The critically divisive film, which is either a brilliant slice-of-nerd-life or an out-of-control skit, depending on who's watching, does have some undeniably memorable lines: Almost everything Napoleon Dynamite star Jon Heder says is quotable. At one point, he asks a potential girlfriend, "I see you're drinking 1 percent [milk]. Is that because you think you're fat?" Elsewhere, he begs his equally (but differently) nerdy older brother to bring his Chapstick to school because "My lips hurt real bad!" And there's still time to threaten those who might bully him: "Who's the only one here who knows illegal ninja moves from the government?"
The incidental music in Napoleon Dynamite, composed by relative unknown John Swihart, recalls the pointed miniatures that Mark Mothersbaugh has painted for each of Wes Anderson's films, though on a more whimsical scale. They are, as intended, background to keep a light story light. The other songs, like the movie itself, suggest an existence outside of time: There are modern tracks by Jamiroquai ("Canned Heat") and the fine, underappreciated indie band Rogue Wave, but also strangely out-of-place '80s tracks by Alphaville and When In Rome. (Another '80s staple, the theme from The A-Team, also shows up.) It's worth sticking around for the not particularly hidden bonus track, in which Kip Dynamite (Aaron Ruell) sings the praises of both his new Internet love and the technology that brought her to him.
