Eagle vs Shark

Daft, sweet, awkward and amusingly rude.

The movie's idea of funny is giving the two lovers identical moles bordering their upper lips.

Eagle vs. Shark feels like a low-budget, foreign cousin to Napolean Dynamite, less polished and sly. But it's definitely in the same family, lulling us into friendly acceptance with its persuasively silly rhythm and deceptively big heart.

Yes, the nerdy loser thing has been done to death, but writer-director Taika Cohen brings surprising depth to this film...Napoleon Dynamite dreams of being this movie.

So the only real argument I can make for Eagle vs. Shark, a stupid-absurdist comedy from New Zealand, is that I laughed a lot, often despite myself, and that while I might not be able to wholly justify it, I can mount a questionable defense.