The famous 1970s New York City nightclub seen and told through the eyes of a young employee.The famous 1970s New York City nightclub seen and told through the eyes of a young employee.The famous 1970s New York City nightclub seen and told through the eyes of a young employee.
- Awards
- 9 nominations total
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- Writer
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Featured reviews
Writer-director Mark Christopher worked hard at recreating the sinfully decadent magic of Manhattan's Studio 54, the number-one celebrity hangout from the late-1970s into the 1980s, but he skimped on the most intriguing part of the nightclub's history: the relationship between business partners Steve Rubell and Ian Schrager. Mike Myers was a terrific choice for the flamboyant, eccentric Rubell, but Schrager has gone missing. Instead, the story is told from the point-of-view of a busboy-turned-bartender (!), a muscular rube whose innocence is soiled by boss Rubell's dirty business dealings and hedonistic trappings. The film has a low-budget feel which doesn't make itself present in the production so much as in the character-driven scenes, which are underpopulated, padded with real and faked black-and-photos, and further undermined by stilted dialogue. Ryan Phillipe is well-cast as the young stud from New Jersey whom Rubell takes under his wing, yet his voice-over narration is uncomfortably omnipresent, telling us things we can see or perceive for ourselves, and the interrelationships between the club staff are uninteresting. Some of the music is good, bringing back those long-ago nights of carefree sex and dancing-the-night-away, but Christopher doesn't grasp the big picture. As a result, the film (at best) is a series of precious little moments struggling to surface. ** from ****
This movie is a gem.
If you can get your hands on the Directors Cut, do it! It's brilliant, and you can see what the film was meant to be.
I made my own edit with the Directors cut, and I added all the additional Neve Campbell scenes they filmed for the theatrical version.
All in all, I think it's a great look at what the 54 nightclub must have been like. But seriously, get the Directors cut.
All in all, I think it's a great look at what the 54 nightclub must have been like. But seriously, get the Directors cut.
While the acting is pretty dull in this movie, Mike Myers proved that he can handle serious drama. Shortly after this movie came out, it was rumored that Mike Myers would receive an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actor for playing the Studio 54 owner. I would have strongly agreed with this nomination, and I only recommend 54 to anyone curious about the serious side of Mike Myers.
One does not usually expect a popular movie to be much good, namely because it caters to the tastes of a crowd, which are notoriously un-demanding. Rarely, however, one finds a film which delivers on its promises. This, fortunately, was one of these films. The acting was the high point of the film. Mike Myers wore his role like a skin, naturally and easily. Ryan Phillippe proved that despite occasional bursts of negative popular opinion he is more than a simple dime-a-dozen pretty boy, and possesses both skill and talent, both of which are put to good use. (And he is good looking, which despite all else, never hurts. But, let's not belabor the obvious). The filming was excellently done, with a good eye towards shock and an occasional shot of strangely unexpected beauty. The only real objection one could put to this film is that it was far too short. Several sub-plots came up which were either abandoned or underdeveloped, and the ending, while highly effective, had a slight air of "deus ex machina" about it. On the whole, though, a talented, unusually intelligent film with excellent actors and direction. Well worth watching.
Did you know
- TriviaIn 2008, about a decade after its original theatrical debut, writer and director Mark Christopher assembled a bootleg Director's Cut of the film, with 45 minutes of never before seen footage, and unofficially screened it at New York's Outfest around July-August 2008. This version reinstated the blatant promiscuity and bisexuality of Ryan Phillippe's character, as well as the film's core love triangle between Phillippe, Salma Hayek, and Breckin Meyer which the Miramax studio forced him to cut from the original release.
- GoofsWhen Shane is driving in his Camaro Z28 to his father's home to drop off Christmas presents, a New York City cab can be seen in the rear window. The cab is a 1997 Ford Crown Victoria.
- Quotes
Steve Rubell: Not with that shirt.
[Shane turns to leave, Steve grabs his arm]
Steve Rubell: I said, not with that shirt.
[Shane pauses, then takes his shirt off, showing his six-pack]
Steve Rubell: Welcome to my party, handsome.
- Crazy creditsAs the credits roll, photographs are shown, first of visiting celebrities (e.g., Brooke Shields, George Burns, Arnold Schwarzenegger), then candid shots of unidentified customers.
- Alternate versionsA 40 second scene at 1:46 on the DVD showing Ryan having sex in a car was not seen on the PPV telecast nor in theaters but was on the DVD. A promotional clip showing Shane and Julie discussing her status as his girlfriend was edited out of the film after the line where she says "You're Sweet". Another promotional clip had Bell & James "Livin' It Up (Friday Night)" playing when Shane was trying to get into 54. In the film no song was playing at the time.
- ConnectionsFeatured in The Rise & Fall of Studio 54 (1998)
- SoundtracksKeep On Dancin'
Performed by Gary's Gang
Written by Eric Matthews, Gary Turnier
Courtesy of Sam Records, Inc./Nervous Inc.
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Details
- Release date
- Country of origin
- Official sites
- Language
- Also known as
- Estudio 54
- Filming locations
- Production companies
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Budget
- $13,000,000 (estimated)
- Gross US & Canada
- $16,757,163
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $6,611,532
- Aug 30, 1998
- Gross worldwide
- $16,757,163
- Runtime1 hour 33 minutes
- Color
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 1.85 : 1
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