Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist

Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist. (2008). Sony Pictures.
ASIN B001MM3AZM
90 min
Format: DVD
Genre: Contemporary life
Classification: Fiction
Age level: Rated PG-13

Reader's annotation
Set in the space of one day at school and an evening in New York City, Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist follows a group of sophisticated high school seniors as they look for love and great music and contemplate their future after high school graduation.

Summary
Nick, a high school senior in suburban New Jersey, is still getting over his break-up with Tris, a perky student at an all-girls private school who broke his heart. Norah is Tris’s classmate and darkly beautiful nemisis, and she secretly listens to the mixed CD’s that Nick keeps sending to Tris, and which she routinely tosses in the school trash bin. Unexpectedly, the three crosses paths in New York City when going to see a rare concert by a favorite band, Where’s Fluffy. Fans have to follow clues to find the secret location. The evening begins with Nick’s band playing in a club. Norah notices him on stage, and after the performance she grabs him and kisses him after Tris teases her for showing up without a date. Norah sparks Nick’s interest, and Tris’s jealousy. The supporting characters include Norah’s drunk best friend and Nick’s two best friends and bandmates, a gay couple. The story plays out through car and van rides around the city, visits to more clubs and a recording studio, as the characters work out their feelings toward each other and their plans for the future as the end of high school rapidly approaches. The scenes of exploring New York nightlife, traveling around the city, searching out the next great performance, while never quite getting lost, serves as a great metaphor for the journey to adulthood. The movie has a great soundtrack. Based on the novel by David Levithan and Rachel Cohn.

Notes
It’s really refreshing to see smart, articulate, sophisticated and creative teens on screen. The film stars Michael Cera, Alexis Dziena, and Kat Dennings.