So you went to your big New Year’s Eve party, sang Auld Lang Syne, and now you are ready to spend New Year’s Day with some of the best movies to kick off 2024. With the holiday season behind us, it is time to look forward, work on those resolutions, and spend the new year in the perfect way by watching a good flick. Check out this list of the 30+ best New Year’s movies 2024 to kick off the year relaxing and getting a much-needed laugh.
If you enjoyed this list of the best New Year’s movies 2024, check out these other articles: best tap dancing movies, best snowboarding movies, hottest romance movies, best serial killer movies, best sports movies on DisneyPlus.
Best New Year’s Movies 2024
When Harry Met Sally (1989)
Plot: In 1977, college graduates Harry Burns and Sally Albright share a contentious car ride from Chicago to New York, during which they argue about whether men and women can ever truly be strictly platonic friends. Ten years later, Harry and Sally meet again at a bookstore, and in the company of their respective best friends, Jess and Marie, attempt to stay friends without sex becoming an issue between them.
Star Cast: Billy Crystal, Meg Ryan, Bruno Kirby, Carrie Fisher
Happy New Year, Charlie Brown! (1986)
Plot: Happy New Year, Charlie Brown! is the 30th prime-time animated television special based upon the popular comic strip Peanuts, by Charles M. Schulz. It aired on the CBS network on January 1, 1986. The special focuses on Charlie Brown’s difficulty finishing a book report over the holidays.
Star Cast: Bill Melendez, Jeremy Miller, Chad Allen
While You Were Sleeping (1995)
Plot: Lonely transit worker Lucy Eleanor Moderatz pulls her longtime crush, Peter, from the path of an oncoming train. At the hospital, doctors report that he’s in a coma, and a misplaced comment from Lucy causes Peter’s family to assume that she is his fiancée. When Lucy doesn’t correct them, they take her into their home and confidence. Things get even more complicated when she finds herself falling for Peter’s sheepish brother, Jack.
Star Cast: Sandra Bullock, Peter Gallagher, Bill Pullman
Ghostbusters II (1989)
Plot: After saving New York City from a ghost attack, the Ghostbusters — a team of spirit exterminators — is disbanded for demolishing parts of the city during the battle. But when Ghostbuster Peter Venkman learns that spirits have taken an interest in his son, the men launch a rogue ghost-chasing mission. The quest quickly goes awry, landing them in court. But when the ghosts turn on the judge, he issues an order allowing the Ghostbusters to get back to work.
Star Cast: Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Harold Ramis, Sigourney Weaver
Ocean’s 11 (1960)
Plot: Danny Ocean calls on some of his World War II buddies — including Jimmy Foster, Sam Harmon and Josh Howard — to pull off an elaborate New Year’s Eve heist at five casinos in Las Vegas. Eleven members of Danny’s crew come together to pull off a perfect robbery, but they suffer a series of setbacks when Duke Santos, a former gangster, tries to thwart Ocean’s plans to disappear with the money.
Star Cast: Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Peter Lawford, Sammy Davis Jr., Cesar Romero
Trading Places (1983)
Plot: Upper-crust executive Louis Winthorpe III and down-and-out hustler Billy Ray Valentine are the subjects of a bet by successful brokers Mortimer and Randolph Duke. An employee of the Dukes, Winthorpe is framed by the brothers for a crime he didn’t commit, with the siblings then installing the street-smart Valentine in his position. When Winthorpe and Valentine uncover the scheme, they set out to turn the tables on the Dukes.
Star Cast: Eddie Murphy, Dan Aykroyd, Don Ameche, Ralph Bellamy
200 Cigarettes (1999)
Plot: This ensemble comedy follows an array of young people in New York City on New Year’s Eve. Among the numerous characters looking for love and fun are impulsive artist Ellie and punks Tom and Dave, who meet up with Stephie and Val, two girls from Long Island. Also interacting with various partygoers are a pensive bartender and a taxi driver who operates a disco in his cab.
Star Cast: Ben Affleck, Kate Hudson, Paul Rudd, Janeane Garofalo, Casey Affleck, Guillermo Diaz, Gaby Hoffmann, Christina Ricci, Dave Chappelle
The Godfather: Part II (1974)
Plot: The compelling sequel to “The Godfather,” contrasting the life of Michael Corleone father and son. Traces the problems of Michael Corleone in 1958 and that of a young immigrant Vito Corleone in 1917’s Hell’s Kitchen. Michael survives many misfortunes and Vito is introduced to a life of crime.
Star Cast: Al Pacino, Robert De Niro, James Caan
Mermaids (1990)
Plot: An unconventional single mother relocates with her two daughters to a small Massachusetts town in 1963, where a number of events and relationships both challenge and strengthen their familial bonds.
Star Cast: Winona Ryder, Christina Ricci, Cher
More Best New Year’s Movies 2024
Sleepless in Seattle (1993)
Plot: After the death of his wife, Sam Baldwin moves to Seattle with his son, Jonah. When Jonah calls in to a talk-radio program to find a new wife for his father, Sam grudgingly gets on the line to discuss his feelings. Annie Reed, a reporter in Baltimore, hears Sam speak and falls for him, even though she is engaged. Unsure where it will lead, she writes Sam a letter asking him to meet her at the Empire State Building on Valentine’s Day.
Star Cast: Tom Hanks, Ross Mallinger, Meg Ryan
The Holiday (2006)
Plot: Dumped and depressed, English rose Iris agrees to swap homes with similarly unlucky in love Californian Amanda for a much-needed break. Iris finds herself in a palatial Hollywood mansion in Los Angeles while Amanda navigates the lanes of a picture-perfect English village. Soon enough, both lovelorn ladies bump into local lads perfect for a romantic pick-me-up.
Star Cast: Cameron Diaz, Jude Law, Kate Winslet
Bridget Jones’s Diary (2001)
Plot: At the start of the New Year, 32-year-old Bridget decides it’s time to take control of her life — and start keeping a diary. Now, the most provocative, erotic and hysterical book on her bedside table is the one she’s writing. With a taste for adventure, and an opinion on every subject – from exercise to men to food to sex and everything in between – she’s turning the page on a whole new life.
Star Cast: Renée Zellweger, Colin Firth, Hugh Grant
High School Musical (2006)
Plot: Troy Bolton, the star athlete at a small-town high school, falls for nerdy beauty Gabriella Montez at a holiday karaoke party. When they return to campus, Troy and Gabriella audition for the upcoming school musical. Meanwhile, the jealous Sharpay Evans conspires to squelch their chances. The two must struggle to make it to auditions while also meeting their existing obligations to the basketball team and the academic decathlon.
Star Cast: Zac Efron, Vanessa Anne Hudgens, Ashley Tisdale
Boogie Nights (1997)
Plot: In the San Fernando Valley in 1977, teenage busboy Eddie Adams gets discovered by porn director Jack Horner, who transforms him into adult-film sensation Dirk Diggler. Brought into a supportive circle of friends, including fellow actors Amber Waves, Rollergirl and Reed Rothchild, Dirk fulfills all his ambitions, but a toxic combination of drugs and egotism threatens to take him back down. Directed by Paul Thomas Anderson.
Star Cast: Mark Wahlberg, Burt Reynolds, Julianne Moore, Heather Graham, John C. Reilly
Are We There Yet? (2005)
Plot: Attempting to win the favor of the newly divorced Suzanne, Nick offers to accompany her children, Lindsey and Kevin, on a flight from Portland, Ore., to Canada to see their mother. A mishap with a corkscrew and a metal detector gets the troupe banned from the flight, however, so Nick is forced to drive the kids in his prized Lincoln Navigator. Tensions inevitably rise during the long road trip, but Nick is not to be deterred.
Star Cast: Ice Cube, Nia Long, Aleisha Allen, Philip Bolden
Sunset Boulevard (1950)
Plot: An aging silent film queen refuses to accept that her stardom has ended. She hires a young screenwriter to help set up her movie comeback. The screenwriter believes he can manipulate her, but he soon finds out he is wrong. The screenwriters ambivalence about their relationship and her unwillingness to let go leads to a situation of violence, madness, and death.
Star Cast: Gloria Swanson, William Holden, Erich von Stroheim
About Time (2013)
Plot: When Tim Lake is 21, his father tells him a secret: The men in their family can travel through time. Although he can’t change history, Tim resolves to improve his life by getting a girlfriend. He meets Mary, falls in love and finally wins her heart via time-travel and a little cunning. However, as his unusual life progresses, Tim finds that his special ability can’t shield him and those he loves from the problems of ordinary life.
Star Cast: Domhnall Gleeson, Rachel McAdams, Bill Nighy
New Year’s Eve (2011)
Plot: Intertwining stories promise love, hope, new beginnings, forgiveness, second chances and more for a number of New Yorkers on the celebrated night. A rock star and his ex-lover clash at an exclusive party; a singer becomes stranded with a killjoy on the way to a New Year’s gig; a nurse stays with a dying patient as he tries to hang on long enough to see the ball drop in Times Square one last time.
Star Cast: Halle Berry, Ashton Kutcher, Jon Bon Jovi, Katherine Heigl, Lea Michele, Robert De Niro
More Best New Year’s Movies 2024
About A Boy (2002)
Plot: A comedy-drama starring Hugh Grant as Will, a rich, child-free and irresponsible Londoner in his thirties who, in search of available women, invents an imaginary son and starts attending single parent meetings. As a result of one of his liaisons, he meets Marcus, an odd 12-year-old boy with problems at school. Gradually, Will and Marcus become friends, and as Will teaches Marcus how to be a cool kid, Marcus helps Will to finally grow up.
Star Cast: Hugh Grant, Nicholas Hoult, Toni Collette
Snowpiercer (2013)
Plot: Survivors of Earth’s second ice age and climate change live out their days on a luxury moving train that ploughs through snow and ice. The train’s poorest residents, who live in the squalid caboose, plan to improve their lot by taking over the engine room.
Star Cast: Chris Evans, Kang ho Song, Tilda Swinton
Carol (2015)
Plot: Aspiring photographer Therese spots the beautiful, elegant Carol perusing the doll displays in a 1950s Manhattan department store. The two women develop a fast bond that becomes a love with complicated consequences.
Star Cast: Cate Blanchett, Rooney Mara, Sarah Paulson
Forrest Gump (1994)
Plot: Slow-witted Forrest Gump has never thought of himself as disadvantaged, and thanks to his supportive mother, he leads anything but a restricted life. Whether dominating on the gridiron as a college football star, fighting in Vietnam or captaining a shrimp boat, Forrest inspires people with his childlike optimism. But one person Forrest cares about most may be the most difficult to save — his childhood love, the sweet but troubled Jenny.
Star Cast: Tom Hanks, Robin Wright, Sally Field
Four Rooms (1995)
Plot: Working New Year’s Eve at a hotel in Hollywood, Calif., the new bellhop, Ted, has no idea what’s in store for him. Left alone to tend to the guests, Ted soon finds himself in completely over his head. Between a domestic dispute and a demented entourage, spell-casting witches and destructive children, Ted has little hope of making it through the night in one piece. As he tries to maintain order and save his own life, the unlucky bellhop encounters one deranged guest after another.
Star Cast: Tim Roth, Quentin Tarantino, Antonio Banderas
An American in Paris (1951)
Plot: Jerry Mulligan is an American ex-GI who stays in post-war Paris to become a painter, and falls for the gamine charms of Lise Bouvier. However, his paintings come to the attention of Milo Roberts, a rich American heiress, who is interested in more than just art.
Star Cast: Leslie Caron, Gene Kelly, Oscar Levant
Phantom Thread (2017)
Plot: Renowned dressmaker Reynolds Woodcock and his sister Cyril are at the center of British fashion in 1950s London — dressing royalty, movie stars, heiresses, socialites and debutantes. Women come and go in Woodcock’s life, providing the confirmed bachelor with inspiration and companionship. His carefully tailored existence soon gets disrupted by Alma, a young and strong-willed woman who becomes his muse and lover.
Star Cast: Daniel Day-Lewis, Vicky Krieps, Lesley Manville
Diner (1982)
Plot: Billy returns home to Baltimore to serve as the best man at his upcoming wedding of his childhood buddy Eddie. In the meantime, he and Eddie get together with their friends at the local diner, where they trade stories about their lives. All they really want to do is go back to being the carefree boys they once were, but they know it cannot be. Their funny and at times revealing exchanges help each other face the mounting responsibility of adulthood.
Star Cast: Timothy Daly, Steve Guttenberg, Kevin Bacon
The Apartment (1960)
Plot: Insurance worker C.C. Baxter lends his Upper West Side apartment to company bosses to use for extramarital affairs. When his manager Mr. Sheldrake begins using Baxter’s apartment in exchange for promoting him, Baxter is disappointed to learn that Sheldrake’s mistress is Fran Kubelik, the elevator girl at work whom Baxter is interested in himself. Soon Baxter must decide between the girl he loves and the advancement of the corporate ladder.
Star Cast: Jack Lemmon, Fred MacMurray, Shirley MacLaine
Money Train (1995)
Plot: Charlie is a New York City transit cop with a mountain of gambling debts, and John is his responsible, and frequently exasperated, foster brother. They compete amicably for the affections of fellow officer Grace, but things become more serious when Charlie decides to rob the “money train” that carries the Transit Authority’s daily proceeds. John must decide whether to prevent Charlie’s crime or to join in on the heist.
Star Cast: Woody Harrelson, Wesley Snipes, Jennifer Lopez
The Age of Adaline (2015)
Plot: Adaline Bowman has miraculously remained a youthful 29 years of age for nearly eight decades, never allowing herself to get close to anyone lest they discover her secret. However, a chance encounter with a charismatic philanthropist named Ellis Jones reawakens Adaline’s long-suppressed passion for life and romance. When a weekend with Ellis’ parents threatens to expose the truth, Adaline makes a decision that changes her life forever.
Star Cast: Blake Lively, Michiel Huisman, Harrison Ford
More Best New Year’s Movies 2024
Sex in the City: The Movie (2008)
Plot: Four years after the earlier adventures of Carrie Bradshaw and her best gal pals, she and her intermittent lover, Big, are in a committed relationship. Samantha, having survived cancer, has a monogamous relationship with Smith Jerrod. Charlotte and her husband live on Park Avenue, and Miranda, now in Brooklyn, feels the pressure of family life.
Star Cast: Sarah Jessica Parker, Chris Noth, Kim Cattrall, Kristin Davis, Cynthia Nixon
Waiting to Exhale (1995)
Plot: Navigating through careers, family and romance, four friends bond over the shortcomings in their love lives — namely, the scarcity of good men. Both as the “other woman,” Savannah and Robin carry on relationships with married men, each believing their lovers will leave their wives for them. On the flip side, Bernadine ends up alone when her husband divorces her for his mistress. Meanwhile, Gloria finds love with a new neighbor.
Star Cast: Whitney Houston, Lela Rochon, Angela Bassett, Loretta Devine