Spot, while I agree with you, I just cant understand how this film made it. Throughout the movie, you can see boom mics and really crappy camera zooms (like the consumer models do.)

I belive MTV co-produced the movie so I wouldnt necessarily say they saw talent but more importantly dollar signs. I guess it shouldnt surprise me anymore when things like Spongebob or Jackass do well. More importantly, I am beginning to think that the target audiences are not the well educated viewers they once were but instead, the trend in target audiences is leaning toward those that are maturity challenged. I mean afterall, you have Dumber and Dumberer, Dude Wheres My Car, and the films I mentioned above and I think we can finally see why the entertainment industry has to fight for its dollars these days.

The upside for me is I am currently writing three different scripts ("Blasephmous Rumors", "Outside the Gates of Heaven" and one that is untitled) that I feel if written and shot properly, could become successful. Hopefully at the very least one will become successful so I can set my family up for a long time. But I seriously doubt Ill ever get some studio to shell out millions for a budget for any of them.

I've read and re-read your post Patrick. So what is it you want from me?

Best regards,

Graham Bernard

I haven't seen the film, so I'm not commenting on it either, but there's something I have to say. Get used to it. I review films for an online reviewing site and have seen plenty of Sundance, Slamdance, and other top 10 festival movies. Most of them are total crap, pretty much unwatchable, and have nothing approaching a plot. People think it's deep if it doesn't make any sense. Usually there are festival movies that win awards all over the place but the general public wouldn't want to see 5 min of them. They're so anti-Hollywood and "artistic" that they don't give you much of anything, especially not a good story. See enough of them and you start to miss the Hollywood formula as at least it generally has some attempt at a plot. At any rate, these festival movies usually only gather a smattering of a following and that by misunderstood sensitive poets.
Then there are general audience films. Some are great, some are "Garfield".
My point is that you may be right on the money about this film. But the hell with it. We're gonna keep seeing this happen from time to time and maybe it should piss us off. It won't do us any good though. But, you sound like you've got your filmmaking priorities straight, so go out there and bury DN with your film. I always look forward to seeing anyone's work who refers to story being the most important element and hope to see your work some day.

Sorry for my venting. Just had to sit through 95 mins of an unwatchable "avant-garde" film that got into some big festivals and won awards as well. Love the job, but really hate the movies sometimes and I tend to take it personally.

You know, at any given point you can always stand up and walk out if you don't like the movie. You should be able to tell within the first ten minutes if it's going to work for you or not. And don't forget to ask for your money back, too. I do!

Jay

See, the producers weren't so dumb after all, how many of us are now going to see this thing just to see what all the fuss is about?
How many bums on seats do I count?
Bob.

I saw the trailer... my bum will stay right where it is now! ;o)

Jay

Ive seen the trailers, high school movie. not supposed to be a work of art,
supposed to sell tickets and get the teens to see it over and over and then buy the DVD for the holidays.Probably considered a success in hollywood or Vancouver or wherever the decision makers are these days.I would bet you will see a Napolean Dynamite part 2

"I guess it shouldnt surprise me anymore when things like Spongebob [...] do well."

Blasphemy! :O)

Quote from the movie, "You can't fool me, I listen to National Public Radio!"

Sometimes it's OK to JUST have some fun.

:O)

pmasters,
I've read your posts from the past and have an understanding of your aspirations and frustrations that go along with them. That's about where it ends though as an "understanding." You are one of these guys who sits back and critiques everyone's work and ellaborates on how you could have done so much better, but due to life dealing you a bad hand of cards the man is keeping you back. So off you go to the local coffee house, with the handful of change you have, sipping on a latte and whinning about how the world could be so much better if someone would just give you a chance to make your masterpiece movie and if you had the money to send yourself to school to learn.

Let me tell you, nobody gives you a chance, you earn your chances. Sometimes those chances don't pan out, but that doesn't close the door and end there, it opens the door to more chances. My words of advice to you are this. If you want to make films or whatever it is you want to do, then get off your lazy ass, and stop blaming everything else for holding you back from your dreams. The only thing holding you back is yourself, and being able to discipline yourself to make things happen.

I have 2 friends that got married about 4 years ago. Both of them work in the movie industry. One of them is a movie video editor, the other is a freelance movie set builder. The one that is a movie video editor, had no school training. She started off as an intern at the advertisement production house I also worked at. She got experience and got a "chance" to be an editors second, She learned editing skills by being a second by working underneath someone. Soon the clients became familiar with her and inbetween sessions she practiced what she had learned. Soon afterwards when the first editor needed a vacation or a day off, she was given a "chance" to fill in for him. She then got further experince and was given a "chance" to be the first editor in another studio that was opened. After that she met up with my other friend and got engaged. He had been previously working with movie set builders traveling with a hammer and some nails, and doing a lot of construction work. Let me tell ya, me and this guy grew up together as kids bulding tree forts and I can tell you, he couldn't nail 2 boards together to save his life. With enough practice and persistance he developed his skill and started to construct his own movie set ideas. More importantly, he worked for others in the trade that could give him chances once they observed his skill level increasing with experience. Him and his wife moved to Pasadena, California, where she took her experience and became a movie film editor. He works from his home and does free lance work, where if a movie company needs some special prop built for a set, they call him to build it. I visit them on occassion and share stories of things we each have worked on. The friend who builds movie sets pointed out a few things I might recognize from movies. One of them was a miniature statue of liberty used in the movie Miss Congeniality with Sandra Bullock. Everytime he points out one of these small art piece items used in a movie, I always look at him and laugh and say, "You remember that tree fort we built as kids, that kept falling out of the tree, and looked like a great big garbage pile of wood in that pine tree in your front yard?"

So the moral to my personal story is this. Yes, maybe that movie Napolean Dynamite was a piece of sh*t movie. Maybe the end of it the director learned a lot of things that he would have done differently, and took that experience with him and his next movie won't be such a piece of sh*t. Just like my friends first tree house that we built, was a piece of sh*t and now he's making things that blow my mind. The difference there is that guy has opened further doors for further chances and learned a lot in the process. So while you're still sitting there at the latte house, with the same 75 cents in your pocket bitching about the last piece of sh*t movie you just saw, he'll be working on his next master piece.

Most everything in life you start off at the bottom, roll with the punches along the way, and work your way up to what you want to do. That's what you need to do. So get off your lazy ass, quit your crying, stop blaming the man for your problems, shut the f**k up and do it. No one is going to give you a million dollars to make a film, when you've just been sitting back in the coffee house critiquing everyone elses work. When you put in the blood, sweat, and tears, eventually those chances of someone giving you a million dollars to make your film will come. Even then, we might be here looking at that movie and saying the same things you are. "What a piece of sh*t, movie that was." But you'll be sitting back maybe even agreeing with us, but saying "you're right, and there's a lot of things that I would have done differently, if I only knew the things I know now.......but Universal studios saw my work and am willing to include me in their next big picture....and I know what I'll do differently to make that one much better."

Rednroll,

First and foremost, I am not blaming the man. Life deals crappy cards. Lifes not fair and that I accept. True I have had several setbacks within the last year but nothing is stopping me from achieving whatever it is I wish to achieve.

Furthermore, I paid to see the film I critiqued. Therefore I have the right to express what a complete and utter piece of crap that it is. That is what is wrong with the movie business today. Its not about art or being artistic. Its about the all mighty dollar.

Im glad the kid made some money writing/directing. I dont have a problem with that. What I have problem with is quality viewing. Lack of storyline/plots and poor filming. So what if the kid learned a few things that do differently next time. I doubt he learned to tell a proper story. So the sequel will be crap.

I dont blame others for not allowing me to make my masterpiece. Truthfully, it may not be an masterpiece in anyone else's eyes but my own. Thats ok, its not them Im doing this for. Im not in this for the big money, the fame, to get laid, etc.... Im in this because I love the art of storytelling and making people think. If it reaches a few people and helps them in anyway, then great. I am also positive that when my films are done that there will be someone else out there just like me that can do better and probably will. It doesnt matter to me. If you cant take criticism then the entertainment business is definitely not for you. You cant please everyone.

The point intended in my original post was with all the money Hollywood is making/throwing to produce films, this is the best they can come up with? No wonder they report falling sales. But when I spend money to be entertained by a movie, I expect to at least have a logical storyline/plot and to at least expect the director to have the competence to make sure the boom mics arent visible in the frames. You dont need film school to know that.

Youre right. I was going to do the film school thing and then I realized one thing. The only thing I would have gotten from it was network contacts. Everything else i can either learn by reading, searching the web, or by my own experience with trial/error. I take notes on everything I watch. The good points/the bad points, what worked for me while viewing, what i didnt like it, how I would improve it. Even with people's promos here on the forum. I take notes on everything. So when the time finally does present itself, that i wont make the same mistakes others have made. I am sure ill make some of my own but not those that I have witnessed.

But honestly, I dont think anyone can question my commitment to this unless they walk in my shoes and know me personally. I was lucky enough to have met with a prominent member of the entertainment community who has read some of the scripts I have been working on and was given the compliment that if I had a good camera with my ideas, Id be dangerous. Now, I am not trying to be arrogant but I agree. The things I am writing have never been done before much less discussed in a public forum. I am not one that thinks every movie should have a happy ending with the villian getting their due. I am also not part of a century that thinks a romance flick is one where the story doesnt change only the characters names and appearences.

The things I am writing about arent fantasy or suspended disbelief. Its about real life and the real emotions one feels. I am writing things that people can identify with. The very things that people can say, "I thought I was the only one who felt/thought like that."

At the end of the day, will it be successful and surpass box office records. Probably not. Does it matter to me? No it doesnt. I am not in this to appeal to the mass audience. I am in this to produce films that I have always wanted to see that no one had the balls to write. If it reaches one person and has an impact on them, that is all I can ask for. If it makes some coins then great but all I care about is breaking even so that I get to tell the stories Ive always wanted to tell.

So perhaps Napolean Dynamite did just that...told the story he wanted to tell (albeit a very bad one). Still doesnt change my perception of what I paid to view. I take solace in knowing that when its my turn, it will be heads and shoulders above whats being put out in droves today.

Well sed, Red. Nothing breeds success like a succession of failures.
Patrick, I don't mean to jump on Red's bandwagon in a way that offends, but you do talk a lot about the "bad cards" you've been dealt.
Dude, anytime you want to compare, I'm there. Imagine being #2 on the Billboard charts, embarked on a world tour, and in the blink of an eye, a horrendous, virtually unimaginable family tragedy takes all of that away from you. That's on the beginning. It just gets worse. I had the chance several years back to chat with Eric Clapton, as our stories aren't all that different.
But rather than cry about it and quit living, I stood up. Every frickin' day is a challenge, just like it is for everyone else.
Paid for the movie or not, you had choices. You could leave, you could get your money back, you could aspire to do better, you can start shooting your own dream, even if it's just with a crappy super8 cam from the pawnshop. My first vid was with a borrowed camera and a borrowed computer. I did it myself, it went to #9 on BET. (yeah, they were starving for content back then)
Only you make your own breaks. Regardless of what life deals. I've had several lives and several successes in places you'd be pretty surprised to hear about. I've had more failures than most people ever dare attempt to achieve. If I were ever to give credit to anything or anyone for my successes, I'd give it to the king of failures, because I've had more than my fair share. But you can't fail unless you get up and try.
Now go make great video. :-)

I Loved Napolean Dynamite.

Vote for Pedro!

Yoyodyne

It's definately targeted at a specific audience (MTV types). To each his own....I won't watch it because I know it won't appeal to any side of me that might come close to enjoying it.

I went over to IMDB and it currently has a 7.3/10 with roughly 6900 votes. Rotten Tomatoes labels it "Fresh" and they are usually tougher on movies. That is just sidebar since I generally like movies the critics hate and hate movies critics love (most of the time...we do agree on a few).

The budget for this film is estimated at $400K. In one weeked alone it grossed $2,286,541 on 1,024 screens in the US (19 Sept '04) and that's just one weekend....it had about 12 million dollar plus weekends here in the USA. I say all that to point out they went after a particular demographic and it paid off. My hat's off to them. At 400K budget (est) it was a pretty safe bet in my opinion.

There are plenty of movies out there that I tend to believe suck more than a Dyson vacuum but that will never change. I too hate Hollywood formula movies that you figure out in the first ten minutes. You just have to create what you create and put it out there. Some will love it and some will hate it. Just hope more people love it than hate it.

Actually, if you're not cranking out formula scripts for monetary purposes only, who cares what people think as long as you are happy with your product.

KB

I enjoyed the movie too, exactly what I was expecting from it; nothing special, but got some laughs out of it and enjoyed the cheesy way it was presented; on purpose.

Some people dont enjoy these flicks, understandable, but some do =) Its a matter of taste; everyone is different.

Spot, I agree whole heartedly with what you say. True, back over the summer, I relied heavily on the "why is this stuff happening to me" but a lot has changed since then for me. While the circumstances havent changed financially, my attitude has. Back then, I was convinced that no matter the effort put forth, it was never going to happen. Now, I know that nothing will stop it from happening. The only thing that can prevent it from ever coming to fruition is me quitting and that is not likely to happen.

Friends and family dont understand desires and passion some times. Typically, most everyone tries to be a realist and accomplishes discouraging a budding director/writer/etc....After being told many times that it will never happen, all it did was piss me off and gave me the proper motivation to succeed and shove it in their face.

Once I get some of the script dialogue worked out on these scripts, I will be more than happy to allow anyone to read and critique it. Once I get the camera situation straightened out (currently still have a JVC 520U) and get a bit higher end camera, I am going to start production and it will be entered in Sundance for 2006.

With all of the criticism I have faced every where I turn, it has only strengthened my desire for success. Whether it be teaching/films/etc..., success is in my cards because I am the dealer, not life and in my game, my house always wins.

Hi there,
my input re some of the threads---

I'm working on my first film and it could be months, even years, before I can afford to finish it .( excuses, excuses). Meantime, doing the next best thing and making commercial videos for $. Sure beats working in a corporate office for 15 years - before making the scary break from steady income to pursue artistic interests full time.

Also make art and although my first love is to paint large, bold canvases in the abstract style, they don't sell as well as small paintings with the recognizable subject matter people like to hang in their homes... Therefore, to make money in my chosen field, I have to churn out some "bread and butter" paintings. An artist friend thinks that's selling myself out and gets on my case for not making "genuine art" . Mean time, she has to live off of her parents and complains about not being able to sell her stuff.

My point is, don't knock films (videos, or passionless paintings,) that get made "just for the money". If they make lots of money, it's usually because LOTS of people like them. If some films (like the ones mentionned ) target teens, or a certain market segment, what's wrong with that? Money and the freedom it buys is a big incentive. For some this might be the freedom to make the more serious, well-made films they aspire to. I 've not seen Napolean, but it's hughly popular and has been playing in theatres here for over a year based largely on word-of-mouth from those who have seen it.

I saw 65 films from around the globe at this years Toronto International Film Festival. Most were beautiiful, well-made, extraordinary films, that will never be released, or very limited at that. Festival films are not all artsy cr*p - in fact from my experiences at the TIFF in past years, most are not. You can be a filmmaker the likes of Nanni Moretti, Francois Truffaut, Pedro Almadovar and never clean up at the box office, no matter how great your films are, or you can slap together a little horror flick or American Pie type film and be a box-office hit. Whatever, they all take a great deal of time, effort and dedication to get made, promote and get into the theatres.

You say that "you'll have gotten your ass kicked by some kid who knows nothing about writing a competent and coherent storyline". From what I've heard - that was the whole point of the film - just this nerdy kid acting nerdy. I think that the shoddy camera work and boom mikes showing, etc. are entirely intentional. Now I'm making a point to see this movie before it leaves town!
pm - I would use what you feel about this film as as a driving force for your own work.
I've seen many junk paintings (to me) in galleries that could quite easily have been painted by a monkey in 5 minutes, selling for several hundred dollars. Instead of feeling frustrated, it gives me confidence that there's a market for my own "masterpieces" that took a lot of thought, creative decisions and weeks to finish.
My suggestion would be to focus on your own work and don't waste your creative energy feeling irritated by what others do. Better to have a good laugh, shake your head and and not let it get to you,---- in fact, why not go all out and wish them more success.

Oh hey, one of my fave sayings just came to mind: "Love your enemies, just in case your friends turn out to be bastards ".

"With all of the criticism I have faced every where I turn, it has only strengthened my desire for success."

Glad to hear that. The same can be said for the guy writing the Napoleon Dynamite. I'm sure everyone who saw it, may not have liked it. I'm sure he's read his fair share of opinions and reviews that are similar to yours. So he has benefitted from the criticism also and is also strengthened from the experience to aspire to further success. Your posts title in itself shows me you look at everything in a negative manor. "An hour and a half Ill never get back". Hmmm...is the glass half full or half empty. Quit living in the "half empty" viewpoint. You spent an hour and a half and observed many things that you thought where not good, and in your viewpoint would have done differently. So instead of looking at it, that it was a waste of an hour and a half of your life, view it as a learning experience where you now know what you wouldn't have done in comparison to this. So you now know, what NOT to do. If every film you watched was entertaining and perfect in your viewpoint, then how would your films be any different, because basically you agree with how everything is done and your films would therefore mimic this same type of money grabbing recipe you're condeming in the first place. You can't have a subjective criticism of anything if you don't see what you consider bad, and what you consider good. There are 2 sides and you must view both and decide where in your subjective opinion the best choice of direction is. Thus, you can not have GOOD, without there also being Evil. There cannot be BLACK if there is no WHITE to contrast it too.

Now get to work, kick ass and take names.

I found it to be an excellent film--low budget but excellent. and better then half the crap that comes out of Hollywood. My son, thought it was hillarous--an excellent coming of age movie with a certain kind of quirkness. Obviously, the movie viewing public agrees with me because it was wildly popular on limited release and now is getting a national go. Perhaps we are getting old and forgot what it was to bee a teenager.

Great movie--to each his own and stop the attacks on what many believe (including many people who have studied film) to be a very good movie. IF you are obessed with boom poles in frames, I assure you that you will find them on even the most expensive HOllywood trash.

Rex, youre missing my point here. Im not obsessed with the poles in the frames, but man, if youre going to be professional and intend to make money from it, then at least have the courteousy to film professionally.

Im not attacking the kids film but more so voicing my opinion that it is complete crap. I would not claim that the majority enjoyed this film. I would say there seems to be an even split on the quality of the flick. More importantly, if today's youth finds this stuff funny I am even more concerned about our future with them as our leaders.

Great movies arent about filming, framing, effects, etc...they are about one thing...great writing and story telling both which seemed majorily lacking in Napolean. After rewatching it to see if I could make heads or tails out of it, the only storyline I could figure out was him trying to get his friend elected which seems to lose track of quite a bit.

Heres the way I see it. The kid did his movie and made a bunch of cash. He deserves all the criticism and accolades he gets, afterall, he got paid for it which is more than most can say.

When I referred to my viewing as time ill never get back, I was referring to that time could have spent supporting another independent director who's offering was well told and well filmed but will never get the pay day this kid got.

I suppose that is whats most frustrating about films like this. The greatest films are films we will never see because they dont get breaks like this. Some of the best films will never see the light of day because films like Napolean will take up box office space while more deserving films lay on a shelf collecting dust or are relegated to straight to DVD.

Sadly enough on imdb, there are threads where people think this film is deserving of major awards. Thankfully most of them dont have votes. I dont think that I have forgotten what it was like to be a teenager or maybe I was blessed that I didnt have to endure a Napolean child hood but even back then, I dont think Id see the "humor" in the film. More so, its probably the opposite in that with maturity, I have grown to appreciate true comedy and not the borish trash thats offered up these days from Hollywood.

........More importantly, if today's youth finds this stuff funny I am even more concerned about our future with them as our leaders.


Lighten up, its a MOVIE!!! Entertainment, silly fun, totally unimportant shi$
What in the world did you think you were going to see ? Citizen Kane .
Plenty of complete crap when you were growing up too, you just may not have known it.