Harmless stuff - but lacks any conflict or drama to retain any interest.

Rating: 5/10 (17 December 2010)

Normally when making a film I would assume that a prospective filmmaker must want to do one of 5 things: 1/ Make something that resonates with an audience.
2/ Make a statement, and artistic one if you must.
3/ Showcase either an idea or some talent to "boost your stock" and raise awareness.
4/ Make some $$$$$.
5/ Practise and learn the ropes.
Ideally whichever aim someone has in mind ends with objective 3 or 4, ideally both being achieved, as without impressing or making someone money a long career in the game is unlikely.
This is where Nick and Norah is perplexing, they don't really say anything new, it is basically a gen Y romantic comedy, I don't think it blew the box office away and the two leads, while likable are already pretty well known and I would think already categorised as "not able to carry a film solo".
Maybe Nick and Norah might resonate with the Gen Y crowd and become one of those "you had to be aged between 18 and 23 to "get it" things, something that you unrealistically elevate to a status it doesn't warrant out of sheer nostalgic value. And that's nice but who does that help? So I dub Nick & Norah as a training effort, a high(er) budget student film. Therefore I set my expectations low and hope only to be mildly entertained or at least distracted for a while. (But TV already does that!) ()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()() Michael Cera is Nick. He is 20 something, recently dumped and is pining for his ex, who we later meet and discover is a (hot) idiot devoid of personality and intelligence. Ordinarily I would highlight the bracketed part and stress we should never underestimate the relevance of the fact, but apparently Nick is sensitive, nice and considerate.
Soooo This does not add up. (TDNAU) Kat Dennings is Norah, a teetotalling, down to Earth loyal friend who happens to have absolutely moronic friends, one a p*ss-head skank who spends the entire film drunk and mostly lost, the other the aforementioned hot ex-girlfriend of Nick, a self-obsessed bitch only concerned with what is cool and image friendly.
TDNAU.
Nick is in a band, the other two bandmates are both gay, therefore they are nice, genuine and friendly, because anything portraying gay people as otherwise is gay bashing. His band is playing in the city one night.
Norah likes music and going to see bands. She goes to see the band Nick plays in.
Do I even need to give you another 300 words or so? After the gig Nick and Norah share a "moment" and the gay cavalry decide to match make, taking drunk-girl off their hands and sending them off to look for a mystery band named Fluffy which is playing somewhere that very night, and tickets are much sought after. Apparently Fluffy are awesome.
Nick is still fixated with idiot-ex-girl despite the fact she is obviously and openly a bitch to him and everyone else.
TDNAU Idiot-ex decides that she is jealous of Norah and gets back on Nick's case, using all of her "assets" to lure him back. Norah it also turns out, has an idiot-ex who basically uses her connections for his own benefit, he decides he needs Norah that particular evening for his own devices.
TDNAU. Not the fact that they exist but that a nice guy would yearn for an unrealistic airhead when he had a perfectly nice pretty girl all night in the passenger seat. And not when it is obvious that user-idiot-ex can't say two sentences to nice, down to Earth Norah without either taking her for granted or straight up asking for something for himself.
So we have two people who are obviously way better suited to each other than the other boneheads on the scene, no-one does or says anything overly offensive to change that situation and we are left with 90 minutes of two people getting along with plenty of endearing awkwardness for all.
Usually the allure of a rom-com is the perceived differences between the two people on the DVD cover, "Oh he's a big business playboy and she's a nice family gal", "he's a rich tycoon and she's just the maid, how could they ever find happiness?".
In this case we have a guy and a girl both in the early 20s, both are nice and friendly and love music. Where is the mystery? We know they are going to get together unless "something dramatic" happens and they fall apart (at least until the last 20 minutes), that doesn't happen here.
What is more unlikely is that they weren't together in the first place, or even that they didn't see each other across a crowded room and in unison think "Gee that guy/girl is way better than this vacuous bint that I've been hanging around with for months".
I didn't laugh once, the byplay between the two was rarely less than cordial and the drama and second guessing of the appropriateness of them coming together was non-existent.
The whole pairing was as unlikely as a famous rich athlete and a Playboy model or a Kardashian.
Final Rating – 5.5 / 10. I dunno, this is nice and harmless, but without any conflict or reason for momentary doubt does a story like this even need to be told?