New Year’s Eve: Movie Review

Cast:Jessica Biel, Jon Bon Jovi, Robert De Niro, Josh Duhamel, Zac Efron, Katherine Heigl, Ashton Kutcher, Michelle Pfeiffer, Sarah Jessica Parker, Hilary SwankDirection: Garry MarshallGenre: Romance/Comedy
A multistarrer just like his last year’s romcom ‘Valentine’s Day’ (2010), Gary Marshall once again comes up with a collage of ‘feel good’ love stories. Several tracks run parallel to each other, characters cross paths; certain stories are intertwined with each other only to find a perfect ending on New Yea’s eve.
The film is predominantly a date film, solely made to please the couples and film goers who dig romance in every film. However, novelty wise the film has absolutely nothing new to offer. The tracks are predictable, dialogues cheesy and romance sweet enough to cause diabetes. The fact that every track seems repetitive, unfortunately from Marshall’s own previous work ‘Valentine’s Day’ also makes it way too generic.
Of all the tracks, few manage to grip your attention.
An elderly woman (Michelle Pfeiffer) who has succumbed to mediocrity and her boring job for years asks a young courier boy (Zac Efron) to help her ‘let loose’ for a change. She hires him for an entire day with a resolution of fulfilling all her previous unfulfilled resolutions. A rock star (Bon Jovi) wishes to win his girlfriend (Katherine Heigl) back after he left her sobbing at the altar last year. He regrets getting cold feet before the wedding. An ailing (Robert De Niro) wishes to see the ball drop at the Times Square on New Year’s Eve, before he’d succumb to cancer, a skeptic (Ashton Kutcher) does find love once again…
The film is about what happens in the last night of the year. The events are to unfold on New Year’s eve but the slow pace and unimaginative writing makes it feel as if the stories are stretched over years and not a single evening.
Performance wise, the seniors impress. Halle Berry, Hilary Swank, Michelle Pfeiffer and Robert De Niro leave you moist eyed. Off the younger lot, Zac Efron pleasantly surprises you with his effervescent performance. H lends that much needed life and energy to the film. He shuns being just another pretty school boy onscreen much to our relief. You see glimpses of good acting in Ashton Kutcher’s typical performance. Its time he stops typecasting himself as this moronic dude in all his movies.
Don’t attempt to indulge in soul-searching while watching this film and you won’t be displeased. It is just another rom-com which Hollywood churns out every now and then which is monotonous yet a decent one time watch.
Verdict: Above Average