"Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist" is fresh, clever, thoughtful, funny and witty in ways so few romantic comedies are. It may not be everyone’s cup of tea, but it’s a cup of tea worth trying at least once.
Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist (2008)
Directors: Peter Sollett
Producers: Paul and Chris Weitz
Writers: Rachel Cohn (novel), David Levithan (novel), Lorene Scafaria (screenplay)
Features: Rated PG-13 for mature thematic material including teen drinking, sexuality, language and crude behavior. Running Time: 90 Min. In theaters: October 3rd, 2008
Characters:
Michael Cera...Nick
Kat Dennings...Norah
Ari Graynor...Caroline
Rafi Gavron...Dev
Alexis Dziena...Tris
Aaron...Yoo Thom
Jonathan B. Wright...Lethario
Jay Baruchel...Tal
Eddie Kaye Thomas...Jesus
Genre: Comedy
Review:
Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist
Usually, most romantic comedies have a similar theme: guy meets girl, girl and guy disagree over some plot element, girl and guy realize they have something in common, but ‘Girlfiend X/Boyfriend X’ gets in the way. Girl and guy just start to connect, but it falls apart after some sort of character/plot element invades their path. After an upsetting third act where girl and guy don’t communicate their true feelings for one another, guy and girl share their love and get together for real. And this is exactly the sort of path "Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist" attempts to deviate from as much as humanly possible.
There are similar bumps on the road, to be sure. Nick is getting over his longtime girlfriend, Tris, pounding out mix CD after mix CD in her name. Norah is living in the tall shadow of her successful father and is also trying to free herself from an obsessive, abusive older boyfriend, Tal. The pair coincidentally meets one another at a bar and end up spending the night traveling around town looking for an almost mystical rock band called 'Where’s Fluffy?'. Our newly united couple do run into the usual romantic comedy troubles, but manage to solve them far easier than most comedies do while finding fresh, new subplots along the way. It’s also refreshing that the two characters actually like each other from the start--a genuine rarity in most romantic comedies.
Perhaps it’s the hip, cool script from Lorene Scafaria or the powerfully thoughtful source material, a teen novel of the same name from Rachel Cohn and David Levithan, or it’s just the emo/indie culture that the film colorfully portrays that ultimately allows the typically clichéd romantic plot contrivances to roam in the background instead of dominating the foreground. This, in turn, permits the true romantic sparkle of a couples’ first night together to shine brighter than the rest of mundane plot. Either way, it proves to be a cinematic rarity--a biting, witty, socially relevant romantic comedy that obeys the rules, but breaks them along the way.
Nick and Norah are perfectly played by indie darlings Michael Cera ("Juno") and Kat Dennings ("Charlie Bartlett"), respectively. Cera plays his usual cool, but nefariously uncomfortable, geeky self and Dennings follows suit. Dennings is beautiful and charming, but uniquely edgy and gothy in that same way that made Rose McGowan a cult queen by the age of 30. Dennings and Cera dominate the film with their vibrant, colorful characters driving romanticism and comedy to scenes that would otherwise be vapid and stale.
Adding the biggest chuckles, however, is Ari Graynor, who plays Norah’s attention-grabbing drunken friend Caroline. Caroline escapes the clutches of Nick’s gay bandmates after mistaking them for rapist/kidnappers. Her unusually dark odyssey turns out to be the film’s most sincerely funny subplot as she foils and fumbles around the creepiest corners of New York City running into self-inflicted trouble everywhere she goes. Nick and Norah’s exes, played by Alexis Dziena and Jay Baruchel, also delight in their silly, over-the-top roles, rarely skipping a comedic beat.
The only real inconsistency the film falters on is pacing. The midway point feels like a finale and the finale feels like a midway point. Director Peter Sollett never quite finds his stride with the material, which may leave some viewers confused or bored by the uneven tone of the film. Adding to the confusion is the general youthfulness and emo nature of the characters who are all so uniquely organic, fitting into their own little world, that mainstream movie going audiences may find themselves distanced from the material.
This is a film that actually made me feel old and uncool (which admittedly, I am), featuring hip indie rock bands that I’ve never heard of before this film came along. Perhaps the film will serve as a reliable stepping stone to introduce mainstream audiences to a new genre of rock they might have otherwise bypassed in the past. If nothing else, the film will become a solid cult hit connecting to emo rock enthusiasts, offbeat romantic comedy lovers and your typical cult enthusiasts who fall in love with anything cult.
"Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist" is a genuinely engaging romantic comedy that rarely skips a beat. It’s bound to be compared to last year’s indie hit, "Juno," but contextually, it’s about as far away from that film as humanly possible. "Nick and Norah" is fresh, clever, thoughtful, funny and witty in ways so few romantic comedies are. It may not be everyone’s cup of tea, but it’s a cup of tea worth trying at least once.
Film Report Card:
Entertainment Value: A-
Film Value: B+
Final Grade:
B+
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----R. L. Shaffer