Napoleon
Dynamite: 10 Sweet Years of Liger Magic, Tots, and Great Skills
(2004/Fox Blu-ray w/DVD Widescreen + Pan & Scan)
Picture:
A/C+/C- Sound: A/B- Extras: A Film: B+
Ten
years ago saw the release of Napoleon Dynamite and now 20th
Century Fox has re-released the film on Blu-ray in this excellent
package with a Blu-ray and two sided (Widescreen/Full Screen) DVD
edition.
The
film is arguably the best film made about nerds since Revenge of
the Nerds came out in the 1980s and tells the story of Napoleon
Dynamite - a teenage geek with a fantastic imagination a pet Llama
named Tina. His nerdy older brother, Kip, studies martial arts and
has an intense online relationship with a hot babe and is
constantly picking on Napoleon - who is smitten with a quiet girl at
school named Deb who takes studio photographs and sells beads.
Things turn south when Napoleon's Grandmother gets injured in a dirt
bike accident and Napoleon's trouble making Uncle Rico moves in with
a scheme to sell 32 piece Tupperware and model sail boats door to
door. One saving grace is Napoleon's new friend Pedro who gives him
some confidence with talking to girls and ultimately breaks him out
of his shell with a lavish student body election.
Once
Pedro asks out Deb to the school dance, Napoleon decides to ask out
Tina by giving her a hand drawn portrait of herself. Thanks to Uncle
Rico laying a guilt trip on her mom, she reluctantly accepts
Napoleon's invitation. The film just keeps getting funnier and
funnier and makes any nerds you know inferior to the nerds depicted
in this film.
The
Blu-ray release of this film is superb - 20th Century Fox
did a great job of restoring the picture quality to its original 1.85
X 1 aspect ratio in 1080p high definition. The audio sports a DTS-HD
Master Audio (MA) 5.1 lossless track, Spanish Dolby Digital 5.1, and
French Dolby Digital 5.1 tracks respectively. Subtitles are also
available in English SDH, Spanish, and French. The DVD sounds
noticeably worse than the Blu-ray, which is standard with a Dolby
Digital 5.1 track.
Fox
also loaded this special edition release with TONS of extras
including Outtakes, Deleted Scenes, and Commentary by
Co-Writer/Director Jared Hess, Producer Jeremy Coon and Star Jon
Heder, Peluca - an original short film, Cast Commentary by Aaron
Ruell, Elfren Ramirez, Jon Gries, and Tina Majorino, The Wedding of
the Century, On Location: Napoleon Dynamite, World Premiere - Jared
Hess Documentary, Napoleon Sightings, MTV On-Air Promo Spots, Still
Gallery and Audition Clips
If
you are a fan of the film then this release is definitely worth
picking up! If you've been living under a rock for the past decade
and haven't seen it, then it really is a must see quirky comedy that
delivers the laughs and is funny even on repeat viewing.
This
is the fourth major release of the film on home video and we have
covered all 4 of them, featuring a different writer sharing their
thoughts on the film in each case. Here's the link to the previous
three reviews:
DVD
http://www.fulvuedrive-in.com/review/1864/Napoleon+Dynamite
Expanded
DVD
http://www.fulvuedrive-in.com/review/3710/Napoleon+Dynamite+-+Like,+The+Bes
Blu-ray
http://www.fulvuedrive-in.com/review/8275/Napoleon+Dynamite+(Fox+Blu-ray
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James Harland Lockhart V
www.vimeo.com/jamielockhart
