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![Breckin Meyer](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMjE1NzExMTY0NF5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTgwNTU2MTgyMDI@._V1_QL75_UX140_CR0,1,140,207_.jpg)
Entertaining but superficial, "54" is a cinematic salute to the heyday of sex, drugs and disco in party-till-you-drop Manhattan circa 1979-80, with loose narrative spun around the colorful characters who worked at and indulged themselves in the wildly famous Studio 54.
A Miramax release starring rising heartthrobs Ryan Phillippe and Neve Campbell, with Mike Myers in a terrific supporting role as real-life club owner Steve Rubell, "54" is both nostalgic and revisionist. Essentially a backstage melodrama depicting talented unknowns making good in the big city, writer-director Mark Christopher's feature debut will find an appreciative audience.
Phillippe plays fictional busboy-cum-famester Shane O'Shea, a stud from Jersey with not much on his mind but girls and good times. A newspaper article about Studio 54 catches his eye, and he talks his palooka friends into crossing the river. The rest is up to fate as Shane impresses Rubell on first sight, but the golden-aired young Adonis has to remove his shirt and get ready for anything.
Heavy on narration and breezily paced, the scenario more or less sticks with Shane, though friendly co-workers Anita (Salma Hayek) and Greg (Breckin Meyer) also become emblematic of the wannabe-famous hordes drawn to Rubell's hedonistic glambakes. She's a coat-check girl who wants to be a singer and gets her chance. He's a budding entrepreneur who takes advantage of the no-rules policies regarding money skimming and drug pushing.
Shane's rise to fame starts with a spontaneous lovemaking session in the balcony with Rubell confidant Billie (Sela Ward) and reaches its zenith when he's made a bartender and club insider. In sexy fashion spreads and called upon by Rubell to escort the likes of Princess Grace, Shane has money, cars and women, but his heart belongs to soap opera actress Julie Black (Campbell).
Also from Jersey, with some of her innocence intact, Julie attends the club to further her career; Shane is still caught by surprise when their true romance is fleeting. Inevitably, the buoyant mood is chipped away and serious developments ensue. The IRS investigates the club's shoddy business practices, and Rubell defiantly goes down with the ship.
With the help of prosthetics and extensive makeup, Myers is simply marvelous as drowsy-eyed raconteur Rubell. But he's not on-screen enough to help the movie overcome the more pedestrian aspects of Christopher's sentimental romance and drama. The packed soundtrack is no let-down for disco fans, and the parade of cameos includes Lauren Hutton, Michael York, Ron Jeremy, Elio Fiorucci and Thelma Houston.
54
Miramax Films
A Redeemable Features/Dollface/FilmColony production
Credits: Writer-director: Mark Christopher; Producers: Richard N. Gladstein, Dolly Hall, Ira Deutchman; Executive producers: Bob Weinstein, Harvey Weinstein, Bobby Cohen, Don Carmody; Director of photography: Alexander Gruszynski; Production designer: Kevin Thompson; Editor: Lee Percy; Costume designer: Ellen Lutter; Music: Marco Beltrami; Casting: Billy Hopkins, Suzanne Smith, Kenny Barden. Cast: Shane O'Shea: Ryan Phillippe; Anita: Salma Hayek; Julie Black: Neve Campbell; Steve Rubell: Mike Myers; Billie Auster: Sela Ward; Greg Randazzo: Breckin Meyer. MPAA rating: R. Color/stereo. Running time -- 93 minutes...
A Miramax release starring rising heartthrobs Ryan Phillippe and Neve Campbell, with Mike Myers in a terrific supporting role as real-life club owner Steve Rubell, "54" is both nostalgic and revisionist. Essentially a backstage melodrama depicting talented unknowns making good in the big city, writer-director Mark Christopher's feature debut will find an appreciative audience.
Phillippe plays fictional busboy-cum-famester Shane O'Shea, a stud from Jersey with not much on his mind but girls and good times. A newspaper article about Studio 54 catches his eye, and he talks his palooka friends into crossing the river. The rest is up to fate as Shane impresses Rubell on first sight, but the golden-aired young Adonis has to remove his shirt and get ready for anything.
Heavy on narration and breezily paced, the scenario more or less sticks with Shane, though friendly co-workers Anita (Salma Hayek) and Greg (Breckin Meyer) also become emblematic of the wannabe-famous hordes drawn to Rubell's hedonistic glambakes. She's a coat-check girl who wants to be a singer and gets her chance. He's a budding entrepreneur who takes advantage of the no-rules policies regarding money skimming and drug pushing.
Shane's rise to fame starts with a spontaneous lovemaking session in the balcony with Rubell confidant Billie (Sela Ward) and reaches its zenith when he's made a bartender and club insider. In sexy fashion spreads and called upon by Rubell to escort the likes of Princess Grace, Shane has money, cars and women, but his heart belongs to soap opera actress Julie Black (Campbell).
Also from Jersey, with some of her innocence intact, Julie attends the club to further her career; Shane is still caught by surprise when their true romance is fleeting. Inevitably, the buoyant mood is chipped away and serious developments ensue. The IRS investigates the club's shoddy business practices, and Rubell defiantly goes down with the ship.
With the help of prosthetics and extensive makeup, Myers is simply marvelous as drowsy-eyed raconteur Rubell. But he's not on-screen enough to help the movie overcome the more pedestrian aspects of Christopher's sentimental romance and drama. The packed soundtrack is no let-down for disco fans, and the parade of cameos includes Lauren Hutton, Michael York, Ron Jeremy, Elio Fiorucci and Thelma Houston.
54
Miramax Films
A Redeemable Features/Dollface/FilmColony production
Credits: Writer-director: Mark Christopher; Producers: Richard N. Gladstein, Dolly Hall, Ira Deutchman; Executive producers: Bob Weinstein, Harvey Weinstein, Bobby Cohen, Don Carmody; Director of photography: Alexander Gruszynski; Production designer: Kevin Thompson; Editor: Lee Percy; Costume designer: Ellen Lutter; Music: Marco Beltrami; Casting: Billy Hopkins, Suzanne Smith, Kenny Barden. Cast: Shane O'Shea: Ryan Phillippe; Anita: Salma Hayek; Julie Black: Neve Campbell; Steve Rubell: Mike Myers; Billie Auster: Sela Ward; Greg Randazzo: Breckin Meyer. MPAA rating: R. Color/stereo. Running time -- 93 minutes...
- 8/25/1998
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
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