54
Set in late 1979, Shane O'Shea (who narrates the story in flashback) is a 19-year-old gas jockey from Jersey City, New Jersey who lives with his widowed, conservative father Harlan and two younger sis…
54
Set in late 1979, Shane O'Shea (who narrates the story in flashback) is a 19-year-old gas jockey from Jersey City, New Jersey who lives with his widowed, conservative father Harlan and two younger sisters, Grace and Kelly, both of whom were named after Princess Grace by their late mother, who died when Shane was 12. An Irish-American kid tired of his working-class existence, Shane longs for a more exciting life across the river in New York, so he cuts his hair, dresses up, and and talks his two friends into going to Studio 54 one night. However, upon arrival, gay club owner Steve Rubell picks him to go inside (only after he takes off his shirt), and not his friends. Once inside, Shane is exposed to the glamorous, hedonistic playground that is 54, with plenty of drugs, alcohol, disco music, and sex to go around. Shane has such a good time at 54 that he makes plans to go back, much to his father's disapproval, so the next night, Shane borrows his father's car without permission and heads back to 54, where Steve hires him as a busboy. He quickly becomes friends with fellow busboy Greg Randazzo and his coat-check girl wife Anita, who, like Shane, aspire for bigger and better things: Greg wants to become one of the club's bartenders, since they make more money and have more "celebrity" status; and Anita wants to become a famous singer. Shane eventually moves out of his family's house after arguing with his father over his new job and moves in with Greg and Anita in New York, and they become a surrogate family to him. Shane even has sex in the club's infamous balcony with 54 regular Patti, a Southern starlet/model, on his first night as a busboy. Like Greg, Shane also wants to become a bartender, and after working at 54 for only a week, he gets that chance thanks in part to 54 regular Billie Auster, a decadent, sophisticated, cougar-like socialite/businesswoman who has a one-night stand with Shane while high on cocaine and marijuana (she passes out mid-intercourse as a result, but Shane continues to have sex with her anyway), and who Anita hopes can help jump-start her singing career since she knows everybody in the music business. While having sex with Billie in her penthouse bedroom, Shane mentions that he wants to be a bartender since one of the newer ones, Rhett, quit to become a model (presumably Billie had sex with Rhett too since she's upset about his sudden departure), and Billie asks him if he wants her to recommend him to Steve, which she later does offscreen. Shane's promotion angers Greg, since he wanted to become a bartender, and feels that he didn't because he wouldn't let Steve perform oral sex on him in exchange for said promotion (quid pro quo). Shane, now nicknamed "Shane 54" by his fellow bartenders, soon becomes a highly-paid quasi-celebrity at 54 and gets sucked into the club's decadent lifestyle: he mingles with New York's upper crust, he uses drugs, and has sex with random women (which leads to him getting gonorrhea) as he "raises his profile" and advances his "celebrity" status. However, Shane's new stardom doesn't protect him from being insulted when a guest at a Park Avenue dinner party he and Anita attend with Billie calls him a "gorgeous troglodyte" because he doesn't know who Errol Flynn is; nor does it protect Shane from being exploited when he does a Christmas beefcake photo shoot/interview with Interview Magazine and he discovers that the interview portion he did has been left out of the magazine, leaving him feeling sad and used because he wants to be taken seriously and valued for more than just his good looks and sex appeal. Shane's fame also causes problems with his friends and family, especially during the Christmas holidays. Greg, who now moonlights as a drug dealer, accuses Shane of being conceited and also accuses him of trying to have sex with Anita, since he caught Shane making a pass at her once before at their apartment . And Shane's father Harlan, whom Shane hasn't seen or spoken to since he moved out of the house, rejects Shane when he returns home to visit on Christmas Day because a family friend that got into 54 one night told him that she saw Shane doing drugs there. Shane does however experience some brief happiness during the holidays when he strikes up a romance with his dream girl (and fellow Jerseyite) Julie Black, a soap opera starlet determined to break into the movie industry. However, Shane's stardom, his relationship with Julie, and 54's life all come to an end on New Year's Eve. Shane discovers Julie at 54 with Roland Sachs, a casting agent who she plans to sleep with in order to advance her career, and Shane blows her off in disgust (ironically, since he basically did the same thing with Billie and others in order to become a bartender and advance his job/celebrity status). Elderly 54 regular Mona (aka Disco Dottie), a feisty, foul-mouthed, drug-using grandmother, dies of a cocaine overdose during Anita's debut performance. Shane is beside himself with grief, but Steve wants Shane to continue working as if nothing has happened. Shane refuses and gets into a near-physical altercation with Steve, forcing Steve to fire him. At the same time, the FBI raids 54 and arrests Steve for tax evasion, as he's been skimming money from the club's nightly take each night. Steve's bouncers find Shane and physically throw him out of the club, and Shane is then forced to leave 54 the same way he entered at the beginning of the film: shirtless, and now forced to use an old garbage bag to cover himself since he's not allowed back inside the club to get his wallet and other belongings. Julie passes by in a limousine, and after having a brief heart-to-heart with a now disgraced and humbled Shane, they part ways but agree to remain friends. In the film's epilogue, Shane reveals that Steve is eventually convicted and sentenced to eighteen months in prison for tax evasion (he is forced to sell 54 after being released, but the new owners let him stay on as a consultant). During that time, Shane continues to keep in touch with Julie, who moves to Hollywood and gets a small part in a movie. He takes business classes at NYU during the day and works nights managing a restaurant in Greenwich Village. His relationship with his father is improved, as he visits him and his sisters once a week. Shane, Anita and Greg, however, drift apart. Anita and Greg are still married and doing well; Anita finally manages to record and release an album with Casablanca Records to moderate success (some critics refer to Anita's album as "too disco"), and Greg gets a job in construction (after getting six months' probation for dealing drugs). The three of them reunite at the recently reopened 54, where Steve is hosting a one-night welcome-back party for all of his old friends and employees after his release from prison. In the end, 54 closes for good in 1986, and Steve dies of AIDS in 1989 at age 45. Shane notes that although everybody assembled at 54 that night pretended that nothing had changed, they all realized that "the party was over".
54
Drama,Music
Film Details
Set in late 1979, Shane O'Shea (who narrates the story in flashback) is a 19-year-old gas jockey from Jersey City, New Jersey who lives with his widowed, conservative father Harlan and two younger sisters, Grace and Kelly, both of whom were named after Princess Grace by their late mother, who died when Shane was 12. An Irish-American kid tired of his working-class existence, Shane longs for a more exciting life across the river in New York, so he cuts his hair, dresses up, and and talks his two friends into going to Studio 54 one night. However, upon arrival, gay club owner Steve Rubell picks him to go inside (only after he takes off his shirt), and not his friends.
Once inside, Shane is exposed to the glamorous, hedonistic playground that is 54, with plenty of drugs, alcohol, disco music, and sex to go around. Shane has such a good time at 54 that he makes plans to go back, much to his father's disapproval, so the next night, Shane borrows his father's car without permission and heads back to 54, where Steve hires him as a busboy. He quickly becomes friends with fellow busboy Greg Randazzo and his coat-check girl wife Anita, who, like Shane, aspire for bigger and better things: Greg wants to become one of the club's bartenders, since they make more money and have more "celebrity" status; and Anita wants to become a famous singer.
Shane eventually moves out of his family's house after arguing with his father over his new job and moves in with Greg and Anita in New York, and they become a surrogate family to him. Shane even has sex in the club's infamous balcony with 54 regular Patti, a Southern starlet/model, on his first night as a busboy. Like Greg, Shane also wants to become a bartender, and after working at 54 for only a week, he gets that chance thanks in part to 54 regular Billie Auster, a decadent, sophisticated, cougar-like socialite/businesswoman who has a one-night stand with Shane while high on cocaine and marijuana (she passes out mid-intercourse as a result, but Shane continues to have sex with her anyway), and who Anita hopes can help jump-start her singing career since she knows everybody in the music business.
While having sex with Billie in her penthouse bedroom, Shane mentions that he wants to be a bartender since one of the newer ones, Rhett, quit to become a model (presumably Billie had sex with Rhett too since she's upset about his sudden departure), and Billie asks him if he wants her to recommend him to Steve, which she later does offscreen. Shane's promotion angers Greg, since he wanted to become a bartender, and feels that he didn't because he wouldn't let Steve perform oral sex on him in exchange for said promotion (quid pro quo). Shane, now nicknamed "Shane 54" by his fellow bartenders, soon becomes a highly-paid quasi-celebrity at 54 and gets sucked into the club's decadent lifestyle: he mingles with New York's upper crust, he uses drugs, and has sex with random women (which leads to him getting gonorrhea) as he "raises his profile" and advances his "celebrity" status.
However, Shane's new stardom doesn't protect him from being insulted when a guest at a Park Avenue dinner party he and Anita attend with Billie calls him a "gorgeous troglodyte" because he doesn't know who Errol Flynn is; nor does it protect Shane from being exploited when he does a Christmas beefcake photo shoot/interview with Interview Magazine and he discovers that the interview portion he did has been left out of the magazine, leaving him feeling sad and used because he wants to be taken seriously and valued for more than just his good looks and sex appeal. Shane's fame also causes problems with his friends and family, especially during the Christmas holidays. Greg, who now moonlights as a drug dealer, accuses Shane of being conceited and also accuses him of trying to have sex with Anita, since he caught Shane making a pass at her once before at their apartment .
And Shane's father Harlan, whom Shane hasn't seen or spoken to since he moved out of the house, rejects Shane when he returns home to visit on Christmas Day because a family friend that got into 54 one night told him that she saw Shane doing drugs there. Shane does however experience some brief happiness during the holidays when he strikes up a romance with his dream girl (and fellow Jerseyite) Julie Black, a soap opera starlet determined to break into the movie industry. However, Shane's stardom, his relationship with Julie, and 54's life all come to an end on New Year's Eve.
Shane discovers Julie at 54 with Roland Sachs, a casting agent who she plans to sleep with in order to advance her career, and Shane blows her off in disgust (ironically, since he basically did the same thing with Billie and others in order to become a bartender and advance his job/celebrity status). Elderly 54 regular Mona (aka Disco Dottie), a feisty, foul-mouthed, drug-using grandmother, dies of a cocaine overdose during Anita's debut performance. Shane is beside himself with grief, but Steve wants Shane to continue working as if nothing has happened.
Shane refuses and gets into a near-physical altercation with Steve, forcing Steve to fire him. At the same time, the FBI raids 54 and arrests Steve for tax evasion, as he's been skimming money from the club's nightly take each night. Steve's bouncers find Shane and physically throw him out of the club, and Shane is then forced to leave 54 the same way he entered at the beginning of the film: shirtless, and now forced to use an old garbage bag to cover himself since he's not allowed back inside the club to get his wallet and other belongings.
Julie passes by in a limousine, and after having a brief heart-to-heart with a now disgraced and humbled Shane, they part ways but agree to remain friends. In the film's epilogue, Shane reveals that Steve is eventually convicted and sentenced to eighteen months in prison for tax evasion (he is forced to sell 54 after being released, but the new owners let him stay on as a consultant). During that time, Shane continues to keep in touch with Julie, who moves to Hollywood and gets a small part in a movie.
He takes business classes at NYU during the day and works nights managing a restaurant in Greenwich Village. His relationship with his father is improved, as he visits him and his sisters once a week. Shane, Anita and Greg, however, drift apart.
Anita and Greg are still married and doing well; Anita finally manages to record and release an album with Casablanca Records to moderate success (some critics refer to Anita's album as "too disco"), and Greg gets a job in construction (after getting six months' probation for dealing drugs). The three of them reunite at the recently reopened 54, where Steve is hosting a one-night welcome-back party for all of his old friends and employees after his release from prison. In the end, 54 closes for good in 1986, and Steve dies of AIDS in 1989 at age 45.
Shane notes that although everybody assembled at 54 that night pretended that nothing had changed, they all realized that "the party was over"..