The lives of several couples and singles in New York intertwine over the course of New Year's Eve.
The picture does generate a certain joire de vivre towards the end but the overall effect is of being stuck at an overlong party full of crashing bores.
Nothing wrong with an unashamedly sentimental holiday flick, but there’s no excuse for these nails-on-a-chalkboard characters and manipulative heartstring yanking.
The script by Katherine Fugate, co-writer of Valentine’s Day, is heinous...Marshall’s direction imbues the film with the sweetness of a raw onion.
Perhaps Marshall will now develop the franchise and bring it over to the UK: how about an all-star event on the opening night of the 2012 London Olympics, getting stuck down in the Underground, or in Harrods, or in a traffic jam on the M25, while Boris Johnson woodenly waves the Union flag in the stadium? It can't be worse than this.
It progresses from being bad to active incompetence.
Either Marshall should hand Ms Fugate her papers and hire a decent screenwriter, or else pack in the idea of comedy altogether. The only one "dropping the ball" in this picture is himself.
A festive turkey.
Figuratively speaking, though, dropping the ball is exactly what Marshall and his paycheck-collecting cast does every time they attempt to convey even the faintest flicker of genuine emotion.
All human life is here in predictably two-dimensional form, ready to confront 2012 with a brave face, a throbbing heart and a head unclouded by economic worries. No husbands or lovers get shot. Unfortunately.
A follow-up to last year's execrable Valentine's Day, it's another over-earnest piece of shlock full of puddle-deep morality and zero laughs. Avoid.
For the most part, the stars must have known they were part of a cynical, comedy migraine of a movie, but even the Mayans could not have predicted that the countdown to 2012, their end of days, would include Hilary Swank’s ball dropping.
Another lavish helping of clichés, cameos and implausibly interweaving love stories. Fine if you’re a fan of Valentine’s Day, but Marshall’s multi-star champagne cocktail is all bubbles and no booze.
General release. Check local listings for show times.