5Q Movie Review: Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist

Q: Is this one a bit more intelligent than standard teen comedies?
A: You might expect that, given the casting of Hip Intelligentsia Poster Boy Michael Cera, the "Thin Man" allusions in the naming of the title characters, and the overall marketing. But it really isn't. It's a rather conventional teen comedy--well done, mind you, but not a whole lot different than or more high-minded than most of the other entries in the genre. One notable feature is the casual depiction of gay characters--Cera's Nick, for example, is the only straight dude in a gay rock band, and the movie has fun with this without making a big deal out of it.

Q: Is it one of those movies where the guy spends the whole movie looking for the girl, but they keep getting separated at the last second?
A: I thought that would be the case, too, but on the contrary, Nick and Norah spend a lot of the story together, with other things providing obstacles: Nick's cluelessness, Norah's jerk of an on-again/off-again beau, etc. But they work together to find Norah's drunken, missing friend while also trying to find a secret show from their favorite band, and they share many misadventures

Q: How is the super-hip soundtrack? Is music a big part of the film?
A: Music is very important to the characters. Nick is a sincere mixtape maker. Norah loves the tunes, too. The band with the secret show, 'Where's Fluffy?" is fictional and not a big presence except as sort of a McGuffin, but he soundtrack is loaded with songs by hip young bands. All of this adds up to a movie that features music and shows how important it is in people's lives. I think something like, say, "High Fidelity" utilizes actual music in a more vital manner, but maybe that's just because I had heard of more of those songs when I saw that one.

Q: Is it true that you said the movie should be called "Norah's Infinite Rack" because of co-star Kat Dennings' cleavage?
A: I declare, good sir! YOU may have said that, but your humble Sharkmaster would never say such a thing, let alone write it for public consumption in this forum. Shame on you! Ms. Dennings is a lovely and charming actress who is quite attractive in this film, but...shame on you!

Q: So is this worth a rental even if I'm not a teenager?
A: Sure, it is. It's an enjoyable movie, and though it's not groundbreaking, it suceeds at doing the most important thing a romantic comedy can do: making you care about the leads and want to see them get together. It's as simple as that. Cera and Dennings have a chemistry that carries the movie even when for movie reasons Cera has to be an idiot and drive her away a little bit (it's not as bad as it could be, and at least the screenplay tries to justify the tension between the two). And if you like "Nick and Norah," you might want to consider a purchase because the DVD is filled with bonus features.