Toss love in the mix

Teen romantic comedy almost escapes limits of its genre

The best teen romantic comedies exist beyond nearly every word of that description.

"Say Anything," "Sixteen Candles," "The Sure Thing," that kind of film -- to call them anything less than just out-and-out good movies is to diminish their quality. Young audiences recognize themselves in them, while adults see an honest portrayal of their youth -- or at least as they would like to remember it.

"Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist" nearly attains that lofty stature. It has seemingly everything going for it: a hip, somewhat inscrutable title; two appealing leads in Michael Cera and Kat Dennings; and a self-consciously cool soundtrack (music is integral to the plot of the film).

The film opens with Nick (Cera) leaving a hilariously pathetic phone message -- one of many -- for Tris (Alexis Dziena), the ice-cold girl who dumped him. She doesn't call back, so he makes a succession of outstanding mix CDs nakedly chronicling his emotions.

Tris, beautiful and self-centered, has been tossing them in the trash without a listen; Norah (Dennings) fishes them out, listens to them and loves them.

Nick's bandmates convince him to try to escape his funk by playing a show in New York City. Naturally, Tris is there -- with another guy. Meanwhile, Norah convinces a distracted Nick to pose as her boyfriend long enough to make her ex-boyfriend jealous.

Norah is not particularly convincing, but she does discover that this is the guy who has been making the cool mix CDs. A radio station is teasing a surprise show by a local band called Where's Fluffy, dropping hints about the secret location. Nick, Norah, Tris and all their friends love the band, so the night turns into a sleepless road trip.

Lorene Scafaria's script, based on the novel by Rachel Cohn and David Levithan, throws up obstacles designed to take the spark out of Nick and Norah's burgeoning relationship. It improves over time, but you wish director Peter Sollett had been able to coax more out of their earlier scenes together.

Ultimately, "Nick and Norah" is like the playlists its title suggests -- as with most mix tapes, it's somewhat uneven overall.

- By Bill Goodykoontz / Gannett Chief Film Critic

Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist

Rating: 3 stars (out of four)

Cast: Michael Cera, Kat Dennings, Rafi Gavron, Aaron Yoo.

Running time: 90 minutes.

Rated: PG-13; mature thematic material including teen drinking, sexuality, language and crude behavior.