Sonoma State Star

Issue date: 10/7/08 Section: Arts and Entertainment

"Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist" feels too much like a vehicle for Michael Cera's same old song and dance.

When you hear the term "fluffy," you might imagine your grandmother's ancient fat cat, or perhaps the hair on your head. However, "Fluffy" also refers to the name of the band that the characters are seeking out in "Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist."

Nick (Michael Cera) and Norah (Kat Dennings) are two broken-hearted teens that have nothing in common except their taste in music. Nick has grown a fantastic obsession with his ex-girlfriend Tris (Alexis Dziena) and tries to win back her love by making her mix CDs.

Unfortunately, she does not take a liking to Nick's never-dying love for her, and she dismisses the music without listening to it. Meanwhile, Norah stumbles across Nick's playlists, becoming infatuated with his music.

Norah's friend Caroline (Ari Graynor) drinks herself to the point of obliteration, so Norah sends her home with Nick's friends. Meanwhile, Norah tags along with Nick to seek out their mutual favorite band, Fluffy. They found out that Fluffy is hosting a secret concert, and their adventurous sides are revealed as they gather clues to finding its exact location.

The whole thing unravels quickly and chaotically when both Nick and Norah's exes fall back into the picture.

The film's acting is fairly consistent. Caroline's drunk antics were arguably the most entertaining portion of the film. She was the biggest crowd pleaser on screen, which was clear from the audience's roaring laughter following her scenes.

The film's biggest weak spot was Cera's performance. It seems Cera can't quite escape that goofy, awkward teen that he's already mastered in "Juno" and "Superbad." And after a film like this, he might want to consider showing audiences that he has some depth in his repertoire to avoid getting type cast in the future.

But another interesting aspect of the film was its use of lighting. The movie did a great job at correlating the light quality with the mood of the given scene.

For example, there is one scene where Tris attempts to seduce Nick. She's in front of Nick's car at night, and his headlights act as a spotlight on her. She proceeds to do a striptease dance in front of him, with the light highlighting her facial features. Nick rejects her act of seduction and as he drives off, the lighting becomes dim and rusty.

Yet, too much of "Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist" feels rehashed. The movie was strikingly similar to "Juno" in a variety of ways: its snarky tone, its uninteresting indie-pop soundtrack and situations that feel all too familiar. Cera is left hocking the same "so-dorky-he's-cute" routine and the other characters feel there just to support him.

The result is a film that audiences will want to love, but feel strangely cheated with its fairly predictable plot line.

While it is a comedy, "Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist" doesn't give viewers much of a reason to care about the characters.

And ultimately, there is just too much "fluff" audiences will have to weed through in order to enjoy this film.

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