By 
One More Shot (2025)
Party like it’s 1999.
Time flies when you’re having fun — or when you’re trapped in a tequila-fueled time loop on New Year’s Eve. One More Shot, a cheeky Australian-produced twist on the genre, gives the time-loop formula another spin, taking its cues from Groundhog Day (1993) but filtering them through a distinctly Aussie lens — laid-back wit, messy hearts, and a generous splash of Y2K nostalgia and quarter-life crisis to keep the hangover worth it.
Y2K? More like Y2-Okay-Here-We-Go-Again.
On New Year’s Eve, 1999, anesthetist Minnie Vernon (played by the always charismatic Emily Browning) reluctantly attends a Y2K-themed house party thrown by her friends. At the bash, she finds her old flame Joe (Sean Keenan) has returned from New York and is now with his new girlfriend Jenny (Aisha Dee).
Things take a magical turn when Minnie downs a shot from a mysterious bottle of tequila and suddenly finds herself back at the start of the party. Each drink rewinds the night to the moment after her first sip, giving her multiple “do-overs” to pursue Joe, redress past regrets, and maybe rewrite her future. The setup is simple: every shot resets time — but the bottle isn’t bottomless. As the tequila — and Minnie’s patience — runs dry, she scrambles to make each “last call” count.
Most of the film plays out inside the friends’ suburban house, but director Nicholas Clifford keeps it from ever feeling cramped — his sharp pacing and smart use of the space keep each loop feeling fresh. There’s an intimacy to the madness; you feel like you’ve been trapped at this never-ending house party yourself. Clifford brings a distinctly Australian sensibility to the rom-com time loop — witty, grounded, and refreshingly unpretentious, with a confident hand that keeps a single-location story feeling lively. Writers Alice Foulcher and Gregory Erdstein (best known for 2017’s That’s Not Me) inject their trademark blend of dry humor and heartfelt absurdity, turning what could’ve been a gimmick into something genuinely funny and emotionally relatable.
The Y2K dress-up party adds the perfect nostalgic flavor: 90s pop anthems thump through the speakers — ‘Coco Jamboo’ by Mr. President, ‘Laid’ by James — while friends wobble around in ridiculous costume choices that could only make sense at the turn of the millennium. Ashley Zukerman’s Rodney steals the spotlight in full Ace Ventura cosplay — Hawaiian shirt, striped pants, and all. It’s eccentric, silly, and perfectly in tune with the film’s slightly tipsy tone.
Browning is the reason this hangover’s worth enduring. She plays Minnie with equal parts charm and chaos — a woman chasing love and redemption while tripping (literally) through timelines. Watching her stumble through each version of the night, injure herself, and learn absolutely nothing from the previous go-round is part of the fun; in one particularly slapstick moment, she runs face-first into a glass door, breaking her nose mid-loop. It’s both painful and hilarious — a perfect metaphor for the film’s mix of heart and humiliation.
Elsewhere, Sean Keenan brings understated warmth to Joe, while Aisha Dee gives Jenny surprising depth beyond the “new girlfriend” stereotype. Pallavi Sharda and Ashley Zukerman round out the ensemble with enough personality to make the never-ending house party feel genuinely alive. Oh, and Hamish Michael’s “C-Word,” a hospital orderly who drops into the festivities ready to stir mischief, adds an extra spark to the mix.
Sure, the time-loop beats are familiar — a few déjà-vu moments you’ve seen before — but One More Shot keeps things breezy and self-aware. It’s not Groundhog Day or Palm Springs, but it knows exactly what it’s pouring. The biggest hiccup comes when the script tries to juggle two time-travelers at once and things get a little, well… out of sync. But even when the timeline starts to wobble, Clifford’s light touch and Browning’s playful performance keep the experience going down easy — there’s enough heart and wit here to keep your watch ticking.
One More Shot might not be timeless, but it’s got its own buzz — a sweet, slightly messy reminder that you can’t outrun time, but you can still dance with it before the ball drops.
3 / 5 – Good
Reviewed by Stu Cachia (S-Littner)
One More Shot is released through Madman Entertainment Australia
