By VALERIE METREJEAN

Staff Writer

"What's a liger?"

"It's pretty much my favorite animal. It's like a lion and a tiger mixed... bred for its skills in magic."

Six months ago this quote could have confused any reader, but now it is just another line in the wonderful world of movie quotes.

Jared, 24, and Jerusha Hess, 23, undergraduate students at Brigham Young University, wrote "Napoleon Dynamite" and premiered the film at the 2004 Sundance Film Festival.

Far from anything we are familiar with (right?), in the rural town of Preston, Idaho, one eccentric nerd with apparently "sweet numchuck skills" stunned its audience. Was it for its accurate portrayal or exaggerated interpretation?

In his feature film debut, Brigham Young student Jon Heder (Napoleon Dynamite), gives an excellent performance and never breaks from his quirky facial expression and tone.

Phrases like "gosh," "idiot" and "sweet" cannot be said anymore without an impersonation of Napoleon.

Napoleon's 32-year-old brother Kip (Aaron Ruell), spends much of his time smooth-talking "hot babes" online and performs an unforgettable original song after the credits roll.

Most viewers will have no trouble admitting to knowing a few Uncle Ricos (Jon Gries). He is the guy who constantly relives his high school football moments of "almost" winning state and if the coach had put him in during the fourth quarter they would have won.

Staring at his biceps and eating steak are Uncle Rico's signature moves.

Napoleon Dynamite focuses more on developing the characters rather than giving an action-packed plot.

This is evident by the simple fact that it takes 55 minutes to start the plot. Napoleon's new found best friend, Pedro (Efren Ramirez), decides to run for class president. This election happens not without a pinata, a wig and many lanyards.

It also has an "affinity" of one-liners.

These quotes' popularity are reminiscent of another oddly humorous movie, "Dumb and Dumber."

With a PG rating, this MTV film is unlike the network's previous films. The furthest they push the envelope is using phrases such as "Heck yes!" and "Dang."

The film, which cost a half million dollars to make, has now grossed nearly $45 million in profits from box office sales and is expected to increase that number with its recent video release. "Lucky."