Welcome to A-Z Movie Reviews. Every Sunday, for the next several months, I will be posting a review of a film in my home movie collection. How it works is, I will be reviewing movies in alphabetical order until I get to the letter Z (Yes, I do have a film that ends in Z). Now I realize there are many ways to alphabetize a film collection, but this is mine so don’t judge me. This is simply for fun.
For this installment of A-Z Movie Reviews, I’m talking about one of my favorite feel good movies Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist.
What it’s about:
After a chance encounter, Nick (Michael Cera) and Norah (Kat Dennings) embark on a journey through New York’s indie rock scene on a quest to find the secret show of a legendary band, and wind up finding each other.
Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist based on the book by Rachel Cohn and David Levithan, is a delightful film that combines two things I love; music, and romance. Nick (Cera) is trying to get over a broken heart after his girlfriend Tris (Alexis Dziena) dumps him. Resigned to wallow in his suffering, he plans to just lock himself in his room. That is until his bandmates Dev (Rafi Gavron) and Thom (Aaron Yoo) convince him to come out with them so they can put on a gig and then track down their favorite indie rock group Where’s Fluffy?.
Norah (Dennings) loves music especially the mixtapes that Nick has been putting together for Tris. You see, since Tris dumped Nick, he’s been constantly making her mixtapes but she throws them away. It’s pretty shitty to do because he puts a lot of time and effort into them and he makes cool cover art for every single one. Norah has a strong appreciation for great music so she’s been collecting all of them.
When Norah and her best friend Caroline (Ari Graynor) find out that Where’s Fluffy? is putting on a secret show, it’s a no brainer for them to head into the city to find them. While in the city, Norah and Caroline watch another indie band ‘The Jerk Offs’ perform. She’s immediately drawn to the guitarist.
After an awkward run-in with Tris, where she mocks Norah for being alone, she makes up a story that she’s at the show with her boyfriend. Tris doesn’t believe her so Norah approaches a guy who happens to be the guitarist for The Jerk Offs.
She asks him to be her boyfriend for five minutes. He’s clearly confused but he plays along and the two share a kiss which leads to some sparks. Unbeknownst to Norah, the guitarist she just kissed is Nick, Tris’s ex-boyfriend. Both she and Nick are surprised because he didn’t realize that Norah knew Tris.
Things from that point on get really interesting.
What I love about Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist is that it’s such a simple film but it always makes me so happy when I watch it. The entire time I watch the film, I can’t stop smiling. It makes me laugh and I really enjoy watching the cast run around the streets of New York. Everyone is united in their quest to have a great time and find the band they love.
The love story is my favorite too because it’s not an average one. Nick and Norah share meaningful conversations and bond over music. He realizes that what he wants has been standing right in front of him.
I recommend watching Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist if you want something to make you feel all warm and fuzzy.
Other Thoughts
- Who breaks up with someone on their birthday?
- If a guy took the time to make me a mixtape with personalized cover art, I would not throw it away.
- I love Michael Cera and his curly hair.
- Everyone needs friends like Dev and Thom.
- I LOVE Dev. Seriously, I need a friend like him.
- If I was Caroline and I woke up in a strange van with guys I didn’t know, I’d escape too.
- The scene with Caroline in the train station bathroom still grosses me out.
- Watching Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist made me miss live music even more.
Do you dare to give this movie a try? Feel free to share with us in the comments below!
Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist is available to stream on Amazon Prime Video.
