'Napoleon Dynamite' DVD selling like hot cakes

OREM — Move over "The Princess Bride," there's a "Dynamite" new DVD in town with a treasure trove of one-liners, and it's conquering video stores everywhere.

"Napoleon Dynamite," an indie film directed and written by husband and wife team Jared and Jerusha Hess, hit stores Tuesday and sold out so quickly that even local vendors were left in need.

Cleanflicks video store in Payson reported many consumers looking for the flick on DVD Tuesday night. The store couldn't find any copies to sell, though the video was only released Tuesday morning. Both Blockbuster video stores in American Fork and Provo had every copy rented by Wednesday night — a combined total of more than 200 copies.

One store said a man traveled all the way from Salt Lake City to Payson in search of the movie, only to find it had already disappeared from all of the local stores. Even larger stores, such as Media Play and Wal-Mart in Orem, had sold out of more than 600 copies of the DVD by Tuesday night. Most stores are expecting to be restocked by Thursday or Friday, however.

McCall Bateman, a senior at Utah Valley State College, traveled to a midnight opening in Salt Lake City to pick up three copies of the video, one for herself and two for Christmas presents.

"I love ('Napoleon Dynamite')," Bateman said. "It's such a good fit for anyone. Everyone would enjoy it and think it was funny."

The movie, which features a high school-age mega-dork named Napoleon Dynamite, has already developed a following across the nation and overseas. "Dynamite" exploded on the silver screen during the summer, telling the story of a painfully awkward Idaho farm boy who doesn't quite fit in.

With frizzy red hair, big teeth and vintage T-shirts, Dynamite delivers punch line after punch line. The catchy dialogue has spread beyond the movie's plot line as fans gleefully repeat one-liners from the movie like, "Heck, yes" and "You idiot."

"It's simple humor," Bateman said. "It's well-written and funny. It's easy to remember those one-liners and take it out of the theater and talk about it. It's hilarious."

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