Saturday Night Fever (1977)

User Rating:

6.7/10   

Director:

John Badham

Writers:

Nik Cohn (magazine article "Tribal Rites of the New Saturday Night")
Norman Wexler (screenplay)

Release Date:

16 December 1977 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Music | Romance

Tagline:

Where do you go when the record is over...

Plot:

A Brooklyn youth feels his only chance to get somewhere is as the king of the disco floor.

Plot Keywords:

Disco | Teenager | Dance | Moving | Melodrama

Awards:

Nominated for Oscar. Another 2 wins & 8 nominations

Cast

John Travolta	...	Tony Manero
Karen Lynn Gorney	...	Stephanie
Barry Miller	...	Bobby C.
Joseph Cali	...	Joey
Paul Pape	...	Double J.
Donna Pescow	...	Annette
Bruce Ornstein	...	Gus
Julie Bovasso	...	Flo
Martin Shakar	...	Frank Jr.
Sam Coppola	...	Dan Fusco (as Sam J. Coppola)
Nina Hansen	...	Grandmother
Lisa Peluso	...	Linda
Denny Dillon	...	Doreen
Bert Michaels	...	Pete
Robert Costanzo	...	Paint Store Customer (as Robert Costanza)

Also Known As:

Saturday Night (USA) (working title)
Tribal Rites of Saturday Night (USA) (working title)

MPAA:

Rated R for strong language, sexuality/nudity and some drug content. (2002 version)

Runtime:

118 min | USA:113 min (PG version)

Country:

USA

Language:

English | Italian

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Spain:18 | Canada:14A (re-rating) | Italy:VM14 (uncut) | Iceland:L | Netherlands:16 (orginal rating) | Brazil:12 | New Zealand:R16 | UK:A (re-rating) (1979) (cut) | UK:X (original rating) | Argentina:16 | Australia:MA (re-rating) | Australia:R | Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Canada:PA (Manitoba) | Chile:18 | Finland:K-16 | France:-12 | Malaysia:(Banned) | Netherlands:AL | Norway:16 (cut) | Norway:18 | Peru:18 | Singapore:M18 | South Korea:18 | Sweden:11 | UK:18 (video rating) | UK:PG (video rating) (cut) | USA:PG (edited version) | USA:R | West Germany:12 | Canada:A (Nova Scotia) (edited US version) | Canada:R (original rating)

Filming Locations:

221 79th Street, Bay Ridge, Brooklyn, New York City, New York, USA

Company:

Robert Stigwood Organization (RSO)

Trivia:

Norman Wexler's screenplay was adapted from the "non-fiction" magazine article written by Nik Cohn. Years later, Cohn admitted that the story, supposedly a fact-based account detailing the lives of Brooklyn teenagers in the early days of the disco craze, was a complete fabrication.

Goofs:

Continuity: The night they take the priest to the club, Tony starts dancing solo and the dance floor clears. His dance partner is standing up by the stage dancing in place, as are the rest of the dancers as they watch him dance. The lady briefly disappears and reappears between shots.

Quotes:

Flo Manero: [to Tony as he walks in the house] Where you been?
[he doesn't answer]
Frank Sr: Your mother wants to know where you been. Where you been?
Flo Manero: Your father's askin' ya! Where you been?

Movie Connections:

Featured in When Disco Ruled the World (2005) (TV)

Soundtrack:

Night On Disco Mountain

Blue Collar frustration

Watched Saturday Night Fever again last night. It's one of those movies I watch everytime it's on & never get bored by it. This movie perfectly captures the feeling of everyday life in a Blue Collar neighborhood, & the frustration that goes with it. Your caught in the middle not rich by any means, but just getting by & the feeling that your never going to get beyond it. Just existing and getting by is an everyday struggle & in this movie it shows how disco is an outlet. I remember 2001 Odyessy was a real club in Brooklyn. Saturday Night Fever is one of those rare movies you can watch & just enjoy yourself. How can you get tired of watching John Travolta walking down the street with a paint can? That opening captured your attention right from the start. You know where these characters are coming from. Tony's friends have basically given up on doing any better & have accepted there fate. Tony & Stephanie know there's something more out there for them & their going for it the best way they can. By the end of the movie I'm rooting for them to "make it big". Being a big John Travolta fan I am a little bit biased. I'll watch anything he's in. '