Nacho Libre (2006)

This movie has the same director as "Napoleon Dynamite," Jared Hess, that's probably why I was feeling Deja-Vu with the whole tortilla chip motif (tater tots in ND) and the rest of the comic mood of the film.

Overview: Nacho, played by Jack Black, is a part of a monastery in a remote part of Mexico. His duties include making meals for orphans, here is where the tortilla chips come in and making priestly house calls to dying patients. But ever since Nacho was a little kid, he had a dream of becoming a "Luchador" (wrestler) because they always got the "monies" and "fancy ladies." But he knew if he pursued his dream of being a Luchador, he would get kicked out of the monastery. Enter Sister Encarnacion. She is a hot nun who Nacho starts to like. But he finds it more important to adhere to his oath to God and his wrestling dream. We also see his motivation for wrestling change from self-satisfaction to making money for the orphans.

Good: This was a cute, light, eccentric comedy. It really was done in ND style. Surprisingly, Nacho also tackled some serious issues. He is a man of God, his jungle-man sidekick, Esqueleto is a man of science. He questions why Nacho has faith and how he should just follow science. And the rest of the priests in the monastery treat Nacho so badly but Nacho stays true to his faith regardless of how the God-fearing and God-less sides treat him. He finds strength from within and above. This was not at all a religious film but rather, it was a very subtle motif throughout. It was just done really well.

Bad: It was probably 10-15 mins. too long. I could see how some people wouldn't think this was funny. I actually saw at least 7 people leave the theater. But you really gotta like werid films to like this one.

Recommendation: I liked it enough to buy it when it comes out on DVD. So ya, if you like werid mexican priest wrestling films then this is for you.