December 31st is here and if you aren’t able to participate in the festivities then kick back at home with your loved ones and choose a few movies to watch this New Year’s Eve. There are a number of fantastic movies I love to watch at this time of year – some are holiday themed, some are not. Perhaps you are a bit burnt out from Christmas activity or simply want to chill at home. If you are looking for a few suggestions, we have a list of seven fun movies to watch this New Year’s Eve while relaxing at home.
We begin our list of movies to watch this New Year’s Eve with a movie named for the occasion! New Year’s Eve is about more than just the celebrations. It’s an entertaining group of vignettes about the lives of strangers on New Year’s Eve. It has everything from strangers in an elevator, and long lost love to New Year’s Day childbirth competition. I like this movie in general, but my favorite story concerns a secretary and her list of resolutions! It’s a particularly heartwarming story and inspiring. The music is fun and the cast of familiar faces is decent, and we get to see the NYE ball drop in Times Square…after a brief mishap.
When Harry Met Sally is a good movie about the friendship between, who else: Sally and Harry. I love movies about transformation and this one is no exception. Over the span of ten years, Harry and Sally grow closer together in that way that friends do … except that they eventually fall in love. The most famous scene in the entire movie centers on a discussion of truthfulness and ends with a dramatic punctuation by Sally. That scene in Katz’ deli is positively hilarious! Who can forget it?! And the New Year’s Eve scene is quite touching: “I love that when you want to spend the rest of your life with somebody, you want the rest of your life to start right now!” I want to watch it again, right now.
Love Actually is similar to New Year’s Eve in the sense that it is a movie of intertwined stories. This movie has a great mix of heart tugging stories and scenes that make me laugh out loud, lots! I mean the opening song sequence with Bill Nighy is brilliant! And the emotional reveal by Mark is moving. This is a fun movie to watch on New Year’s Eve because it has a nice holiday feel and fantastic soundtrack. There are people in nearly ever stage of love possible: in love, out of love, wanting love, leaving love. Ha! It’s a love fest – of sorts.
I love Hairspray! This movie is fantastic! The musical score is phenomenal. The way it tackles issues like race, weight, and health is amazing. And the cast is fantastic. Hairspray is a movie about transformation in more ways than one. Nearly every scene in the movie is fantastic. I especially love the scene of Tracy and her boyfriend learning to do the “BIRD” in Motormouth Maybell’s store. Fun! These two ladies were fantastic. I wanted to be both Tracy Turnblad and Motormouth Maybell!
Bridget is a fantastic lady! I wish she were a real person because I think we’d have a great time as friends. She’s struggling with some real issues like smoking, drinking, and weight. She has a hilarious group of friends, an affair with her boss, and a curiously disapproving neighbor Mr. Darcy, errr, Mark. Yes, Mark is his name. HA! Bridget Jones Diary is a fun and entertaining movie. Bridget experiences some strange and funny situations on her way to finding love and bringing it all together in the end.
When I want a movie with fantastic music, delicious clothes, and lots of New York City scenery, Sex and the City is one of those many movies I watch. If you are familiar with the television series then you know the basic storyline: women in the city, clothes, relationships, and sex. While there is lots of all the aforementioned points the movie is about more than just clothes and parties. This is a movie about friendship: its frailty, trials, and endurance. The movie is a feast for the eyes and the heart. The New Year’s Eve celebration montage reminds us of the fabulous celebrations in New York City, fantastic bonds of friendship, and possibilities for the future.
I end my list with a classic from the Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer series. Yes, a completely different movie from the others on this list. Rudolph’s Shiny New Year is such a wonderful movie. This movie finds Rudolph as the leader of a band of misfits on a mission to find Happy, the runaway Baby New Year. Poor Baby New Year is teased so much that he runs away, thinking no one loves him. Rudolph and his gang prove him wrong through their care and determination. Besides, they have the added pressure of finding Happy in time for the New Year, or it won’t happen. This is such a wonderful and touching story with loads of happy, catchy music. It is also a pretty cute way to teach children about the time and the transition between years.
These are just a few fun movie options to check out this New Year’s Eve. There are so many others that I love, too. Do you watch movies at home on New Year’s Eve? Do you have a favorite New Year’s Eve themed movie? This is the season of festivities and sharing. So, please, share! I’d love to hear how about your plans for New Year’s Eve.
Resources: commonsensemedia.org; forbes.com; imdb.com