No No Nacho! Jack Black is like a caged animal in his new film Nacho Libre. Not because he takes on the role of a wannabe professional wrestler with great intensity and ferociousness, but because he is restrained by a weak script and plodding direction. Both of which can be blamed on co-writer and director Jared Hess (Napoleon Dynamite).
Anyone who saw Orange County knows that Jack Black is quite capable of playing an outrageous character and we get brief glimpses of his skill in this film; unfortunately far too brief. It is as if he is breaking free of the cage near the end of the film as he begins singing in the locker room. Then, he has to go wrestle. Actually they both do. Nacho with the villain in the film, and Jack with the script and direction.
It is obvious Jared Hess is going for the same type of subdued story and characterizations that he delivered so beautifully in Napoleon Dynamite but he is missing so much, as is the audience. Hess also does not have the supporting cast that he had in ND. He does not have the wonderfully woven storylines or the interesting characters surrounding his lead. What he does have is unexplored supporting characters and a one-dimensional story that never goes anywhere. The music is as complementing to the film as it was in ND so if you like a film with an interesting sound track, well… no, just say no.
Recommendation: For a more enjoyable experience with Jack Black, rent the 2002 film Orange County. For a more enjoyable film about wrestling, rent the 2000 film Ready to Rumble. For a more enjoyable Jared Hess film, rent Napoleon Dynamite. Enjoy the triple feature with some Nachos rather than seeing Nacho Libre.
Written by Hombre Divertido
Article comments
1 - Timmy
My kids loved this movie, which I think is really the point. I personally tire easily of Jack Black playing a caricature of himself all the time. And while he falls into that a few times in this film, there were enough good moments to distract me from it.
2 - Dynamo of Eternia
I agree with a lot of what is said in this review.
I saw the movie over the weekend. I was alright, bt nothing spectacular (though, I wasn't really expecting it to be).
Don't get me wrong, the film had it's moments. But, I think in addition to what is said in this article, a big part of why this wasn't so great is because Jack Black was in the lead role, and I just don't think he is leading man material.
Now, I do not mean that as an insult. Jack Black is a really funny guy. And I just think that he really shines in the more goofy sidekick roles where he can just cut loose, and he doesn't have to be the character with the most redeaming qualities at the end of the movie.
Let's look at two other movies that he did (one of which is mentioned in this article). Orange County, and Shallow Hal.
Both came out roughly around the same time (at least within less than a year of each other). I didn't see either of these in the theater, and I ended up renting them both at the same time with a buddy of mine.
Orange County I liked a lot. I thought the movie as a whole was really funny, and Jack Black was just hilarious. He wasn't the main character, and he certainly wasn't a very redeeming character. But, he was funny. And this is where he really shines.
Then there was Shallow Hal. Not bad, but not great, IMO. It's not that I think the concept was bad, nor do I think that the idea of him staying with the large woman at the end of the movie was bad. It's just that he was SO held back in this movie. He just tried to play a character that was more or less straight laced, and it really didn't work that well.
I actually think he would have been much better suited for the Jason Alexander role of the extremely shallow friend (remember the seen where Jason's character freaks out over the woman with the weird toe? I can just imagine how much funnier that would have been if Jack had been playing the part).
I will say that he wasn't quite as subdued in Nacho as he was in Shallow Hal.
Another movie that Jack Black shines in is High Fidelity. He was a great side-kick kind of character in that as well. And what's really funny is that in this case, his character ends up being somewhat redeeming, which almost makes the role funnier.
Particularly the part where John Cusak (who plays a great leading character in the film) doesn't want Jack Black's band to perform at a club where he (John) is debuting a CD that he put out. Jack's character just joined this band, and John is worried that they will be terrible. So, of course, we get to the part where they are going to perform, and waiting for it to be a disaster. And then, they start performing, and they are actually very good! This is funny because it is the last thing you'd expect. It works because he is playing a character that does not HAVE to be redeeming, which keeps the audience guessing. And I think he shines in these roles much more, regardless of how is characters turn out in the end.
In response to what Timmy said in reply #1, "My kids loved this movie, which I think is really the point."
I don't really think that was the point. Nacho Libre isn't exactly a movie that is being marketed at kids. It's just that (based on this movie and Napolean) Jared Hess doesn't tend to make movies with a ton of foul language and other material that would warrant an R rating. So, it is family friendly to the extent that there is no content that is horrible for kids to see, but I don't think kids are the target audience.
Heck, I think that in the case of Napolean Dynamite, the humor would just go over most kids' heads. There's nothing wrong with them seeing it, but I think that they just wouldn't get it.
Granted, I think Nacho is something that kids could potentially enjoy more than Napolean, but it's still not something that I would see as being specifically direct at them.
I think that Jared Hess had a hard time finding a balance with this film. Napolean was filled with a lot of subtle humor that just worked.
And it seemed like he was trying to combine similar subtle humor with Jack Black's extreme 'out there' style. It's like trying to make a quiet massive explosion. It just doesn't work.
Now, I don't want to say that it is IMPOSSIBLE for Jack Black to play a leading man character in a movie that ends up also being really, really good. I'm sure with the right script, director, and circumstances, it COULD happen. But I don't think it is a particularly easy thing to achieve. And I still think that on the whole, he works better as a goofy, side character who can just let it all out and be funny, and not have to be the straight laced anchor of the film. Characters of that nature tend to be the most memorable anyway.