Columbia Pictures. 2008.
Screenplay by: Lorene Scafaria
Novel by: Rachel Cohn
Run Time: 90 minutes
Rating: PG-13
Watchers Annotation
At their first meeting Norah asks Nick to play her boyfriend for five minutes. That five minutes leads to an evening together in the Lower Eastside of Manhattan searching for a band called Where’s Fluffy?
Cast
Michael Cera, Nick
Kat Dennings, Norah
Aaron Yoo, Thom
Rafi Grayon, Caroline
Alexis Sziena, Tris
Jay Baruchel, Tal
Plot Summary
It has been months since Tris broke up with Nick, and with one last message he tells her that he is leaving one last CD mix on her doorstep.
At school in New Jersey, Norah and her friend Caroline are finalizing plans for the weekend. Norah tells Caroline that she will go with her as long as she doesn’t get drunk. Tris (also a school mate of Norah) brags about her ex-boyfriend leaving CD’s on her doorstep and throws it into the trash. Norah, who has snatched all the CD’s Tris has thrown out loves the mixes and cover art created by the boy she doesn’t know. The girls are also on the hunt for the elusive band Where’s Fluffy?
At the gig Norah askes Nick and asks him to play her boyfriend for five minutes. By this time Caroline is very drunk and Norah decides to take her home. This leaves Nick and Norah free to search for Where’s Fluffy? Along the way, Nick and Nora get a call that the boys have lost Caroline. After meeting up the group scours the city looking for the very drunk Caroline. Caroline in the meantime has found her way to the bus station, where she becomes violently ill. At one of their club stops, Norah’s ex-boyfriend tries to drag her away from Nick. Norah escapes and continues to search for the band and Caroline. They finally find Caroline at a gay cabaret show. Nick lets Norah drive his car. She crashes it into a fire hydrant while looking through his ipod. They agree to go someplace that is more private and end up at Electric Lady Studios, which is owned by Norah’s father. While there the pair makes out on the sofa. Soon after Norah gets a text message from Caroline that they have found Where’s Fluffy? They rush to get to the gig. Once they arrive they are both confronted by their ex’s. As the band begins to play Nick holds out his hand to Norah and they leave together. By this time it is nearly dawn.
Critical Evaluation
This is a great premise for a movie. Unfortunately it plays like a scavenger hunt. Michael Cera (Nick), and Kat Denning (Norah) have a lot of chemistry on the screen. They are totally believable as two people that are attracted to one another. Their little spats seem funny and silly. However, I did not find the character of Caroline to be humorous. An incipient alcoholic, Caroline has one of the grossest scenes ever filmed. She paws through a toilet bowl filled with puke to find her cell phone and her lost gum. The gum later ends up in Norah’s mouth, and then Nick’s. The best characters in the film are Nick’s gay band mates. They are fast-talking, fun seekers, and I wish they had been in more of the film. The ex’s, Tal and Tris and shallow selfish children who do little for the story, except provoke ridicule. Because of the title I expected a stellar soundtrack. I was disappointed that the music was barely noticeable in the film. You can find more information about the film on the Internet Movie Database (IMDb) at http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0981227/.
Genre
Romantic comedy.
Curriculum ties
None
Challenge Issues
Underage drinking, language and sexual situations
Challenge defense ideas
· Become familiar with the film and its content.
· Refer to the collection development policy of the library.
· Refer to reviews from Internet Movie Database (IMDb) at http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0981227/externalreviews
· Try to get reviews of the film from teens that have seen it.
Why I included this title
The movie was advertised as a teen film based on the book of the same name, and I had heard good reviews.
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