy nest of orange hair, and ungainly features that suggest a perpetual
state of half-conscious depression. He lives in Preston, Idaho (former home
of 24-year-old director Jared Hess) with his thrill-seeking grandma and 32-
year-old brother, and his days at high school consist mostly of being
abused or ignored by indifferent classmates. Napoleon's sad-sack story
doesn't offer the scathing, impassioned humor of Welcome to the Dollhouse
because Hess (who cowrote the nearly plotless screenplay with his wife,
Jerusha) doesn't have an angst-ridden axe to grind. Instead, the comedy
(which exists in a tacky universe of worn-out rural suburbia) is so low-key
that some will find it difficult to laugh, while others (i.e., those who feel
superior to Napoleon) will have plenty of fun at Napoleon's expense. The
result is a curiously uneven film, hilarious at times, but hampered by its own
sense of affectionate mockery. An audience favorite at the Sundance film
festival, Napoleon Dynamite may not be entirely lovable, but it's definitely
unique.