Exclusive Preview: Nacho Libre
By
Sean Lynch
What's
sexier than Angelina Jolie and Jessica Alba running around your bedroom
topless having tickle fights? You guessed it, Jack Black in spandex --
oh baby!
That's right, from the minds that brought Napoleon Dynamite into the world and the writer of School of Rock
comes Jack Black's latest incarnation - a Mexican minister with a
majestic gluteus maximus and a penchant for wrestling.
He is Nacho
Libre.
Nacho is a man without skills. After growing up in a
Mexican monastery as a child, he soon becomes grown man and the
monastery’s cook, but poor Nacho just doesn’t seem to fit
in.
A man who cares deeply for the orphans he feeds,
his major downfall is that his food is terrible (a result of his terrible
ingredients, according to him). He soon realises he must hatch a
plan to make money to buy better food for “the young orphans, who
have nothing” (…and if in doing so, perhaps impress the
lovely Sister Encarnación, that would be mucho fantastico).
When
Nacho is struck by the idea to earn money as a Lucha Libre wrestler, he
finds that he has a natural, raw talent for wrestling. As he
teams with his rail-thin, unconventional partner, Esqueleto (the
Skeleton), Nacho feels for the first time in his life he has
something to fight for and a place where he belongs.
Nacho Libre opened
to healthy Box Office figures in the US recently, taking in over $50
million over it's first two weeks. It's budget was a mere $38 million,
so already, Black has another hit on his hands (recently appearing
in King Kong and the surprise hit School of Rock).
For those fans of Napoleon Dynamite, the big question is -- can we expect more of the same mundane hilarity? Good news hombre's, there are definitely elements of Dynamite from director Jared Hess as well as a healthy helping of fart gags to boot.
And what of those tight tights?
“Before we made Nacho Libre,
I was really scared,” says Jack Black, who takes on what could be his most
eccentric and wildly comedic role to date, in this flick due out in
Australian cinemas early next year. “I was thinking,
‘Oh man, what if I don’t pull it off? What if I get
hurt? Holy crap, do I have to wear one of those super-tight
unitard bottoms? Tights?! I’d rather be
naked!’ But, you know what? That’s when
it’s funny. When I’ve been really embarrassed and
scared, that’s when things have turned out to be really
good.”
Another major piece of the film revolves around
Black's wrestling skills. From the very beginning, it was clear that
only one man had the kick-ass comic skills, the boundless energy, and
the physical build to bring Nacho to life. “In our first
meeting with Jared, he said that he and Jack Black had already been
talking and wanted to do a project together,” says producer Julia
Pistor.
“We thought if you put Jack Black in a mask,
he’d still have such expression with just his eyes and eyebrows,
it would be great and very funny. It all fit together
perfectly,” added Pistor.
Either way, audiences around the globe are in for a good ol' fashioned ass-woopin' when Nacho Libre hits the cinemas. And if you're easily offended by butt crack and the occasional butt clench then perhaps go and check out Garfield: Tale of Two Kitties instead.
Nacho Libre sleeper holds it's way into Australian cinemas in 2007.
Visit the Nacho Libre Official Site
Check out the Nacho Libre Trailer
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"Taco Enchilada, Senorita?"
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Spandex Ahoy! Nacho
Libre and Esqueleto
pose for the cameras
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