I'm only giving it a "2" because there were a couple of marginally interesting bits of dialogue, & the female leads were outstanding. But overall...WOW does this movie suck! All the things everyone has written before apply: non-period clothes, sets & props; pretentious dialogue that came off as totally banal & unrealistic; REALLY horrible acting (love that they make such a big deal out of the little part by JENNIFER BEALS!!! WOW is she a terrible, terrible actress, excruciating even!! ... & what was up w/ that dude who ran the club, the one w/ the greasy hair & monkey face? Did he EVER work again after this??); but my biggest complaint, which I've had about "54" & other films set in clubs, & which other reviewers have mentioned here, is...WHY do they make clubs look so incredibly BORING???? The TV miniseries "Tales of the City," famously set in 1970s San Francisco, had several totally believable period scenes in clubs & bars, as have many other movies in which discos figure heavily into the backdrop (Carlito's Way comes to mind). Like other reviewers here, I'm wondering: have the people associated w/ this film ever actually BEEN to a club? I have seen the three films in the Stillman "trilogy" now & am totally perplexed as to why this guy was hailed in the 90s as such a genius? I've come across much wittier (& better-written) graffiti on the toilet wall of my favorite bar, & a zillion blogs. Was his father or brother in the movie business? Seriously, WHO thinks this is remarkable film-making? These are very well done student films, at best. You know it's a bad sign when, 45 minutes into a movie, you start READING A BOOK (exactly what I did, looking up at the movie on occasion, then going back to the book). Save your time, you will thank me.
Review of The Last Days of Disco
The Last Days of Disco
(1998)
holy sh*tballs, is THIS a piece of crap! is whit stillman flipping burgers now?
19 September 2009