Bianca Jagger's ride into Studio 54 on a white horse was a moment of iconic decadence. Such flimsy characters are matched by the film's half-hearted portrayal of pre-Aids hedonism. So brutal is the editing that their ensemble relationship is reduced to a series of tenuous allegiances and confrontations which dissolve between scenes with little meaning or resonance. Pretty enough, Ryan Phillippe as Shane lacks Travolta's charisma and dancing skills, while Breckin Meyer and Salma Hayek's truncated roles as Greg and Anita leave them little room to prove their abilities. The script's decision to focus on these dim-witted dreamers is a mistake.
As he progresses from gauche innocent to bare-chested hustler, Shane befriends fellow busboy Greg and his wife Anita, blue-collar grafters who understand that in the United States, "there is no such thing as royalty, only celebrity", and who ply their aspirations in the mosh-pit of social mobility that is Studio 54.
With a grinding predictability, the next 90 minutes show us Studio's glittering bacchanalia turning into a strobe-lit nightmare of corruption and ugliness. Retracing the steps of Saturday Night Fever with heavy feet, writer-director Mark Christopher's urban picaresque opens with teenager Shane O'Shea fleeing his New Jersey home in search of excitement in Manhattan's most exclusive nightclub. Reviewīowdlerised by parent company Disney, Miramax's 54 is a disappointingly conventional account of the 70s most notorious nightclub. Eighteen months later Rubell is released from prison and Shane, Anita and Greg meet again at a party at Studio 54. The IRS raid Studio 54 and arrest Rubell. Dottie dies on the dancefloor during Anita's singing debut. On New Year's Eve, Shane sees Julie with another man who suggests a threesome. Steve spends a romantic afternoon with Julie Black. After arguing with Greg on Christmas Eve, Shane goes home but is turned away by his father. Shane contracts a sexually transmitted disease. Shane begins an affair with socialite Billie Auster. Greg is propositioned by Rubell, but refuses. Every night money is cleared from the tills to cheat the IRS. Sexually promiscuous, Shane takes drugs and meets celebrity guests such as soap star Julie Black and geriatric regular Disco Dottie. He moves in with fellow busboy Greg and his wife Anita, an aspiring singer-songwriter who works in the cloakroom. Only Shane is let in by owner Steve Rubell. One night he cajoles his friends to go to Manhattan's most exclusive disco, Studio 54. Nineteen-year-old Shane O'Shea lives with his father and younger sisters in New Jersey. Our synopses give away the plot in full, including surprise twists.
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