Every year on December 31st, New York City is the center of an international celebration of a new year. Thousands of people crowd together in The Big Apple to throw a humungous party once the bright colorfully lit ball drops at midnight. The movie New Years Eve, from the creators of the people that made Valentines Day, follows a handful of people and their experiences that night.

New Years Eve, directed by Gary Marshall, stars some of the biggest names in the media today. A few include Robert De Niro, Halle Berry, Michelle Pfeiffer, Jon Bon Jovi, and Ashton Kutcher. Even though these are such high-class actors and actresses, the movie wasn’t nearly as great as it is perceived to be. The cast didn't do nearly as good as they have in previous movies. If the people cast in this movie had been rookies in the acting scene, it would have been much easier to enjoy. Instead, you see the people acting and get your hopes up for an incredible performance. Nevertheless, this movie is good, just not as good as it should have been.

Even though some of this movie is enjoyable, it is very hard to actually follow each and every character. With the camera following the lives of more than ten people, it is overwhelming and difficult to keep track of everything that is going on. The movie literally skips from character to character, analyzing and illustrating the problem that each one has on the last day of the year. Some of the problems include two people stuck in an elevator, a couple trying to rush the birth of their first child, and a man trying to track down the woman he had met exactly a year before on the same night. Each individual plot in the movie would have been perfect as stories all by themselves. Instead, it seemed as if the director and producers were trying to cram as many little stories and major celebrities into the story as possible.

Minus the fact that the movie is lacking something special and unique, it does give you a warm feeling inside. It takes the problems of several people and makes it all better by the end of the movie. Even though it is a typical “happy ending” story, the crazy events that lead up to the climax leave you second guessing. The movie is incredibly misleading, but in a somewhat positive way. You are constantly trying to guess on who is connected to who throughout the entire story, and then the ending brings a sign of relief. All of the pieces fall into place.

New Year Eve gave me mixed feelings. Part of me loved it, and part of me was looking for improvement. I had high hopes, and was partially let down. However, I did find enjoyable characteristics in this movie. I would recommend it to all of the people that find sweet and sappy romantic comedies as their weakness. If you want to watch this movie just because of the admirable actors and actresses, then save yourself the disappointment.