The Last Days of Disco

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The Last Days of Disco is a 1998 American comedy-drama film written and directed by Whit Stillman. It’s based loosely on his experiences in New York City nightclubs in the early 1980s, especially Studio 54. The movie stars Chloë Sevigny and Kate Beckinsale and follows a group of recent graduates as they navigate love, friendship, and the disco scene in Manhattan. It’s the third film in Stillman’s Doomed-Bourgeois-in-Love series, after Metropolitan and Barcelona.

Plot
Two roommates, Alice Kinnon and Charlotte, work at a publishing house and live together in New York City. They chase both career success and romance, while spending time in stylish clubs where social rules are sharp and conversations are long and witty. Alice’s love life intersects with Des McGrath, Jimmy Steinway, and Tom Platt, and Charlotte’s choices complicate their friendships. As disco popularity begins to fade and the publishing company undergoes changes, the friends must figure out their future. The film ends with Alice advancing in her career and joining her friends in a subway dance to Love Train.

Production and reception
The idea for Disco grew from Stillman’s experiences in the nightlife world after filming his earlier movie Barcelona. Filming took place in New York in 1997, with the disco sequences shot in a renovated theater in Jersey City. Chloë Sevigny was cast as Alice after a quick audition, Kate Beckinsale played Charlotte, and other cast members included Chris Eigeman and others. The film opened in theaters on June 12, 1998. It cost about $8 million to make and earned around $3 million in the United States, so it wasn’t a big box‑office hit, but many critics liked it. Critics praised Stillman’s sharp dialogue and social observations.

Legacy
The Last Days of Disco has a devoted following. A print is housed at the Museum of Modern Art, and a restored Criterion Collection edition was released in 2009 with extra features. Sevigny’s performance helped boost her career, including a role in Boys Don’t Cry. A novelization by Stillman came out in 2000, and a soundtrack was released in 1998. The film is known for its long, insightful conversations and its look at friendship, romance, and the changing world of the early 1980s disco scene.