Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist
Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist | |
---|---|
Directed by | Peter Sollett |
Screenplay by | Lorene Scafaria |
Based on | Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist by Rachel Cohn David Levithan |
Produced by |
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Starring | |
Cinematography | Tom Richmond |
Edited by | Myron Kerstein |
Music by | Mark Mothersbaugh |
Production companies |
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Distributed by | Sony Pictures Releasing |
Release dates |
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Running time | 90 minutes |
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Budget | $10 million |
Box office | $33.5 million |
Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist is a 2008 American
The film came into development in 2003 when producer Kerry Kohansky Roberts found Cohn and Levithan's novel and decided to adapt it for film. Scafaria was hired to write the script in 2005, and Sollett signed on to direct the film in 2006. Principal photography took place over 29 days from October to December 2007, primarily in Manhattan and Brooklyn, New York City.
The film premiered on September 6, 2008, at the
Plot
New Jersey teenager Nick O'Leary is a straight
Norah Silverberg attends
When Thom and Dev stop at Gray's Papaya for hot dogs, a confused Caroline escapes from Thom's van, believing they plan to sexually assault her. Nick and Norah meet with Thom and Dev to try to find her. A confusing phone call leads them to look for her at a club that Where's Fluffy? is rumored to be playing, but cannot find Caroline or the band. They finally locate Caroline when she gives them clues in another phone call.
A jealous Tris catches up with the group, and Nick leaves them to talk to her. An upset Norah meets her on-again-off-again boyfriend Tal at a club. When she realizes he only hopes to get a record deal with Norah's father, a famous producer, she promptly leaves him. Nick decides to confront Tris, but she pleads for a ride home and flirts with him in the car. They stop, and while Tris seductively dances in front of the car, Nick reminisces fondly about Norah and the night's events and drives away, leaving Tris behind.
Nick calls Norah, apologizing for leaving, and she agrees to meet him again. They go to
Cast
- Yugo.[2]
- Kat Dennings as Norah, the beautiful teenage daughter of a wealthy record producer who shares Nick's passion for music. Dennings was the second actor to be cast (Cera having been first),[2] Sollett saying that "her being liberated from [people's expectations] liberated the film in many ways, and certainly her character from cliché."[8] Dennings felt that she related to Norah more than any other she had played before and "wanted to make sure she was really fleshed out".[9] Her favorite day of shooting was with a group of drag queens at a gay cabaret,[2] but she said that filming Norah's first orgasm was "really uncomfortable... Really, really."[10]
- Alexis Dziena as Tris, Nick's unfaithful ex-girlfriend who attends school with Norah and Caroline. Dziena was one of the first actors cast, having done her final read-through audition with Cera, Dennings, and Graynor.[2] She said that the filming period was "a really fantastic time", but complained about the night shoots and having to sleep through the day: "Oh, it's terrible. ... I'm okay as long as the sun's not up when I'm going to sleep but sleeping during the day is rough."[11]
- Ari Graynor as Caroline, Norah's best friend. Graynor auditioned for the roles of both Norah and Caroline, and was chosen to play Caroline, which she says rescued her from "one of those horrible actor black holes of really thinking that I'd probably never work again".[12] Graynor related to both characters, saying that "I've had many nights as Caroline. And I've had many nights as Norah, taking care of Caroline."[12] Sollett claimed that "everything she did in the movie was her own invention", calling her improvisation "brilliant".[5] She improvised an entire scene taking place at the Port Authority Bus Station in which Caroline talks to a stranger and which was not part of the script.[5] When Caroline vomits, Graynor held a mixture of ginger ale and ginger cookie in her mouth which she spat into a toilet and a bag.[2]
- Aaron Yoo as Thom, Nick's friend and the guitarist for The Jerk-Offs. Yoo was supposed to mime playing the guitar when filming The Jerk-Offs' concert, but requested that he be taught the chords to play when he had spare time. He found it very difficult to drive the van featured in the film and jokingly referred to it as a "tank" and a "World War II veteran".[13]
- Rafi Gavron as Dev, Nick's friend and the lead singer of The Jerk-Offs. Gavron recorded a song performed by The Jerk-Offs in the film at Electric Lady Studios, where part of the story takes place. Filming The Jerk-Offs' concert at Don Hill's in New York, the owner of the bar, Don Hill, mistook Gavron for a professional musician in spite of Gavron's calling himself a "useless singer".[14]
- Jonathan B. Wright as Beefy Guy (Lethario), a new gay friend of Thom and Dev.
- Jay Baruchel as Tal, Norah's "friend with benefits" and an amateur musician. Baruchel said that the film was "by far the hippest movie I've ever been in—that's for damn sure".[15]
Cameos
- Rachel Cohn and David Levithan, authors of the same-titled novel on which the film is based, have uncredited cameos as a couple sitting behind Nick and Norah at a diner.[16]
- Lorene Scafaria, who wrote the screenplay for the film, cameos as Drunk Girl in Yugo
- Seth Meyers and Andy Samberg, then working together in the cast of Saturday Night Live, cameo as Drunk Guy in Yugo and Homeless Man, respectively
- Eddie Kaye Thomas, Graynor's then boyfriend, cameos as Jesus in a gay cabaret[12]
- John Cho cameos as Hype Man
- Kevin Corrigan agreed to cameo as Man at Port Authority so long as he had no speaking lines; his turkey sandwich scene, which was not scripted, was entirely improvised by Graynor.[5]
- Devendra Banhart, whose song "Lover" plays during the opening credits/scenes, cameos as Customer in Deli.[17]
Production
Writing
Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist is based on the novel written by Rachel Cohn and David Levithan, which producer Kerry Kohansky Roberts brought into development as a film in 2003.[18] Lorene Scafaria was hired by Roberts in early 2005 to adapt the novel for Chris and Paul Weitz and Focus Features;[19][20] the script was her first film adaptation.[21] Peter Sollett signed on to direct the film in 2006, when the script was in its second draft, and collaborated with Scafaria.[5] Scafaria said that Norah "was me on the page",[21] while Sollett felt that as a teenager he was "not dissimilar to Nick".[5] Both had similar experiences to Nick and Norah, commuting into Manhattan at night, Scafaria from New Jersey and Sollett from Staten Island.[3]
Cohn and Levithan had written the novel in alternating chapters: Cohn writing from Norah's perspective and Levithan writing from Nick's perspective.[22] Cera and Dennings recorded voice-over narration to mimic the first-person perspective from which the novel is written, but the voice-overs were not included in the final cut of the film.[23] Scafaria says that the differences between the novel and the film were "to make it a little more cinematic". She said that Nick and Norah's parents were written out of the script "to absorb what it's like to be young, [because] you're not thinking about your parents when you're out all night".[21] In addition to searching for Where's Fluffy?, Sollett felt that the film needed a second MacGuffin to propel the story forwards, so Norah's best friend Caroline got drunk and then lost, giving Nick and Norah an additional objective.[5]
Filming
Shooting on a budget of
The cast did many rehearsals, including on-location rehearsals, which Dennings described as "the most practical thing I've ever heard of".[2] During the course of filming, the actors slept during the day, woke in the afternoon, had their make-up applied on set, and filmed from dusk until dawn.[23] The cast and crew members would often sit inside The Jerk-Offs' van between takes to avoid the cold, and sometimes stayed inside, out of sight, while scenes were being filmed in the van.[13][30] Reshoots of the film began in May 2008;[30] the film had originally begun at The Jerk-Offs' show where Nick and Norah first meet, and all prior scenes were written in later.[31] Editor Myron Kerstein cut some of the shots on set due to time and budgetary restraints.[32]
Reception
Critical response
Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist received generally positive reviews from critics.
Claudia Puig of USA Today gave the film 3.5 out of 4 stars, praising Dennings' on-screen presence, the "considerable chemistry" between Cera and Dennings, and the "excellent" soundtrack.[36] The New York Times critic A. O. Scott described Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist as a "shy, sweet romance" that "surveys the varieties of teenage experience with tolerant sympathy".[37] James Berardinelli of ReelViews reviewed the film warmly with three out of four stars, complimenting the soundtrack, the "witty" dialog and the appeal of the film to both adults and teenagers.[38] Michael Ordona wrote for the Los Angeles Times that the film is familiar, but is "fleshed out with atmosphere, a nice blend of broad goofiness and sophistication, and two appealing leads who bring it to life".[39] Entertainment Weekly's Lisa Schwarzbaum graded the film as an A−, giving particular commendation to its nonchalant portrayal of gay teenagers and Norah's Jewish identity.[40] Richard Corliss of Time magazine opined that the film was "smart, sweet, [and] bordering-on-adorable" while the title characters were "worth watching, admiring and cuddling up to".[41]
Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times wrote that Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist "doesn't bring much to the party. [...] It's not much of a film, but it sort of gets you halfway there, like a Yugo."[42] Rolling Stone's Peter Travers gave the film 2 out of 4 stars, saying, "I'm yawning just writing this. ... Sollett, hoping for a Before Sunrise/Before Sunset vibe, sadly settles for a soggy aftertaste."[43] In a review for The Village Voice, Robert Wilonsky likened the film to "something crafted in a lab by 54-year-old hucksters trying to sell shit to the kids under the cheerless guise of 'alternative.' The only thing it's an alternative to? Good."[44] Variety magazine's John Anderson described it as a "sparsely plotted comedy" that is "sweet, no doubt, but a bit too slick for its own good".[45]
Box office
The world premiere of Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist was held on September 6, 2008, at the 2008 Toronto International Film Festival.[46] It was released theatrically in the United States on October 3, 2008, grossing US$11,311,751 from 2,421 screens on its debut weekend, placing third in the box office rankings.[47] The following weekend, it grossed $6,420,474 with a per-screen average of $2,652 and a cumulative gross of $20,730,708, ranking fifth.[47] It earned another $3,693,384 on its third weekend with a per-screen average of $1,648 and a cumulative gross of $26,500,875, dropping to eighth place.[47] The film ended its theatrical run with a total domestic gross of $31,487,293 and a foreign gross of $2,018,844, giving a worldwide total of $33,506,137.[24] It placed 92nd for the highest-grossing films of 2008 and 85th for the year's highest-grossing opening weekends.[24]
The film was screened at the
Award nominations
Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist was nominated for three
Home media
Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist was released on
Soundtrack
Cohn and Levithan's novel contained many musical references, including songs by
See also
Notes
- ^ The film was originally in production as a Screen Gems film, but was switched over to Columbia Pictures before release. Some posters also credit Screen Gems as presenter along with Columbia and Mandate Pictures, but in theatrical releases the company remains uncredited.
References
- ^ a b "Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist (2008)". British Film Institute. Archived from the original on March 21, 2019.
- ^ ComingSoon.net. Retrieved December 16, 2009.
- ^ a b c d Zacharek, Stephanie (September 30, 2008). "Isn't it romantic?". Salon.com. Archived from the original on January 9, 2009. Retrieved December 16, 2009.
- ^ Filmmaker Magazine. Archived from the originalon January 22, 2013. Retrieved December 16, 2009.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Kelly, Michael. "Peter Sollett Interview, Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist, Toronto 2008". Spout.com. Archived from the original on November 28, 2009. Retrieved December 16, 2009.
- ^ Roberts, Sheila. "Michael Cera, Kat Dennings Interview, Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist". MoviesOnline.ca. Archived from the original on September 5, 2010. Retrieved December 16, 2009.
- ^ Onstad, Katrina (September 26, 2008). "Almost Famous, for Better or Worse". The New York Times. Archived from the original on April 16, 2009. Retrieved December 16, 2009.
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- ^ Roberts, Sheila. "Alexis Dziena Interview, Fool's Gold". MoviesOnline.ca. Archived from the original on April 30, 2009. Retrieved December 16, 2009.
- ^ a b c Freydkin, Donna (October 7, 2008). "'Infinite Playlist' has a New York beat for city girl Graynor". USA Today. Archived from the original on December 11, 2008. Retrieved December 16, 2009.
- ^ a b "Aaron Yoo Ari Graynor interview Nick and Noras infinite playlist". Chuck the Movie Guy. Archived from the original on March 1, 2014. Retrieved June 4, 2013.
- ^ "Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist (2008): Rafi Gavron Interview". MovieWeb. Archived from the original on January 29, 2013. Retrieved December 16, 2009.
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- ^ "Devendra Banhart Makes A Cameo In 'Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist' Plus All The Music Used In The Indie-Rock Romance Comedy". The Playlist. August 13, 2008. Archived from the original on January 27, 2012. Retrieved December 16, 2009.
- ^ Kaufman, Anthony (September 3, 2008). "10 Producers to Watch: Kerry Kohansky Roberts". Variety. Retrieved December 16, 2009.
- ^ Plyler, Will (April 27, 2005). "Lorene Scafaria". DoneDealPro.com. Archived from the original on January 2, 2010. Retrieved December 16, 2009.
- ^ Adalian, Josef (August 25, 2005). "Sibs file lesson plan". Variety. Retrieved December 16, 2009.
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- National Public Radio. October 3, 2008. Archivedfrom the original on December 11, 2008. Retrieved December 16, 2009.
- ^ a b Utichi, Joe (May 15, 2008). "RT Interview: Kat Dennings on Charlie Bartlett, Nick and Norah and Death". Rotten Tomatoes. Archived from the original on August 5, 2011. Retrieved December 16, 2009.
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- ^ Utichi, Joe (October 16, 2007). "Huge Casting Call". ThePunkGuy.com. Archived from the original on April 7, 2012. Retrieved December 16, 2009.
- ^ a b Vigil, Delfin (September 28, 2008). "Music of chance unites two teens". San Francisco Chronicle. Archived from the original on September 14, 2011. Retrieved December 16, 2009.
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- ^ Puig, Claudia (October 5, 2008). "'Infinite Playlist' strikes just the right note". USA Today. Archived from the original on April 21, 2009. Retrieved December 16, 2009.
- ^ Scott, A. O. (October 3, 2008). "For Muddled Youth, Music to Live By". The New York Times. Archived from the original on May 25, 2010. Retrieved December 16, 2009.
- ReelViews.net. Archivedfrom the original on October 12, 2011. Retrieved December 16, 2009.
- ^ Ordona, Michael (October 3, 2008). "Romance charms with a teen beat". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on January 10, 2010. Retrieved December 16, 2009.
- ^ Schwarzbaum, Lisa (October 10, 2008). "Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist (2008)". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on April 25, 2009. Retrieved December 16, 2009.
- ^ Corliss, Richard (September 25, 2008). "Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist: Enchanted Evening". Time. Archived from the original on August 26, 2009. Retrieved December 16, 2009.
- ^ Ebert, Roger (October 2, 2008). "Endless shuffle mode". RogerEbert.com. Archived from the original on December 17, 2008. Retrieved August 3, 2022.
- ^ Travers, Peter (October 16, 2008). "Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on October 3, 2008. Retrieved December 16, 2009.
- ^ Wilonsky, Robert (September 30, 2008). "Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist: About A Boy, and Not Much Else". The Village Voice. Archived from the original on October 24, 2010. Retrieved December 16, 2009.
- ^ Anderson, John (September 5, 2008). "Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist". Variety. Retrieved December 16, 2009.
- ^ Punter, Jennie (July 2, 2008). "Toronto believes in Lee's 'Miracle'". Variety. Archived from the original on July 5, 2008. Retrieved December 16, 2009.
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External links
- Official website
- Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist at IMDb
- Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist at AllMovie
- Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist at Box Office Mojo
- Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist at Rotten Tomatoes
- Author Rachel Cohn
- Author David Levithan