Nacho Libre - B

Amid reviews that are both too good and too damning, Nacho Libre lands somewhere in the middle. Fortunately, the success these sorts of character-driven comedies do not ride on critical acclaim. The laughs are silly, and critics rarely give a thumbs up for silliness. Nevertheless silliness is funny (to me), and I found Nacho Libre to be satisfyingly funny. Comedies so often come down to personal preference. What makes you laugh? Comedy directors are always trying to find out, comedy is like hopeful guesswork, hoping that a gag will strike a chord when it may not. Rating a movie's humor is different from assessing it's storytelling or cinematography. I thought Nacho Libre was funny, but you may not.

Jack Black dons a skin-tight wrestling outfit and mask for his role as Ignacio, a Catholic monk who dreams of being a professional wrestler. His dream is challenged by the conservative Catholic lifestyle, and the fact that he's not all that good. His companion is a skinny street urchin who is more help to Ignacio than expected. Sister Incarnacion's Madonna-like (Mary not singer) looks are a good motivation for the pure-hearted Ignacio. Plotwise, you've seen underdog stories a hundred times, but it's Jack Black's performance that makes the film fresh. He delivers a carefully funny performance as Ignacio (his delivery is very controlled, a new style for Mr. Black). He plays his quest of glory kind of like a goofy Junior High kid who just wants to be admired. His facial expressions are remarkably emotive. Jack Black is good at talking with his eyebrows, and he really works the facial expressions in this movie more than ever before.

Jared Hess lights up the screen with the movie's wonderful photography, shot mostly in Mexico itself, with a Mexican crew. Oh yes, about that, some have called out Hess on his silly portrayal of Mexicans, (Entertainment Weekly indicts him with only using Mexican culture for a cheap laugh) but these accusations are unfair. Many comedies include caricatures of any culture, including our own. Napoleon Dynamite stereotypes small-town folk just as scathingly. Hess looks for silliness in all people, not just any specific culture. Plus, the movie is all the more interesting for being shot in Mexico. The hilly vistas and dry desert shots are remarkably pretty, and bold costumes against candlelit adobe rooms give the film a remarkable sense of mood. Such attention to detail is largely foreign to the comedy genre.

Bottom line, if you liked Napoleon Dynamite, chances are you'll like this, too. It's by no means a poorly made film, whether or not you think Jack Black's Ignacio is funny, though your enjoyment of the film may depend on it. This, like Napoleon Dynamite, is a film that will either be loved or hated depending upon your preference in comedies and how many times you've heard the jokes quoted before actually seeing the movie.