currerdell

First of all let me say that the end of Napolean Dynamite is GREAT. Other than that, the best things I can say about this movie is that it tried hard and was relatively creative. However, I sat through most of the movie with my face completely expressionless, pausing to laugh just once throughout most of the movie -- and that was because of an extra's expression. I think that one of the things that disappointed me most about Napolean Dynamite was its lack of charisma. So many of the things said could have been so funny if they were said slightly differently. Instead, the humour was neither outrageously flamboyant nor subtly ironic, it just was. So blandly so that anything humorous about it was dished out in the form of stupidity alone. Napolean's excessively stupid humour soon put me into a trance that I only was able to get out at the end when -- well, if you're honestly going to watch this movie then I won't tell you what happens. However, I must commend the actors for getting into character with such a gusto that they became what they were supposed to become: caricatures of reality.

This has long been one of my favourite adaptations of an Austen novel. Although it is definitely not in the same category as the spectacular "Pride and Prejudice," "Emma" is a lush and relatively faithful TV version of Austen's novel -- especially considering its short length. The biggest change between the novel and the movie is a good one, as the unnecessary snobbishness that Austen exhibits at the end of the story is removed here and replaced with someone much more akin to Emma's character in the rest of the book. I thought the characters chosen to portray the roles were well-picked. Kate Beckinsale walks the fine line between girlishness and the social snob with a grace completely lost in Gwyneth Paltrow's '96 version. Samantha Morton's wispy blonde locks suit her attitude and character as the simper that accompanies her role in previous characterisations is replaced with the Harriet we know from the book. Mister Knightly's role is carried out extremely well in my opinion; both the seriousness and the gentle compassion that the hero is painted with in the novel are present here in this much-neglected, sumptuous film.