54 (1998)

Director:

Mark Christopher

Writer (WGA):

Mark Christopher (written by)

Release Date:

28 August 1998 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | History

Tagline:

Welcome to the Party

Plot:

Famous 70's NYC nightclub seen and told through the eyes of a young employee.

Plot Keywords:

Studio 54 | Disco | Nightclub | Hot Tub | Social Class

Awards:

7 nominations

Cast

Ryan Phillippe	...	Shane O'Shea
Salma Hayek	...	Anita Randazzo
Neve Campbell	...	Julie Black
Mike Myers	...	Steve Rubell
Sela Ward	...	Billie Auster
Breckin Meyer	...	Greg Randazzo
Sherry Stringfield	...	Viv
Ellen Albertini Dow	...	Disco Dottie
Cameron Mathison	...	Atlanta
Noam Jenkins	...	Romeo
Jay Goede	...	Buck
Patrick Taylor	...	Tarzan
Heather Matarazzo	...	Grace O'Shea
Skipp Sudduth	...	Harlan O'Shea
Aemilia Robinson	...	Kelly O'Shea

Also Known As:

Fifty-Four
Studio 54 (USA) (working title)

MPAA:

Rated R for strong sexuality, drug use and language.

Runtime:

93 min | USA:100 min (extended cut)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

USA:R (certificate #36070) | Iceland:14 | Singapore:M18 (re-rating) | Singapore:R(A) (cut) | Argentina:16 | Australia:M | Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Canada:14A (Alberta/British Columbia) | Canada:18 (Nova Scotia) | Canada:AA (Ontario) | Canada:PA (Manitoba) | Chile:18 | Finland:K-14 | France:-12 | Germany:12 | Hong Kong:IIB | Mexico:C | Netherlands:12 | Norway:15 | Peru:14 | Sweden:11 | Switzerland:16 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:16 (canton of Vaud) | UK:15 | Iceland:16

Filming Locations:

Casa Loma, Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Company:

Dollface

Trivia:

In the end credits, Mike Myers' name appears next to a photo of Gilda Radner at Studio 54. When Myers was a boy, he played Radner's son in a Canadian television commercial, and both were cast members of "Saturday Night Live" (1975) (at different times).

Goofs:

Anachronisms: Some of the lighting equipment we see is from HighEnd Technologies (Studio Color, Studio Spot and Cyberlight) which was not available until the early-'90s.

Quotes:

Steve Rubell: Is he gorgeous?
Viv: He's gorgeous. Look for yourself.
Shane O'Shea: [voiceover] I was warned that Steven didn't hire any dummies and I should be on my toes because he could ask some really tricky questions.
Steve Rubell: What's two plus two?
Shane O'Shea: Huh?
Steve Rubell: You'll be fine.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Showbiz Today: (1998-08-24)" (1998)

Soundtrack:

Move On Up

This is a good movie! What was the problem?

Why the poor box office performance? Why the bad reviews? Why the bad word of mouth? I really didn't see anything horrible about this movie! First of all, it's a character-driven story. There's little subplots involving jealousy and philandering, but it's not handled in a soapy fashion. I didn't feel any of the characters were one-dimensional.

Of course, Mike Myers steals the show as the homosexual club owner Steve Rubell. I don't know the real Steve Rubell, so you be the judge whether or not his performance was accurate, but I have to say that Myers did an incredible job! And I'm not overstating the least bit! You watch him in this movie and you totally forget that this is the same guy who played Austin Powers. Not to say I didn't realize Myers had talent prior to watching this film. He has definitely proven that he has talent as a comic actor, but I didn't know he had the chops to pull off a straight, dramatic role. Even his accent sounds real, not the least bit phony. I'm surprised Myers didn't even get an Oscar nod. He should've at least gotten the nomination for Best Supporting Actor. Trust me--you will be blown away by his performance in this movie!

The music is great. It's always great to reminisce to the great songs from the seventies. Mark Christopher nicely captured the whole rebellious atmosphere of 54. We're given a taste of the drug addiction and even the sexual promiscuity that made the place famous--there's a scene where a couple shamelessly pounds away on the balcony. I read one person's review, saying that this movie should've been an hour longer. I find it ironic that people watch movies that are two and a half to three hours long and complain, "Oh, this movie dragged! Oh, this movie needed more editing!" Yet they watch a succintly timed film like this and complain it's too short. This may not have been the most thorough examination of the famous nightclub, but I think it got to the point. No reason why we have to go into every tiny detail.

This is a serious, dramatic film but it's also very entertaining. I actually had a smile on my face when the movie ended. It ended on a happy note without having that forced, schmaltzy Hollywood feel. Plus, I really like that song "Knock on Wood" that they played over the credits.

My score: 7 (out of 10)