June 8, 2004 > Napoleon Dynamite: A New Cult Classic

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From rural Preston, Idaho comes Napoleon Dynamite (Jon Heder), an unlikely hero equipped with "moon boots" and skills that can't be topped. Napoleon lives with his grandmother (Sandy Martin) and his 30-year-old unemployed brother Kip (Aaron Ruell), who spends his days looking for his "soul mate" in internet chat rooms. Grandma decides to hit the road with her boyfriend for a short trip leaving Napoleon and Kip under the watchful eyes of meddling Uncle Rico (Jon Gries).

Along comes Pedro (Efren Ramirez), a new student, who needs Napoleon's help to win an election for Student Body President against popular Summer (Haylie Duff). Avoiding Uncle Rico and the herbal breast enhancers he sells door to door, helping Pedro, and impressing girls is quite a balancing act for Napoleon. He and Pedro combine their skills with pi–atas, drawing, and baking cakes to use, but a surprise talent could be their answer to winning the election and getting the girls.

Napoleon Dynamite is the brainchild of wife and husband team Jerusha and Jared Hess. Jared studied film at Brigham Young University (BYU), where he met Jerusha, and produced the award-winning short film "Peluca." Jon Heder, Aaron Ruell, and producer/editor Jeremy Coon attended BYU, as well, thus the Napoleon Dynamite team was born. Jared is currently developing his next comedy feature.

Although Napoleon Dynamite has been compared to films such as Rushmore, it is far more entertaining and packed with laugh-out-loud scenes. The film's comedic timing, dialogue, costumes and performances are impeccable. Following Revenge of the Nerds with a better film about the triumph of a couple of geeks seemed unthinkable but with the release of Napoleon Dynamite, victory of the underdogs is back! Audiences of all ages will enjoy this endearing and hilarious film.