Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist
Rating: 
Directed By: Peter Sollett
Starring: Michael Cera, Kat Dennings
Plot Synopsis:
Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist is a comedy about two people thrust together for one hilarious, sleepless night of adventure in a world of mix tapes, late-night living, and, live, loud music. Nick (Michael Cera) frequents New York’s indie rock scene nursing a broken heart and a vague ability to play the bass.
Norah (Kat Dennings) is questioning pretty much all of her assumptions about the world. Though they have nothing in common except for their taste in music, their chance encounter leads to an all-night quest to find a legendary band’s secret show and ends up becoming the first date in a romance that could change both their lives.(Amazon)
Review:
Teen comedies are really hit or miss for me these days. Some are smart and funny (Superbad) while others leave me scratching my head with how out of touch with reality they are (High School Musical). Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist does a great job of being mostly rooted in reality with a believable (enough) love story. What it does right is make me miss the days when I used to go to shows and stay out all night with no real responsibilities. Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist is a smart, funny and sweet little movie.
For the most part, I really enjoyed this movie. Michael Cera is perfectly cast for the awkward musician suffering from the heartbreak of being dumped by his girlfriend. He is awesome here, unfortunately I don’t know how much longer he can play the goofy teenager. He has to be nearing is Twenties by now and may not have much longevity as an actor. I can’t imagine him as a 30 year old playing a serious role, and the roles he’s playing now won’t translate well to a 30 year old. We’ll see what the future brings.
Playing opposite Michael Cera is Kat Dennings. She is pretty great here as well. It’s great seeing a normal looking girl playing the romantic interest. So often the female role in these movies is played by a malnourished bombshell. Kat Dennings plays her character with a sarcasm and awkwardness that is believable, but also is someone you can see Michael Cera’s character being attracted to.
There were a couple things that prevented me from loving this movie. The supporting characters, while somewhat funny, were very one dimensional. I wish they were a bit more fleshed out. Also, there’s a whole “orgasm” subplot and an awkward and unbelievable love scene that wasn’t romantic nor did it add anything the plot. I’m not against these types of scenes if they add something to the story, however here it just falls flat.
As a whole, Nick and Nora’s Infinite Playlist is a sweet love story, with solid performances from the leads and a great soundtrack. I felt drawn into the world with these characters and found myself wanting to head up to the city and see some live bands play. While there are moments that don’t live up to their potential, I can recommend Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist as a rental.
Rated PG-13 for mature thematic material including teen drinking, sexuality, language and crude behavior.
