New Years’ Eve festivities date back nearly 4000 years, with the first celebrations traced back to Babylonian times. While most of the world follows the Gregorian calendar and thus celebrates New Year’s Eve on December 31, there are a handful of cultures that do not, for instance, the Chinese New Year that follows the Lunar Calendar.
Traditions vary greatly across the globe, depending on where you are celebrating. In Spain, for example, people eat 12 grapes on New Year’s Eve – one for every stroke of midnight, which is said to usher in good luck for each month of the following year. Residents of Denmark stand on chairs and leap off them at midnight in hopes of “jumping” into January with good luck by their side. In Brazil, people pay special attention to their underwear on New Year’s Eve: red underwear is thought to welcome love in the New Year, while yellow is associated with money and wealth. If you aren’t up to buying special underwear to ring in the New Year, why not check out this list of the nine most unforgettable New Year’s Eve party scenes in movies instead?
MOVIEWEB VIDEO OF THE DAY
9 Sex and the City
New Line Cinema
One of the most unforgettable New Year’s Eve moments of all time takes place in the Sex and the City movie. When Miranda is spending her first New Year’s alone since she and Steve separated, Carrie runs over posthaste and in the nick of time to celebrate the New Year with Chinese food and a few laughs. The film also pans over the remaining characters to see their plans, but this scene, in particular, is a touching moment between close friends not soon forgotten.
MOVIEWEB VIDEO OF THE DAY
MOVIEWEB VIDEO OF THE DAY
MOVIEWEB VIDEO OF THE DAY
8 The Gold Rush
United Artists
Never has there been a more heartbreaking catch on film than that of Charlie Chaplin’s famed Tramp on New Year’s Eve in the silent film The Gold Rush. After inviting a dance hall girl and her friends to his humble shack to ring in the New Year, The Tramp falls asleep while waiting for his guests to arrive. In his dreams, he wins the heart of his guests with a bread roll dancer and even wins a kiss from the girl he loves. His dream soon comes to an end though when he awakes still alone.
7 Ghostbusters 2
Columbia Pictures
Though it is generally seen as a disappointing follow-up to the blockbuster hit Ghostbusters, the sequel Ghostbusters 2 does feature a pretty iconic New Year’s Eve scene. While trying to fight a malevolent spirit from taking over New York City, a supernatural slime overcomes the city. During their attack against Vigo, the Carpathian the eponymous exterminators use the slime to bring the Statue of Liberty to life and stir up a party throughout New York City on their way. Ghostbusters: Afterlife director Jason Reitman has teased the return of Vigo the Carpathian, in the highly anticipated Ghostbusters: Afterlife sequel.
6 When Harry Met Sally
Castle Rock Entertainment
The romantic comedy When Harry Met Sally is a New Year’s Eve classic. In a touching and climactic moment, the will-they-or-wont-they pair finally admit their true feelings to each other and share a kiss just in time for Auld Lang Syne to hit the speakers. One could not ask for a more picture-perfect New Year’s Eve scene in a movie.
5 200 Cigarettes
MTV Productions
200 Cigarettes follows several different groups of people on New Year’s Eve all on their way to a New Year’s Eve party. En route to the party, however, each respective group is delayed for various reasons, the most common being a last-minute date. The star of the show is Martha Plimpton, who plays an overly neurotic host that is terrified that no one will attend her party. After all the paranoia, she eventually passes out before the party even begins. As the end credits roll a photo montage reveals everything she missed.
4 The Godfather Part 2
Paramount Pictures
Al Pacino steals the show in The Godfather: Part 2 as Michael Corleone who has just taken over the family business and is also searching out a rat within his organization. At a New Year’s Eve party in Havana, Cuba Corleone confronts his brother Fredo. Though the atmosphere appears celebratory, the tone of the scene is decidedly more somber as Corleone plants the “kiss of death” on his brother and tells him “I know it was you, Fredo. You broke my heart. You broke my heart.” From that moment on it’s not hard to tell Fredo’s days are numbered.
3 Trading Places
Trading Places is set straight through the holiday season and features Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s Eve. When you recall the best New Year’s Eve moments in film history, however, Eddie Murphy’s character enthusiastically announcing “Merry New Year” to his fellow train passengers is certain to be on the list.
2 Boogie Nights
Paul Thomas Anderson’s best film Boogie Nights feature one of the most memorable New Year’s Eve party scenes in movie history. Unfortunately, it is as tragic as it is memorable as it features a man on the edge who takes his own life in front of the party guests. Despite the desperate nature of the scene, it signifies the end of the good times for Jack Horner’s happy little porno family.
1 While You Were Sleeping
Hollywood Pictures
The heartwarming romantic comedy While You Were Sleeping is set around the holiday season and New Year’s Eve. When Peter’s brother Jack assumes Lucy is pregnant without confirming with her, and socially outs her in front of a bunch of friends and strangers on New Year’s Eve Lucy doesn’t let it slide, making for one of the most empowering New Year’s Eve scenes on film (via Bustle).
