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I've been watching that fundraising-for-the-month graph for a few days now and as we head into the last week of July it's still sitting at $762 out of a needed $1000. Throw in a few dollars if you can - we can do this!
edit to clarify: I'm not an Ovarit mod or organiser, just a regular member of this community
This is one of my top 3 favorite movies ever, and one of my top favorite posts on here as well!! So insightful and well written, and pointed out a lot of things I’ve never been able to articulate in like 20 years of watching this movie LOL
When my siblings and I were younger, every time we’d have tater tots at dinner, we’d ask our mother to watch this movie while we ate 💛 At 8 I didn’t understand some of the jokes, but loved it anyway.. at 28 it’s even more hilarious and more heartwarming
Are you gonna eat those tots?
Great post! I liked the movie back when it came out, but it definitely deserves a rewatch.
I still think the trope of "woman as reward" is at play here, but I can't really articulate anything about it until I watch the movie again. I can't remember if it's used as is or is subverted.
Thank you!
I think there’s just enough subversion to make it work for me (when I’ve been so badly burned by entitled nerds, before.) It’s not like it ends with them sleeping together or even kissing. It’s a promise to share a fish Napoleon caught for dinner and a wholesome game of tether ball. Just overall sweet and while I read romantic overtones, it was largely because the girl already has a thing for Napoleon and always noticed his very real quiet skills and talents (many of which make him a great partner, if you plan to farm and raise compassionate kids in Idaho. He can dance, fish, is a great friend and can tell by taste which milk comes from a cow that got into an onion patch!)
I mostly love that it’s a movie where a man works hard to understand what’s important to him and what matters in the grand scheme. It’s a coming-of-age movie that lacks a real romance, about a nerdy guy who might get the girl, but overall gets a sense of purpose and self-respect.
It’s not like it ends with them sleeping together or even kissing.
Fair point. I do remember the open-ended nature of the ending. I agree, I read her interest as romantic and their friendship has those overtones.
I liked the movie because the hero was so strange and awkward 😂 I found him and his community so different from what I know, and yet so relatable? Ahhh I really need to rewatch it.
This is such a great description of this movie (which I have loved since it was released in theaters). Thanks for reminding me why I like it and for acknowledging that it is more than just a "dumb nerd comedy" as I have heard it described.
Aw, I’m very much obliged. ❤️
I’m a huge nerd myself, so I actually relate to Deb way more than Summer or Trisha in this movie. Autism is a handy thing to pin it on, but I’ve always had a very sincere and vulnerable affectation, with very dedicated niche skills and interests. If anything this has made me both aspirational and accessible to nerdy men, which is probably why I’ve dated so many.
The movie makes me happy because the message isn’t “change yourself to be liked by the cool kids”, or “change the cool kids to like you,” but “someone, somewhere, will appreciate you and think of you as cool.”
I also love how the movie doesn’t interpret “don’t change who you are” as “never grow or change as a person and reject all constructive criticism.” Every character has an arc. Every character makes mistakes and learns from them and grows into someone better. I rewatched this yesterday with my kids and paid closer attention the relationship with Kip and Lafawnduh, and I realized that he is ACTUALLY the mythical nerd guy who shows the appropriate amount of gratitude for his insane good fortune. He tells Napoleon that she is “literally the best thing that has ever happened to me”, and falls into being quickly and wholesomely influenced by her. He even leaves at the end to join and integrate into her household and community. I’m not actually so down on Kip anymore just because, OK, fair enough, he didn’t let his ego get in the way of a really positive development with an amazing woman!
Wow, I'm so here for this analysis! It's been a long time since I've seen Napoleon Dynamite, and I remember it as drily funny and almost American Gothic. I definitely wasn't equipped to view it with a feminist lens back then, so now I'm curious to rewatch it.
I love this analysis and I love that movie. It was formative for me as a millennial and also set in a place near my roots. I had never thought about it from a feminist standpoint. Just a small correction since it's close to home.
Women would, and do, value them, but men are likely to mock them even in a state like Iowa.
It's set in Idaho, if this is a reference to the setting of the movie :)
Oh my gosh, you’re right, it’s in Idaho lol. I don’t know why I misremembered as Iowa.
I will correct it, and rewatch the film tomorrow with my kids because I think that’s overdue. Thank you so much for your comment and your appreciation.
big nasty bad probable Victorian jock Lord Barkis
o/brandnewsentence lol
I found this movie irritating and a waste of time when I saw it, back when it came out. but perhaps I should take a second look at it. I tend to really dislike movies with no female characters beyond the love interests and mothers.
Thank you, I'm guilty of overquoting this as it was the silliest movie I'd ever seen at the time. I always respected that Jon Heder (who played Napoleon) publicly said "I don't think I ever will do a sex scene because of my religion and my personal standards." He's turned down several roles that would have amounted to infidelity. IDK what kind of person he is privately (other than Mormon and married 20+ years) but I wish more people in entertainment felt this way!