Glitzed-up New York City and an all-star cast is not enough to make it a good “New Year’s Eve.”
Legendary director-producer Garry Marshall (“Pretty Woman,” “Beaches”) is back at it again, carbon copying last year’s disappointing ensemble flick “Valentine’s Day.”
Taking a day traditionally steeped in self-reflection, growth, and the celebration of hope and love, Marshall and screenwriter Katherine Fugate presumably had the right starting point for a decent feel-good flick.
However, things get out of hand when the story lines become too numerous to keep track of and we’re introduced to too many characters—each without enough time to barely register with the audience, much less make an impression.
Where do we even begin to summarize the plot.
There are competing pregnant women trying to one-up each other in giving birth first for prize money, a dying cancer-stricken man who has made more enemies than friends in life, a caterer whose rock-star boyfriend walked out on their engagement, a woman who almost loses her job when the New Year’s crystal ball malfunctions, a defiant 15-year-old teenager with an overbearing mother. And oh, how can we forget rappers Ludacris and Common in their cameo appearances … and Jon Bon Jovi and his great head of hair.
The film, while weak in plot, has redeeming qualities that manage to shine through if only for a few seconds. In this day and age of mostly violent, racy, vacuous bottom-line-focused productions, it is refreshing to watch something that has some measure of optimism and morality, as the film tries to illustrate its central themes of love, forgiveness, compassion, hope, and reflection.
It’s a movie you want to root for, at least if you like romantic comedies with happy endings, but the barely there plot is stretched too thinly among the overly crowded cast filled with underused talent.
While the messages throughout the film are positive, uplifting, and touching, ultimately it is too much of a hodge-podge variety show to really make an impact. The only cast member that leaves a lasting impression is the great city of New York.
Director: Garry Marshall
Cast: Hilary Swank, Michelle Pfeiffer, Sarah Jessica Parker, Lea Michele, Zac Efron, Jon Bon Jovi, Katherine Heigl, Robert De Niro, Halle Berry, Josh Duhamel, Ashton Kutcher, Abigail Breslin
Running Time: 117 minutes
Rating: PG-13
[etRating value=“ 2”]
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