Nick & Norah's Infinite PlaylistDirected by: Peter Sollett Cast: Michael Cera, Kat Dennings, Alexis Dziena, Ari Graynor, Jay Baruchel Time: 1 hr 30 mins Rating: PG-13

Plot: Nick (Cera) is getting over his ex and Norah (Dennings) has baggage of her own. But when she asks him to pretend to be her boyfriend for five minutes, they are thrust together in a New York City night of adventure in a world of mix tapes, drunk friends, and live music.

Who’s It For? This is ideally for the high school crowd, but should appeal to a wider audience. You'll get more of the same from Cera (which is a good thing).

Expectations: I was so excited that I forced the wife to come along for the screening. I had a hope/hunch this could rise above the typical, thrown together teenage flick. But with high expectations comes the possible of getting easily disappointed.

SCORECARD (0-10)

Actors: Michael Cera as Nick: He's not the everyman, he's the ultimate everygeek. He's the bassist in a gay band, but nothing becomes cliche. His bandmates aren't gay just for a laugh and there will be tons of audience members who will be able to identify with Nick's heartbreak and mix CDs and trying to get over an ex. Score: 9

Kat Dennings as Norah: Dennings is a rare actress who can deliver a line about how she knows she isn't the most beautiful girl AND IT WORKS. Compared to Tris, Norah isn't as esthetically pleasing, but damn that personality makes all the difference. Norah has that perfect teenage balance between being cocky and insecure. There's also a nice subplot with who her father is, but it never takes over the film. Score: 8

Ari Graynor as Caroline: I really assumed drunk Caroline was done as soon as she hit her head on the van. Then I was convinced she would immediately over stay her welcome as the typical drunk friend. Nope, she far exceeded my expectations. Her ability to stick her hand in a public toilet to retrieve gum is a shining example of how "drunk friend" can equal "comic gold." Score: 7

Alexis Dziena as Tris: Typically the perfect looking girl becoming nothing more than a stereotype in these movies. Luckily Tris is annoying, but it's subtle. She's an attention whore who has used her looks her entire life. The only curiosity I have is that is seems someone of her stature would never have been with Nick in the first place. Score: 7

Talking: The dialogue is authentic throughout. When Nick and Norah are alone in the recording studio the film reaches new heights with their conversation being the perfect awkward teenage excitement and tension. Plus, there will be tons of repeatable lines from this film such as my personal favorite, "I never wash my pants, I like to keep the night on them." Score: 9

Sights & Sounds: Here's the complete playlist. Enjoy. Beyond the fantastic music, the score sounds like it could have been made on an 8-bit computer (in a good way). New York City comes to life as they are making a made dash to try and track down the band Where's Fluffy? Someone should make a Google map of all the spots they hit. Score: 9

PLOT SPOILERS

Best Scene: I have to go back to the moment in the recording studio when Nick and Norah finally have a chance (and want) to be alone together.

Ending: Suddenly I couldn't figure out where the movie was going or how it would end. It just existed, like the cameras were left rolling. But then one final cleansing of the exes needed to happen and it all made sense.

Questions: OK, it was a bit out of character for Nick to just leave Tris on the side of some street, right? And if you lose a friend in New York, don't you constantly call? And why wouldn't she ever call you? Also, I keep going back and forth on this, but it's not nearly as bad as the 200 Cigarettes ending, but how cool would it be for an actual band to be launched that way? Also, "Saturday Night Live" is 1-1 here. Seth Myers is great as the lush who mistakes Nick's car for a cab, but Andy Samberg doesn't do it for me as the homeless man with a dog fetish.

Rewatchability: Yeah. This is a film I want to introduce to people. Plus, with it only being an hour and a half, it's going to be easy to take in a second helping.

OVERALL I haven't made a list, but this has to be one of the best high school/coming-of-age/romantic/comedy films of the past decade. First, and most importantly, everything actually feels like it could happen. Sounds simple and every slice-of-life film should be able to do this, but they don't. Cera hasn't worn out his ability to play the awkward teen, he's perfected it, and Kat Dennings is fantastic opposite him. The on-and-off chemistry works with Nick, Norah and their exes, and it feels like you really do get to spend the night with these teenagers running around the city. Score: 8/10