Directed by: Carl Reiner
Starring: Steve Martin, Bernadette Peters, Mabel King, Catlin Adams
Continuity mistake: When Navin is at the gas station and is being shot at by the sniper, take a look at the arrangement of the oil cans on the rack beside him. One of the cans in the middle of the rack changes color from pink to purple, and some labels turn, between shots.
Visible crew/equipment: Carnival biker chick goes through a flaming hoop and falls down after going though it. Just before she goes, you can see a rope tied to her to pull her off the bike after she passes through the flames. (00:33:30)
Mother: Navin, it's your birthday, and it's time you knew. You're not our natural-born child.
Navin R. Johnson: I'm not? You mean I'm gonna stay this color?
Trivia: "Cat Juggling" was a bit in Steve Martin's stand-up acts in the late 70's.
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Answer: Navin self-applies the "Jerk" epithet early in the film, using it not in the sense of someone obnoxious or mean (as it is used in most cases), but in the sense of a stupid person. He's saying he blames himself and his lack of intelligence (though, as you say, it is usually simple naïveté) for ending up where he is (broke, homeless).