I *heart* NYC

Thanks to Benders Books & Comics (!!!), I received a pass for two to a sneak preview of the new film Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist this past Tuesday. I'm not sure why, but I was all of a sudden very excited to see the movie. I decided that Matt and I had to attend the sneak preview cause there was no way that I could possibly wait until the release date of Oct 3rd to see it.

The movie started off rather bland and the characters were a bit grating. About 15 minutes into the movie, things get rolling and I started to fall in love a little. The premise of the film is a bit contrived and predictable. Nick's shallow, superficial girlfriend has just broken up with him and he's reeling and licking his wounds by making sentimental mix CDs for her. He and his bandmates hit the town looking for a secret gig by their favorite band, Where's Fluffy?. Meanwhile, Norah and her inebriated best friend are also hitting the town searching for Fluffy. Paths cross, hearts flutter. The drunken best friend goes missing so Nick, Norah and the Nick's gay bandmates hit the streets of New York to find her (and Fluffy) while trying to dodge sketchy ex-boyfriends & ex-girlfriends. The shots of New York City are so lush that it made even more excited (if that's even possible!) for my trip next week.

Filled with some great music (Richard Hawley, no less!) and some rather cool cameos (indie band Bishop Allen shows up, as does cult folk hero Devendra Banhart), Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist is hokey yet somehow believable and sweet. Nick is played by Michael Cera of Juno and Superbad fame. He plays THE EXACT SAME GUY as he played in those other movies, which is just fine by me. He's got that character nailed, so he might as well milk it while he can. Kat Dennings (Catherine Keener's daughter in The 40 Year Old Virgin) is lovely as Norah. Though corny and a little formulaic, this is a great date movie and a more intelligent alternative to so many romantic comedies, especially one targeted towards a young audience. The gay characters are treated respectfully and casually, without any "messages" or stigma attached to them. Best of all, teenage drinking is not glamorized in any way and the straight-edge kids are our heroes. For half a second, I actually felt a little bit cool.