The Freak's Rating: C- : It doesn't seem like that long ago when Napoleon Dynamite took the indy world by storm. Occasionally a gem such as ND or Little Miss Sunshine wins the hearts of critics and audiences alike. This should be the last time the phrase "from the creator of Napoleon Dynamite" inspires as much curiosity. In the future it will likely lead those who read it to doubt the ability for the film to not...for lack of a better term...suck.
Gentlemen Broncos has some hilarity. Sam Rockwell's portrayal of Bronco is hysterical. He flips from portraying a flaming transvestite to a tough-guy and made me laugh with each scene he was in. Jemaine Clement is the better of the two actors/comedians who makeup The Flight of the Conchords, a standup act that recently ported their act into an HBO series. Clement is amazing here, perfect for the role and flat out awesome with his delivery.
Sadly those are the two brightest spots in the blackness of Gentlemen Broncos. With a script that tries far too hard to replicate the originality of Napoleon Dynamite, it is quite obvious to the audience that they are being manipulated. What should come off as original comedy and unique characters instead comes out as forced humor and stupid characters. Had the filmmakers backed off just a tad, not forcing every single character to be whacked out and allowed a few laughs to trickle in without being such obvious alley-oops, this may have broken into recommendation range.
