I didn't expect much. I liked it less.

Rating: 5/10 (16 December 2008)

Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist prides itself on being hip. However, aside from a few quirks and some witty dialogue, it offers absolutely nothing fresh or original as a teen romantic comedy. To be honest, if you took away the indie rock and the weird cars, it would be just like any other teen comedy. It's been done before and it's been done better. However, Nick and Norah is still fairly entertaining and offers several laughs due to some fairly clever writing.
The story goes something like this: Nick (Michael Cera) is depressed. His girlfriend, a controlling little prep named Tris, has broken up with him. Instead of focusing on his band (consisting of two gay guys and himself  and no drummer), Nick spends his time leaving Tris various voice mails and making her enough mixed CDs to last a lifetime. Tris doesn't really care. She cheated on him the whole time they were together and throws away his CDs without listening to him. Tris's somewhat-friend Norah (Kat Dennings), however, loves the CDs. She feels a connection to Nick, but they've never met. One night, Nick and his band are playing in the same venue that Norah, Tris, and their mutual friend Caroline happen to be. Nick and Norah meet through strange circumstances and, because of how depressed Nick has been, his friends scheme to get the two of them together. What ensues is a night that the two of them will never forget.
As far as acting is concerned, Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist offers nothing special. Both Michael Cera and Kat Dennings are good in their roles, but neither one of the actors are invoking any new territory. They've played these roles before. Nick comes off as kind of a cross between Cera's characters in Superbad and Juno. Norah is a carbon copy of Kat Dennings' character in last year's Charlie Bartlett. All three of these films were infinitely (no pun intended) better than this one. None of the other actors have a chance for a standout performance and are essentially forgettable.
The best part of this film is, arguably, the scenes between Cera and Dennings. They have some chemistry and the scenes during which the two of them talk are well written and seem real. The rest of the film hinges on ridiculous and offers some scenes that feel out of place (such as a disgusting scene involving Norah's drunk friend.. you'll know what I mean). There are several genuinely funny moments and some convincing heartfelt moments, but these are few and far between. This is basically the typical romantic comedy formula masquerading as something else through the usage of indie bands, old yellow cars, and a lot of chaos. It's not a bad film, really, but it's also not very good.
5/10