Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist: Too Sweet for Its Own Good

Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist is a familiar story about affected, suburban youths with a quest for understanding and self-discovery. And where it runneth over with charm, heart and sweetness, it lacketh in depth, emotion and grit.

Based on the Rachel Cohn and David Levithan novel of the same title and a screenplay, realistically adapted, by Lorene Scafaria, the film defines New York as the city that never sleeps. In less than 24-hours, the audience is taken on a cross-town adventure to rescue a lost, drunken soul, find a mysterious, underground band and bring two musical soul mates together.

In “Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist,” the title Nick has recently been dumped and tends his forlorn heart by leaving rambling voicemails and mixed CDs for his ex. Norah is the daughter of an industry insider who has a hard time letting go of “friends with benefits.” The two start as strangers. But when Norah begs that Nick pretend to be her boyfriend for five minutes, they quickly discover they not only share a love for all things cynical and banter-ific, but they might as well share the same iPod.  It is obvious to everyone else but themselves, how perfect they are for each other. The question of the night is, will they?

As director Peter Sollett’s follow-up to his 2003 “Raising Victor Vargas,” (a similar, yet more somber young, urban love story) the story unfolds in an unhurried pace and could benefit from a less laid-back approach and more rises and falls. Nick and Norah’s develops in a linear manner but doesn’t feel as if there’s ever a true beginning, middle or end. It’s obvious that Sollett’s goal was to focus on the characters, the music and the city, as he refrains from overstatements to a young audience he knows hates to be pandered to.

Nick, played by the forever gangly and awkward, Michael Cera (“Juno,” “Superbad”) and the luscious and sullen, Kat Dennings (“40 Year Old Virgin”) are your typical precocious, precious high schoolers who aren’t pretentious and don’t take themselves too seriously. The characters could have been written for these two actors and isn’t, at all, a far stretch from parts they’ve played in the past. It’s, clearly, what teens love to watch today, and the leads pull it off well.

The humor is extremely subtle, although one gross-out gag does run the course of the entire film. And the outlying characters are as much apart of the film as Nick and Norah, yet sadly, they all lack development. Nick’s gay bandmates are refreshing to see on screen and provide many of the movies great lines, but they play more like Cinderella’s helpful, mice friends and less like individual human beings. Caroline (Ari Graynor), who plays the hysterical, sloppy friend we all love to begrudge, however, is a total gem. The true shining star of the movie, though, is the soundtrack, which harkens back to the musical beauty of “Garden State” and “Juno.”

The film is sweet and fun but never seems to find its footing or a good pace, and it feels incomplete before the final scene. When the climax actually occurs, the audience almost misses the crescendo feeling completely. While I may give “Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist” one more chance, it’s the soundtrack that will definitely get a third, fourth and fifth, if not, infinite chances on my iPod.