New Year's Eve (2011 film)

New Year's Eve

Company type	Film
Industry	Entertainment
Founded	2011
Founder	Garry Marshall (director), Katherine Fugate (writer)
Products	Romantic comedy film

New Year's Eve is a 2011 American romantic comedy film directed by Garry Marshall and penned by Katherine Fugate. The movie showcases a star-studded ensemble cast, including Halle Berry, Jessica Biel, Jon Bon Jovi, Abigail Breslin, Chris "Ludacris" Bridges, Robert De Niro, among others.

This film serves as the second entry in Garry Marshall’s unofficial trilogy of holiday-themed romantic comedies, alongside Valentine's Day (2010) and Mother's Day (2016).

Premiering on December 9, 2011, New Year's Eve was met with largely unfavorable critiques but managed to perform well commercially, earning $142 million worldwide against a production budget of $56 million.

Plot

Set in New York City during New Year's Eve, the story interweaves the lives of several characters.

Claire Morgan, who serves as Vice-President of the Times Square Alliance, is responsible for organizing the famous ball drop celebration. Meanwhile, Ingrid Withers, a secretary at Ahern Records, quits her job due to frustrations at work and enlists the help of deliveryman Paul Doyle to accomplish her New Year’s resolutions before midnight. In exchange, she offers him tickets to the company’s Masquerade Ball.

Paul’s sister Kim faces challenges with her teenage daughter Hailey, who prefers spending the night with friends and her boyfriend Seth Anderson in Times Square rather than with family. Comic book artist Randy, heartbroken after a breakup on New Year’s Eve, finds himself stuck in an elevator alongside Elise, an aspiring backup singer for musician Daniel Jensen. Jensen plans to perform at the Ahern Records ball while attempting to mend his relationship with his ex-fiancée Laura.

At a nearby hospital, Claire’s father Stan Harris is battling terminal cancer and wishes to witness the ball drop one final time. Nurses Aimee and Mindy provide care as Stan approaches the end of his life. Close by, couples Griffin and Tess Byrne and James and Grace Schwab vie for a $25,000 New Year’s Day baby bonus.

Sam Ahern Jr., son of the late founder of Ahern Records, encounters car trouble while en route to deliver an important speech at the company event. Along the way, he contemplates reconnecting with a woman he met the previous year. After assistance from an RV family, he arrives late but prepared to speak.

When a technical malfunction threatens the Times Square Ball drop, Claire contacts Kominsky, a recently dismissed electrician who manages to fix it moments before midnight. Claire then hurries to be by her father’s side as the countdown concludes.

Nurse Aimee connects via video call with her husband stationed overseas. Stan passes away shortly after sharing the countdown experience with Claire.

Paul assists Ingrid in completing her resolutions; together they attend the Ahern Records ball. Randy and Elise develop a bond during their time trapped in the elevator; Elise ultimately takes Jensen’s place on stage after he reconciles with Laura. Their connection leads to romance.

Griffin and Tess have their baby first but choose to let James and Grace claim the $25,000 bonus after learning about their greater family needs. Hailey runs off to Times Square following a misunderstanding involving Seth; reconciliation occurs once the truth is revealed.

Kim reunites with Sam at the company ball; they reveal their identities and begin a relationship. The film closes with Paul and Ingrid enjoying the festivities at Ahern Records’ celebration.

Resolution Tour

• Michelle Pfeiffer portrays Ingrid Withers
• Zac Efron appears as Paul Doyle
• Fiona Choi plays a Balinese Woman

Hospital Story

• Robert De Niro features as Stan Harris
• Halle Berry acts as Nurse Aimee
• Alyssa Milano takes the role of Nurse Mindy
• Cary Elwes is cast as Stan's Doctor
• Common plays Chino, Aimee's spouse

Maternity Ward

• Seth Meyers appears as Griffin Byrne
• Jessica Biel portrays Tess Byrne, Griffin's wife
• Til Schweiger acts as James Schwab
• Sarah Paulson plays Grace Schwab, James's wife
• Carla Gugino is Dr. Morriset
• Peter Allen Vogt features as Male Nurse

Jensen & Laura's Story

• Jon Bon Jovi plays Daniel Jensen
• Katherine Heigl portrays Laura, Daniel’s ex-fiancée
• Sofía Vergara acts as Ava
• Russell Peters appears as Chef Sunil

Elevator

• Ashton Kutcher is Randy
• Lea Michele plays Elise
• Jim Belushi features as Building Superintendent

Mother & Daughter

• Sarah Jessica Parker portrays Kim Doyle, Paul’s elder sister
• Abigail Breslin acts as Hailey Doyle, Kim’s daughter and Paul’s niece
• Jake T. Austin appears as Seth Anderson, Hailey’s boyfriend
• Katherine McNamara plays Lily Bowman
• Mara Davi is Mika
• Nat Wolff features as Walter

Ahern Party

• Josh Duhamel stars as Sam Ahern Jr.
• Larry Miller is Harley
• Cherry Jones portrays Mrs. Rose Ahern, Sam’s widowed mother
• Joey McIntyre acts as Rory
• Sean O'Bryan plays Pastor Edwin
• Jack McGee appears as Grandpa Jed
• Yeardley Smith is Maude
• Penny Marshall makes a cameo as Herself
• Drena De Niro acts as Ahern, Waitress
• Christine Lakin features as Alyssa, Waitress
• Shea Curry appears as Wendy
• Amar'e Stoudemire performs as Party Dancer

Times Square

• Hilary Swank portrays Claire Morgan, Stan’s biological daughter
• Chris "Ludacris" Bridges plays Lieutenant Brendan Nolan
• Héctor Elizondo acts as Lester Kominsky
• Kathleen Marshall is Stage Manager Charlotte
• Matthew Walker features as Engineer Douglas
• Pat Battle appears as Herself
• Ryan Seacrest makes a cameo as Himself

Uncredited

• Michael Bloomberg appears as Himself
• Matthew Broderick plays Mr. Buellerton
• John Lithgow acts as Jonathan Cox

Critical reception

According to Rotten Tomatoes, the movie has an approval rating of 7% based on 142 reviews, with an average rating of 3.20/10. The consensus describes it as "shallow, sappy, and dull," highlighting the star-studded cast but questioning its purpose. On Metacritic, it earned a score of 22 out of 100 from 30 critics, signifying "generally unfavorable reviews." CinemaScore audience polling gave the film an average grade of "B+" on an A+ to F scale.

Roger Ebert from the Chicago Sun-Times characterized the film as "a dreary plod through the sands of time," expressing disbelief that such a large ensemble lacked compelling roles. Kimberley Jones of the Austin Chronicle deemed it "appalling stuff," while Claudia Winkleman of the BBC called it "the worst film of all time." Rolling Stone awarded it zero stars, condemning director Garry Marshall’s follow-up to Valentine’s Day and labeling it "bad beyond belief." The Daily Telegraph included it among 2011’s ten worst films, and critic Mark Kermode declared it the year's poorest cinematic effort. In contrast, Owen Gleiberman from Entertainment Weekly described it as "dunderheaded kitsch" but recognized its charm for holiday audiences.

Box office

The film opened at number one at the box office with $13 million in earnings. It accumulated $54.5 million domestically across the United States and Canada and $87.5 million internationally, reaching a global total of $142 million.

Accolades

This production was nominated for five Razzie Awards: Worst Picture, Worst Director (Garry Marshall), Worst Actress (Sarah Jessica Parker), Worst Screenplay, and Worst Screen Ensemble; however, all awards went to Adam Sandler's Jack and Jill.

Award	Category	Recipients	Result
Alliance of Women Film Journalists	Actress Most in Need of a New Agent	Entire female cast of New Year's Eve	Template:Won
BET Awards	Best Actor	Common	Template:Nom
Golden Raspberry Awards	Worst Picture		Template:Nom
	Worst Director	Garry Marshall	Template:Nom
	Worst Actress	Sarah Jessica Parker	Template:Nom
	Worst Screenplay	Katherine Fugate	Template:Nom
	Worst Screen Ensemble	Complete cast of New Year's Eve	Template:Nom
Golden Trailer Awards	Golden Fleece Award	"One Night Domestic Trailer"	Template:Nom
Teen Choice Awards	Choice Movie Scene Stealer: Female	Lea Michele	Template:Nom

Parodies

Both New Year's Eve and its predecessor Valentine's Day were lampooned in December 2011 on the sketch comedy show Saturday Night Live. The parody took the form of a trailer for a fictional movie titled The Apocalypse, set on Earth's final day.

Additionally, these films were spoofed on the television series 30 Rock, in the January 2012 episode "The Ballad of Kenneth Parcell," which included a mock trailer for a movie named Martin Luther King Day, starring the character Jenna Maroney.