This month's free BFI Recommends film is the 2004 indie coming-of-age comedy Napoleon Dynamite, chosen by Eden Court Cinema Youth Board member Yasmine. In this blog, Yasmine reflects on Napoleon's signature awkward charm.
To some, Napoleon Dynamite is just a funny film about an awkward teenager and his friend’s run for class president. But when you look closer, it’s clear there's much more going on beneath its strange, deadpan humour. It explores aspects of individuality, friendship, high school hierarchies, empowerment and - of course - the awkwardness you can find in almost every teenager out there.
In many films, social outcasts aren’t represented in a realistic way. Instead, their stories usually have a fairytale-esque ending where the quirky character changes who they are and what they look like just because that's supposedly what the viewer wants (cough cough... The Breakfast Club). But in Napoleon Dynamite, rather than Napoleon, Pedro and Deb changing who they are to fit in, they all accept their differences and reject society's idea of 'normal' - celebrating the idea of being unapologetically who you are. From Napoleon’s incredible (and awkward) dance skills, Pedro’s quiet confidence and Deb’s creativity, the film really does show you that self-acceptance is freeing.
Napoleon, Pedro and Deb’s friendship is at the heart of the movie - showcasing the subject of friendship and loyalty as a central theme. They all find a way to support each other in small and meaningful ways.
The story shows that real friendship doesn’t depend on social status and 'coolness' but how a person treats you
The film also pokes fun at the social structures of a stereotypical, small-town, high school life - the jocks, the popular kids and the ‘weirdos’. Everybody has their own clique and sticks to their own agenda, which no one ever questions. Rather than having these characters be cruel or judgemental, the movie uses humour to show how silly and shallow these societal divisions really are. When you look closer, the people who seem the most 'normal' are just as insecure and lost as everybody else. And the ones being picked on, like Napoleon and Pedro, turn out to be the most genuine of them all.
In the end, there's no sense of cruelty or judgement in Napoleon Dynamite. It's awkward and absurd, but also incredibly sincere. Each character is naïve, kind and endearing in their own unique way, showing viewers that it's fine to be imperfect and weird - because at the end of the day, so is everyone else in the world.
BFI Recommends: Napoleon Dynamite screens on Wed 29 Oct, free for 15 - 26 year olds.
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