FILM REVIEW: New Year’s Eve not one to countdown to

CLUTCHING AT STRAWS Ashton Kutcher and Lea Michele star in New Year’s Eve, a forgetable romantic-comedy.

New Year’s Eve, Actually


Rowan Gallagher

In 1983 Bono when told the world that ‘nothing changes on New Year’s Day’, he was correct in his pronouncement but Hollywood would beg to differ.
Heavily inspired by ‘Love, Actually’ and with an all-star cast, New Year’s Eve tries to cash in on the last holiday of 2011. The beautiful people of Hollywood have come out in force making it almost easier to name the actors that aren’t in the movie with Michelle Pfeiffer, Zac Efron (High School Musical), Robert de Niro, Halle Berry and Aston Kutcher to name but a few all making an appearance. To insult Quentin Tarantino, there are a number of stories all intertwining around the Times Square ball drop that marks the New York New Year, in a Pulp Fiction-esque style.
Elise (Glee’s Lea Michelle) is meant to sing back-up but unfortunately finds herself stuck in a lift with Randy (Aston Kutcher) while a pregnant Tess Byrne (Jessica Beil) is hoping to have the first baby of the New Year. Stan Harris (Robert de Niro) is a dying business man who wants to see the fireworks from the roof of his hospital but is blocked by Nurse Aimee (Halle Berry).
Michelle Pfeiffer offers Zac Efron tickets to the New Year’s party if he helps her complete a list of things to do before year’s end, while Abigail Breslin is a teen in love who tries to break away from her mother (Sarah Jessica Parker) to attend a party. The only cliché missing is the customary chase to the airport for a tearful rendezvous.



Leaving the movie you will not be calling the characters by their screen name as they are sold as their real life counterparts. The Hollywood heavy hitters that this movie boasts are a simple case of name dropping and nothing more. Many of them seem to have only been on set for a few hours before collecting their cheque for the appearance.
The audience will find it difficult to get attached to any of the highly stereotyped characters, none of whom get enough screen time to be in anyway developed.
The story will undoubtedly pull on some heart strings given the time of the year and the New York setting is beautiful but it is a far cry from a substantial attraction for the film.
Vague glimpses of humour are strewn throughout with the pregnancy story strand acting as the comic relief.
The one possible redeeming factor should have come in the form of the de Niro plot line but it is so badly handled it is almost laughable at points, which is surprising for due to the morbid subject matter. For an actor with such fantastic movies under his belt it is a stark reminder that the last nails are being put in his career with the movies he is cast in these days.
The most heartbreaking part of the New Year’s Eve story is that the movie will probably gross a hefty sum at the box office, especially over the next week or so.
If you want a cliché driven story with so many heavy hitting Hollywood names or to see Robert de Niro sell his name once again then I would highly recommend this movie, but those of you looking for a clever romantic comedy there are much better predecessors such as ‘Notting Hill’ or ‘Love, Actually’.  Expect to see New Year’s Eve in a bargain bin next December and a placeholder on New Year’s TV billing for some years to come.

Rating 2 out of 10