A lot of people (mostly of the male sex) are going to hate me for saying this but New Year’s Eve does actually work as a film. The creators might have missed the mark on how to make an ensemble film with Valentine’s Day but here they are spot on, even though the film is sickly sweet and may not have the depth that so many people crave these days.
The plots run thick and fast with New Year’s Eve. There is the nervous Ingrid (Michelle Pfeiffer – Personal Effects, Cheri) who quits her job and then hires a young courier, Paul (Zac Efron – Charlie St. Cloud, 17 Again) to help her complete a bucket list. Laura (Katherine Heigl – Life As We Know It, Killers) is catering the party of her life but hates the fact that her ex, Jensen (Jon Bon Jovi – Pucked, Cry Wolf) is the guest of honour. Stan Harris (Robert De Niro – Killer Elite, Limitless) comes to terms with the fact that he is about to die but begs his doctor and Nurse Aimee (Halle Berry – Dark Tide, Frankie & Alice) to let him see the ball drop one more time in Times Square, and job that city official, Clarie Morgan (Hilary Swank – The Resident, Conviction) is in charge of. Meanwhile, Tess (Jessica Biel – The A-Team, Valentine’s Day) and Griffin Byrne (Seth Meyers – I Don’t Know How She Does It, Spring Breakdown) are trying to have the first baby of 2012, Elise (Lea Michele – TV’S Glee & The Cleveland Show) is trapped in a lift with the holiday-hating, Randy (Ashton Kutcher – No Strings Attached, Killers), Kim (Sarah Jessica Parker – I Don’t Know How She Does It, Sex And The City 2) is coming to terms with the fact that her daughter, Hailey (Abigail Breslin – Rango, Janie Jones) isn’t a little girl anymore and Sam (Josh Duhamel – Transformers: Dark Of The Moon, Life As We Know It) is desperately trying to get back to New York to meet a woman he met last New Year’s Eve.
Director, Garry Marshall (Valentine’s Day, Georgia Rule) does a wonderful job making sure that all the stories incorporated in the film flow nicely and this time around the stories all fit together nicely and don’t feel like they are being forced together. Surprisingly, you find yourself drawn to some of the characters and you find yourself actually caring for them. Cudos must also be given to screenwriter, Katherine Fugate (Valentine’s Day, The Prince & Me) who remembers to add a little bit dramatic tension this time round, and yes even has the audience desperately trying to work out what is going to happen next.
Of course with this many A-Listers around the acting is going to be pretty good, and the stars don’t fail. Robert De Niro puts in one of the best performances and you find yourself really hoping that his character can hold on to midnight, although the big surprise is Zac Efron. He clutches hold of his role with two hands and seems to relish in playing a character really removed from what he has played before. His on screen presence with Pfeffier playing an unhinged woman is surprising and should silence those who claimed he had no future after High School Musical.
At times New Year’s Eve is just plain sickly sweet yet you can’t help liking it. The characters are likable, the stories are intriguing and on the way out of the cinema you will find yourself saying, “I kinda liked that film”. Not the best film of 2011, but certainly far from the worst.
Year: 2011
Director: Garry Marshall
Stars: Michelle Pfeiffer, Zac Efron, Katherine Heigl, Jon Bon Jovi, Robert De Niro, Halle Berry, Hilary Swank, Jessica Biel, Seth Meyers, Lea Michele, Ashton Kutcher, Sarah Jessica Parker, Abigail Breslin, Josh Duhamel
Classification: M
Runtime: 118 mins
Rating: 
Out on DVD/Blu-Ray 11th April 2012