54

Plot

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

Release Year: 1998

Rating: 5.6/10 (17,689 voted)

Critic's Score: 33/100

Director:
Mark Christopher

Stars: Ryan Phillippe, Salma Hayek, Sela Ward

Storyline
Mike Myers stars as the late Steve Rubell, real-life owner and cocaine-addict of New York's notorious Studio 54 in a fictionalized portrayal of '70s disco.

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

Taglines:
You've never been anywhere until you've been here.

Release Date: 28 August 1998

Filming Locations: Casa Loma, Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Box Office Details

Budget: $13,000,000

(estimated)

Opening Weekend: $6,611,532
(USA)
(30 August 1998)
(1859 Screens)

Gross: $16,574,731
(USA)
(27 September 1998)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

93 min
 |
USA: 100 min
(extended cut)

Did You Know?

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:
There is a shot of a milk carton on the breakfast table at Shane's house. The carton contains a "Nutrition Facts" label that didn't exist until 1994.

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.

User Review

This is a good movie! What was the problem?

Rating: 7/10

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)