The Last Days of Disco [Criterion Collection] [Blu-ray]

Director: Whit Stillman Whit Stillman

Overview

As another installment of Whit Stillman's trilogy, The Last Days of Disco fits chronologically between Metropolitan (1990) and Barcelona (1994), with several cameos overlapping and linking the films. During "the very early 1980s," friends gather at a popular Manhattan disco club reminiscent of Studio 54, where getting past the velvet ropes and inside was the first step. Edgy ad-exec Jimmy (Mackenzie Astin) can sometimes get his clients in with the help of the club's womanizing assistant manager, his pal Des (Chris Eigeman), who lets them enter via the rear door. Beautiful brunette Charlotte (Kate Beckinsale) and her former college classmate Alice (Chloe Sevigny) move about the club during the 24-minute opening club sequence. Attorney Tom (Robert Sean Leonard) takes an interest in calm, reserved Alice. Both Alice and the opinionated, assertive Charlotte hold day jobs as entry-level editorial associates at a small book publisher. With Holly (Tara Subkoff) as a third roommate, the trio rents a railroad flat in the Manhattan's Yorkville neighborhood. Charlotte throws dinner parties in an effort to solidify a social circle as an alternative to "the ferocious pairing off" around her.

Product Details

Release Date:	07/24/2012
UPC:	0715515096812
Original Release:	1998
Rating:	R
Source:	Criterion Collection
Sound:	[Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround]
Language:	English
Time:	1:53:00
Sales rank:	167

Special Features

Audio Commentary by Stillman and actors Chris Eigeman and Chloë Sevigny; Four deleted scenes, with Commentary by Stillman, Eigeman, and Sevigny; ; Audio Recording of Stillman reading a chapter from his book The Last Days of Disco, with Cocktails at Petrossian Afterwards; ; Behind-the-Scenes Featurette; Stills Gallery, with Captions by Stillman; ; Trailer

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Kate Beckinsale	Charlotte
Chris Eigeman	Des
Matt Keeslar	Josh
Mackenzie Astin	Jimmy
Matthew Ross	Dan
Tara Subkoff	Holly
Burr Steers	Van
David Thornton	Bernie
Jaid Barrymore	Tiger Lady
Michael Weatherly	Hap
Robert Sean Leonard	Tom
Jennifer Beals	Nina
Taylor Nichols	Charlie/Ted Boynton
Sonsee Neu	Diana
Edoardo Ballerini	Victor
Scott Beehner	Adam
Zachary Taylor	Backdoorman
Neil Butterfield	Rick
James Murtaugh	Marshall
John C. Havens	Steve
Amanda Harker	Model 1
Brandi Seymour	Model 2
Leslie Lyles	Sally
Cate Smit	Helen
Kathleen Chalfant	Zenia
Jan Austell	Bob
Robin Miles	Josephine
Carolyn Farina	Audrey Rouget
Bryan Leder	Fred
Dylan Hundley	Sally Flower
Debbon Ayer	Betty
Mark McKinney	Rex
Linda Pierce	Real Estate Lady
Carlos Jacott	Dog Walker
Sharon Scruggs	Justine Prashker
Ajay Mehta	Pharmacist
Norma Quarles	Anti-Disco Rally Reporter
George Plimpton	Clubgoer
Anthony Haden-Guest	Clubgoer
Kimball Chen	Clubgoer
Desiree Von La Valette	Clubgoer
Bunny Beekman	Clubgoer
Inmaculada de Habsburgo	Clubgoer
Redman Maxfield	Clubgoer
Jack Staub	Clubgoer
Chloë Sevigny	Alice
Elizabeth Strong Cuevas	Clubgoer
Isabelle Townsend	Clubgoer
Mark Suozzo	Composer

Technical Credits

Whit Stillman	Director,Producer
Kerry Barden	Casting
Peter Bucossi	Stunts
Billy Hopkins	Casting
John Sloss	Executive Producer,Producer
Suzanne Smith	Casting
Todd R. Wolfeil	Special Effects
Edmon Roch	Producer
Cecilia Kate Roque	Producer
Michael Ventresco	Special Effects
Scott Breindel	Sound Effects,Sound/Sound Designer
Paul Soucek	Sound Editor

Editorial Reviews

Whit Stillman films are known for being chock-full of smart, snappy dialogue and little else, and The Last Days of Disco tinkers with that formula only slightly. The third installment of Stillman's "Yuppie" trilogy, along with Metropolitan and Barcelona, finds the same character types discussing the same issues, although this time the setting is the dawning Reagan years when disco is going down for the count. Stillman uses the closing of a disco palace to delve into the drug and sex themes and symbolize the end of an era, and his main obstacle this time around is that his characters are all designed to be rather unlikable, which is a big hurdle to overcome. Kate Beckinsale, American accent in tow, is one of the more disagreeable women to grace the screen but she delivers some of the best lines in the film. Chloe Sevigny, on hand as the moral center, tries to garnish what sympathy the audience is willing to give but can't quite muster it. Stillman regular Christopher Eigeman more or less reprises his roles from the earlier films, but he too has some terrific one-liners. Even those who appear to be above the fray, like MacKenzie Astin and Robert Sean Leonard have their downsides. Everyone in this film seems way too intellectual to be true, which doesn't help matters much, but Stillman is so good at manipulating the situations that their flaws actually become hypnotic. In perhaps one of the subtlest ways imaginable, each character represents the death of disco. Surprisingly for a Stillman film, it's a bit of a downer. However, the soundtrack alone is enough to make one wistful for the days of mirror balls.

All Movie Guide - Dan Friedman