Nick and Norah's Infinite Shit List

Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist - 2008


Every so often a movie comes along that has so much sentiment, and is so filled with genuinely good storytelling that you can't help but love it. Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist is not one of these movies.

Nick and Norah is the story of two teenage hipsters who are brought together by random circumstances, resulting in an adventure filled night ending in, you guessed it, true love. First hearing the premise, my immediate impulse was to throw up. I held it down for one reason; I like Michael Cera. He's proven himself to be a fine character actor, specializing in different flavors of "awkward teenager". He was cast as just such a person in Nick and Norah, so I held out hope that maybe I'd enjoy this film as much as his others. My hope cost me $10.

I'm going to avoid retelling the plot of the film, just because I don't find it interesting enough to waste the effort. Instead I'll try and explain my criticisms, or suggestions for what would have made this a better movie. That was the worst part of the film; deep down I saw potential. An example is Nick's band. Nick is the straight bass player for an otherwise all gay punk band. I found this to be a funny concept, and waited to see what the film makers did with it. They did nothing. An all gay band is a fantastically awkward concept, and presents a multitude of opportunities for exploitation. What are the consequences for being the only heterosexual person in an Queer-Core band? Isn't there a lot of sexual tension? Who is their fan base? None of these questions are ever answered.

Nick and Norah's biggest issue is balancing. The movie never feels quite right, and can't seem to decide what it wants to be. The movie plays like a comedy one minute, and then flips around to present itself as a romantic drama, doing neither genre well. It instead remains apathetic, barely choosing a middle point. If it had chosen one or the other from the beginning, the entire picture would have had much more cohesion.

I just thought I'd mention, for Kevin's sake, that the movie's sexual scenes really detract from the film. Part of this is again, an issue of balancing. The movie's sexual portions range from timid to ridiculous. One minute girls are joke about how boys are icky, and the next they're bragging about their friends with benefits and how many orgasm's they've had. In one of the final scenes, Nick and Norah get it on in a recording studio, and record her orgasm. It was wholly unnecessary.

Don't see Nick and Norah. It's cons far outweigh it's pros, and leaves an audience member wanting something more. Just wait for The Year One to get your Michael Cera fix.

I also thought I'd mention that every Friday, I'm planning to review a random album. I'll hit random on my iTunes collection, and review the first album it selects, of course omitting music soundtracks, albums other people have recently reviewed, and greatest hits type stuff. Otherwise, I'm at the complete mercy of the random button.