Review: Nacho Libre (D)

Nacho Libre (2005)
Directed by Jared Hess
Starring Jack Black, Ana de la Reguera, Héctor Jiménez, Darius Rose, Moises Arias
MPAA: PG
Grade: D

Review by Scott Standish

As a huge fan of Napoleon Dynamite, let me cast my vote. Nacho Libre is a total failure.

Usually, Jack Black is funny as hell. That's for sure. But there's a big problem with Nacho Libre, Jared Hess' follow up to Napoleon Dynamite: it's just not funny. The story revolves around Nacho (Black), a monk that yearns to be a wrestler and live a fulfilling life outside of the monastery. He hooks up with a skinny side kick (Esqueleto) and he enters the competitive world of professional wrestling. There is thin back story about how he is doing all of this in an attempt to help the kids of the orphanage. Kind of like the Blues Brothers, but without all of that crafty nuance and surreal humor to get in the way.

By the way, Nacho is also in love with Sister Encarnación (Ana de la Reguera). She frowns on his wrestling but finds him charming. This romance is supposed to be a big part of the film, however Hess seems to abandon this story line, only to sidle back up to it later. By then, who really cares?

In conclusion. Nacho Libre has absolutely zero subtext. The dialogue is weak, the story is stupid and despite Jack Black's best effort at hamming it up, this film falls dreadfully flat. A better follow-up to the Napoleon Dynamite franchise might be the upcoming Sasquatch Dumpling Gang. Saw it, liked it, and can actually recommend that one.