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It should have just been called "Contrived". It was engineered to be a string of catch phrases ("""""""Inside"""""" jokes) that mindless teenagers who watch MTV would like. It was phenomenally successful in that respect (and it wooed a big intersection of the SA/MTV populations), but in the end it's not a good movie. There were some good parts, like Napoleon' dance scene) and Pedro (he may be the best actor ever playing a horrible actor, but he's probably just a terrible actor). 3/5 ermular fucked around with this message at 21:34 on Feb 1, 2005 |
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Feb 1, 2005 17:25
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I affectionately refer to Napoleon Dynamite as "the other side of teen movies". Teen movies are always about the popular kids and their adventures to make the football team, or to run for class president, or to get the girl. But they usually have a cameo by that one awkward kid that everyone loves to laugh at. This is a teen movie from the perspective of that awkward kid, and instead of having a cameo, he's the focus of the movie. Nothing particularly earth-shattering happens, but it doesn't need to. It's simply a middle-of-nowhere sequence of events in the life of a quirky high school nerd. If you ever knew 'that kid', or if you were 'that kid' in high school, you'll relate to everything in this movie. That said, beyond simply relating to it, there wasn't a point in this movie where I wasn't either chuckling or outright cracking up. 4.5/5 And for those saying it can't be a movie without a plot, I don't understand why. A plot would've ruined the whole point of this movie, which is a completely mundane experience. I guess you needed to grow up in the middle of nowhere around weird people to 'get it'.
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Feb 6, 2005 06:47
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One of the best movies I have seen in a long, long time. I've since bought the DVD and have watched it at least 25 times, laughing harder each time. The pace is just as I remembered my foggy days in high school. The casting was nigh on perfect as was the score. I cannot recommend this movie high enough. Definitely 5.5 you fat lard.
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Feb 10, 2005 14:52
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This movie was simply not funny. The movie has no plot to redeem it, and the character loses his appeal roughly 5 minutes into the film when his demeanor is no longer novel. Somehow, it felt like a long, boring cliche. 1.5
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Mar 2, 2005 11:01
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I went into this movie expecting something so funny my head would explode so excuse me if my review is a little unfair. I enjoyed the movie, its better than pretty much every movie I saw in 2004 (open water, AVP2 etc) but I just didnt find it all that funny. In fact I almost fell asleep watching it in my house. The intended stale dialouge lost its novelty very fast and I grew tired of seeing Napolean talk to anyone but his uncle and various bullies. The story was non existant and also equally boring. I never cared what was going to happen next and watching Napoleans day to day life was just as exciting as watching a real nerds day to day life. 3/5 for some great acting and a few funny jokes Pros: Napolean Cons: Dialouge, plot
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Mar 3, 2005 03:07
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This movie loving blew. The only, ONLY part of this movie I actually laughed at was the part where the guy shoots the cow in the head in front of the bus of kids. .5/5, only because I can't rate it any lower.
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Mar 3, 2005 06:53
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quote:Bonk came out of the closet to say: While not my OMGALLTIMEFAVORITEMOVIEOFALLTIME, it was a lot of laughs, was well put together and was just an overall entertaining cinematic experience. 4.5/5
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Mar 3, 2005 08:17
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I found this movie painful to watch up till the last 15 minutes. I think the ending redeemed the whole movie. You cant help but smile after this movie ends. 3.5/5
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Mar 6, 2005 06:11
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I saw the the "MTV Productions" and cringed, hoping that it would redeem itself as everybody said it was so great. I am either too stupid or too smart for this movie. My 13 year-old little brother thought the exact same thing, even though he tried VERY hard to laugh at it as all his friends loved it. I don't know, I just didn't find the funny  0/5. Blaise fucked around with this message at 09:20 on Mar 7, 2005 |
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Mar 7, 2005 09:12
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I really liked this movie even though I couldn't really relate to any of the main characters. Just the humour just got me spot on throughout, I couldn't get the smile off my face until long after it finished. "You got like 3 feet of air that time" 5.0
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Mar 7, 2005 11:16
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I didn't find the funny either. Oh, it had it's moments, but they were small laughs in a vast sea of nothing. Maybe I'm too old, or too smart, or too dumb, or maybe it's just not my kind of humor, but the movie was dull, pointless, and contrived. I voted 2.0 for artistic merit, but I still think it's two hours of my life I'll never get back.
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Mar 9, 2005 18:24
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quote:acslater came out of the closet to say: There was no point in this movie and I wasn't laughing. 1/5
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Apr 29, 2005 23:12
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quote:ShadowHawk came out of the closet to say: My thoughts exactly.
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Apr 30, 2005 19:12
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I like movies that are 'different.' I don't think movies or books NEED to have a solidly-structured plot. I also thought this movie had some really funny moments. It's just so...mediocre. It seems like somebody wanted to make a movie jam-packed with wackiness and semi-esoteric references that play off of people's nostalgia. I agree with deadEd on many points. This just seems an average, almost bland film to me. I don't quite understand what makes this film such pants-jizzing comedy jesus that everybody around me seems to love...maybe I just need to watch it again some time. 2.5/5
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May 10, 2005 08:24
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I was expecting a inaccessible intellectual film at the beginning because it wasn't playing at the major cinemas here. I saw the dvd and enjoyed it, it's got no plot but it doesn't need one. napoleon is immature, but it's funny and entertaining instead of annoying. my favourite part is the "FINE!" retort.
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Jul 14, 2005 11:39
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I used to hate this movie. I hated its guts, I saw it once and wanted to gouge my eyes out, I saw it again just to make sure that I hadn't missed anything, and hated it even more. Then, a month later, I watched it again and my opinion started to change and I gradually fell in love with it. I couldn't tell you why, it's stupid, tacky, it's got no plot, no character is even remotely likeable and I can't relate to anything in it. It just grew on me. 5/5 for a very unique experience that I needed time to truly enjoy.
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Jul 15, 2005 00:35
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on first viewing i hated this and would have given it a 2/5, but on repeated viewing i liked it to the point of giving it a 4.5/5, but after everybody quoted it terribly and it became a cult movie and i saw it just about everyday, i now hate it to a point of hating anybody who tries to quote him over and over. 2/5
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Jul 20, 2005 03:00
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I liked this movie better when it was called Rushmore and it was smart. That said, I suppose it's serviceable as a kind of Wes-Anderson-lite film. 3/5 for the hilarious little sight gags like Pedro's uncles staring down the bully. I was chuckling.
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Jul 26, 2005 05:23
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I watched this expecting subtle quirky humour, if not laugh out loud comedy from start to finish, but it didn't really deliver. Throughout, a whole lot of nothing happens, acted out by people who look so bored and morose that they look like they're reading off of autocues half the time. There is no plot as such, no real development of characters, just random strings of 'wacky' dialogue that makes no sense. Sometimes absurdity can be hilarious, but this falls just short of actually being absurd and ends up just being peculiar, and without the necessary weight of a coherant plot behind it the film falls short of carrying itself along. A few smirks were had here and there and its worth seeing if only to see what all the fuss is about, but personally I wasn't impressed in the slightest and was entirely underwhelmed. It's also one of the most overly quoted un-quotable films that I've ever seen. I'll give it two out of five, since there is some degree of charm to the setting and the strange almost retro feel to it, but on every other count I found it extremely lacking.
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Jul 27, 2005 15:22
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This isn't the first movie I've seen where there's supposed to be this big groundswell of comedy seeping out of every crevasse of the film as long as you 'get it'. Well, I 'get' this movie, and it 'gets' a 2 for some nifty lines and weirdness and a unique feel. There's also some bad weirdness, lots of things that are played out in teen/parodyish comedies, some just plain dull things, and there's no emotional value besides comedy. It's about a 2.5 on one viewing but I can't see much of it holding up to repeated viewings. einTier said it best.
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Feb 15, 2006 04:17
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This is good as a movie that stays within the confines of the microcosm of the "high school nerd" clique. Unlike the neverending spew of other teen movies, this doesn't try to caricature every known clique all at once and somehow try to involve them in some wacky scheme. It's closer to "ordinary life" (or what the director expects us to expect "ordinary life" is for suburban Idaho teenage nerds) and is overall very mild, and mildly abstract comedy. The movie nods to Wes Anderson's style, but less overly pessimistic, and doesn't attempt to be too smart for its own good. I think the phrase "it's funny because it's true" is what both helps and hinders this movie from getting uniformly good reviews. To an extent, and at the risk of parroting so many others, it really does help enjoy the movie if you "get it;" that is, you were (or could identify with) a socially awkward, introverted nerd in high school, and can look back on it and laugh. I also can't help but feel that part of the backlash for the movie is that once it got picked up by MTV and force-fed into the feeding tubes of pop culture, it lost a lot of its charm, much like taking a once quaint small suburban town and funnelling thousands of tourists through it. I first saw this movie the week of its first limited release in an indie theater, and enjoyed the heck out of it. I felt like I was part of something awesome, something big, but still secret -- figure a new neighborhood bar that hasn't yet been discovered. Now that every youth from 12-22 has Napoleon Dynamite merch and taglines on their Myspace profiles, the franchise feels somewhat devalued and I can't help but feel the slightest bit ashamed for still holding this movie in high regard. At the risk of damaging my reputation for being a man of distinctive taste, I'll hold on to my rating of 4.0.
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Feb 16, 2006 22:49
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Honestly one of the worst movies I have ever seen. Never even came close to a smile.
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Feb 18, 2006 02:41
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Voted 4.5 I refuse to be swayed by the growing "backlash" against this movie. I think it's just a reaction by those who wanted to keep this movie for themselves and resent the fact that it made it into the mainstream. I saw this it for the first time long after the bandwagon came and went and I loved it. I don't care about the MTV logo (didn't even know they owned it until I saw it mentioned here) and I don't care about the hordes of teens spewing the catch phrases everywhere they go. Several of the characters and plenty of scenes made me laugh enough for my money's worth.
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Feb 23, 2006 07:59
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I enjoyed all the parts of the movie but it just doesn't feel good put together like it is. As a series of short stories in his life it could be amazing. (example: Pedro's campaign; the internet girlfriend; the school dance; etc.) When watching the movie all the way through I just find myself laughing at the one liners but being bored with the movie itself. 2.5/5
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Feb 27, 2006 03:40
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It seems to me that this movie is less a film proper, and more of an experience. Luckily, I'm the kind of guy who can enjoy it on its own level, its own terms. I don't need more than the most basic outline of a plot to follow, which Napoleon Dynamite has. There IS a plot, contrary to some beliefs. Napoleon, with his friend Pedro, set out to become popular dudes and are thwarted at every angle. Yet, somehow, they manage to do just that in the end. There's no denying that it's ridiculous. It's got some cliches, true, but I feel that it uses them in interesting and extremely funny ways. Kip is such a geek, chatting online with babes all day, having Napoleon "pull" him into town, etc., but he still gets the chick in the end. Pedro is very, very similar to a good friend of mine in high school, so everything he says is great to me. And his cousins. "Pedro offers you his protection." Uncle Rico, the fallen football star who's stuck in the past, which reminds me: the time machine. I guess I'm just a sucker for some comedic pain. I could go on about this movie, but others have expounded specifics much better than I. In short, if you can accept this movie as it is, with only a thread of a plot just to keep it coherent, and understand the characters on their own terms (total losers, every one), you should enjoy it. Possibly not as much as I do, though. And for the record, I've only seen Donnie Darko once and didn't think it was that great. 5/5
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Feb 27, 2006 07:44
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I hated this movie with a passion. I only laughed 2 or 3 times throughout the movie.
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Mar 6, 2006 09:02
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I really liked this film, not because of the dance sequence at the end or the pedro jokes or even the stories themselves, but because it was directed and editted in such a way that it reflected the simpleness of the whole film. The characters were great not because they were hilarious or unique, but because they all shared the common goal of wanting to be happy, without the over-thinking and complications of normal people. It was directed so well to fit in with the thinking of the characters that I couldn't help but love it and how incredibly unpretentious and awesome it was. 4.5/5
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May 2, 2006 19:31
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It's interesting to see the reviews go from almost all 5.0s on the first page to almost all 1/2's on the last page. Either A) The movie got too popular and people didnt think it deserved to be that popular/ got annoyed at teenagers quoting the movie nonstop, or B) It got so popular that many people finally saw it and wouldn't have liked it anyway. Regardless, I vote for a 4.0/5, it was still a great film and reading over other posters quoting some lines did admittedly make me laugh in remembering them. Admittedly the ending is sorta bland, but I was laughing for most of the movie. My favorite part, and maybe this explains a lot, but I loved when Kip says "your mom goes to college".. talk about an overquoted line, but regardless it was just so bizarre, but not only that, the girl got really offended. Then he sits back and looks smug at the zing he just used. The idea that the characters live in a world where they get offended by such a crazy insult, I dunno I just like movies where completely bizarre sayings/actions are considered normal.
entropy fucked around with this message at 08:20 on Jul 20, 2006 |
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Jul 20, 2006 08:18
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Oh look! Awkward people!!! Aren't awkward people hilarious? Guys? Guys??? It's possible that I've seen a more painfully unfunny movie, but I really can't think of one. What the gently caress was all the fuss about? 0.5/5
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Jul 21, 2006 06:48
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I thought this movie was pretty interesting, and deviated from the typical comedic formula. First, consider how unlikeable Napoleon the protagonist is. He's a complete rear end in a top hat to everyone in his life, even those who try to befriend him which is a nice departure from the "lovable loser" stereotype. Second, and more surprising, consider that the film is completely family friendly. The writers didn't rely on a single "swear" word. I've been watching this as it reruns on HBO, but I have no doubt this will end up a staple on ABC Family. I'm not all Focus on the Family, but it was refreshing and demonstrative of the writing talent that not even a "drat" was needed to get some laughs. I almost wonder if Uncle Rico's breast cream scam was written in just so the film would get a PG and not a G (though there is the not-too-slight suggestion that Napoleon's grandma is a lesbian). 4/5 JohnnyHildo fucked around with this message at 06:43 on Jul 22, 2006 |
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Jul 22, 2006 06:38
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I can understand laughing at this movie, as I myself did a lot when I saw it. But I must say, whether or not I found it initially funny, I have no intention of ever seeing it again. It's unfair to criticize a film itself for the merchandising shitstorm and catch-phrase horse-beating that took place after the fact, but in this particular case it's SO out of control that you can't really separate the two. The first problem I have with the film is that as many others have noted, 99% of the jokes are just pure jokes. They aren't humorous aspects of stories and characters, but rather self-contained gags that are about as interchangable as Family Guy flashbacks. A lot of it certainly is funny, but when the humor has absolutely no substance or backing behind it, it wears very thin very quickly. This would have made a lot more sense as a sketch or even short film, not a feature-length movie. In particular, I was upset by the name of the film and main character. I was really hoping something as elaborate and gimmicky as "Napolean Dynamite" would have some kind of actual meaning, but like most of the film, it's apparently just random. This reflects poorly on the writers, depicting them as shallow and without any real skill as storytellers. And to then name the entire film after this character to further exploit an already meaningless gimmick strikes me as lazy and insincere. You should earn an attention-getting title, not just slap it on as an afterthought. The other major problem is that the movie redefines the expression "trying too hard". Virtually every nuance of every scene of the film seems to have been artificially inflated with as much low-brow punch-in-the-face goofiness as humanly possible to presumably ensure that anyone around the age of a high school freshmen would piss their pants laughing. It's like a movie on comedy steroids; the guy pumping all the iron seems pretty proud of himself, but to most observers its obvious that he took the easy way out and he looks fairly ridiculous as a result. Side characters like Pedro would be a genuine asset to a more developed and balanced comedy, but when he's supposed to support a never-ending trainwreck of exaggeration like Napolean, it's just too much. The silliness is based on more silliness, rather than being given an actual foundation. It's kind of like a bad dream or a Twilight Zone episode that just keeps getting weirder without any relief or explanation. Truly over-the-top silliness can work well as long as there's a straight-man (literally or figuratively) to take the edge off and provide some perspective, as ridiculousness is only funny when it's contrasted with its opposite. For instance, Dumb and Dumber has two characters that are at least as absurd as Napolean, but the film works where this fails because they're set in an otherwise believable, normal world that allows us to appreciate their antics for what they are. Napolean Dynamite is like a stage with 10 perfomers and 10 spotlights. There's nothing to focus on and no shadow to balance out the brightness; it blares at the audience with 50,000 dB of bizzaro-world adolescence from the first scene to closing credits. To sum up, a lot of elements of this movie were clearly well-intentioned and could have worked had they been part of a more balanced, intelligently designed production. But as-is, the film comes across as a bunch of high school kids dumping every silly idea they've ever had into a script. The writers clearly have skills, but they're reckless to the point of uselessness on their own. Given someone or something to keep their obnoxiousness under control, I might be more interested in their future work, but as of now I'm going to avoid them like the plague. 2/5 - Like a cake made entirely of frosting. Funny for about 10 minutes before you just start feeling sick to your stomach. Zanzibar fucked around with this message at 18:13 on Jul 27, 2006 |
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Jul 27, 2006 18:02
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WOW!!! What a splendid movie. Seinfeld certainly has some competition in the field of "comedy about nothing" I can't get enough if this stuff. Vote For Pedro!
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Dec 4, 2011 08:12
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I despise comedies. Caddyshack, Pineapple Express, The Hangover, Monty Python, they're all a steaming pile of poo poo. But Napoleon Dynamite has me in stitches every time I watch it. 5/5
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Jan 24, 2012 00:15
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I feel like I get something new out of this movie every time I watch it. I really don't think it's as random as it seems. Napoleon is trying throughout the movie to impress chicks with skills, while cultivating awkward but endearing friendships (and even making an enemy.) In the end, after all of his bragging about bo staff skills and drawing skills, it turns out that he can dance. Then he gets the girl, his best friend wins class president, and everyone lives happily ever after. Also, it's hilarious. It's great when Uncle Rico starts talking about how he wishes coach woulda put him in 4th quarter, they'd have taken State, no doubt in my mind. 5/5
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Jan 27, 2012 19:13
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Here's my flippin' doctor's version. Don't judge me too harshly...I spent about 2 hours shading the upper lip: Not a review. (USER WAS BANNED FOR THIS POST)
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Feb 15, 2012 05:59
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I have hated this movie since highschool. Everyone always said it was funny as poo poo but I have never seen anyone laugh while watching it. It's unfunny garbage that was overhyped when it was released. 1/5
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Apr 3, 2015 00:48
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