Nacho Libre: A Review

Sunday, June 25, 2006

Nacho Libre is the tale of a Mexican monk, Egnacio (nicknamed Nacho), whose job is to cook for the young orphans who live at the monastery. In order to afford fresh ingredients for the young'uns, Nacho decides to start a wrestling career. The teachings of his brothers state the wrestling is "evil," so Nacho wears a mask and wrestles in secret. This is not a long summary, but it literally is the whole story.

The cast is a mixed bag. On the one hand, a cast of relative unknowns really conveys the whole feel of poverty still found in modern-day Mexico. However, few of the supporting actors make their characters memorable. I doubt I'll ever see myself saying "Hey, that was the guy/girl from Nacho Libre!" during a movie. In fact, the characters are so bland that I can't remember any names other than Nacho and his partner (Esqueleto). To put it simply, Jack Black is the movie. If you are not a Jack Black fan, you'll find little else to keep you interested. Fortunately, as a Tenacious D fan and a person who has seen School of Rock upward of twenty times, I was not disappointed by Jack Black's performance. He has an undeniable energy that he carries with him to every scene.

It's tough to say which audience this film was made for. On the one hand, there is the dry humor and sheer random that may appeal to some, while they manage to include enough flatulence to keep the kids entertained. The humor is not for everyone. Whereas Disney/Pixar movies have honed their ability to include enough humor to appeal to both kids and adults, Nacho Libre is geared mostly to kids and Napoleon Dynamite fans. My two-year-old brother has never been able to sit through a movie without getting bored and crying, but we took him to see it after he fell in love with the trailer, and he has seen it twice without so much as a peep.

This may seem a little off-topic, but if there is one type of person in the world that I hate it's the quoter. Quoters kill greatnesses like Monty Python and the Holy Grail and Family Guy by constantly regurgitating the funny lines in some effort to be "cool" only to make you want to drive a nail into their skull. That being said, I daresay I'll hate this movie when school starts up again. There are so many lines that are so out of context that they can be used for almost anything, and I know the exact person that is going to kill this movie for me. My sister has seen it twice and she's starting to catch the quote bug, and I just may have to make her swallow a knife...

I would only recommend this movie to someone who liked the myriad trailers that you see all over the place, as the entire movie is summed up well in those 30 seconds or so. If you love Jack Black and are a fan of he and Mike White's production of School of Rock, you should go see it. If you liked Napoleon Dynamite, and I pity you, it gives off that same rural feel and the director does the same great job of making a movie an endearing waste of time. If none of this applies to you, then I would avoid this movie at all costs.

My rating: 1.5/5
My Rating for Jack Black fans: 3/5. Not his best work, but it'll tide you over until the Tenacious D movie later this year.