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54 is a 1998 American drama film written and directed by Mark Christopher. Its plot focuses on the rise and fall of Studio 54, a famous nightclub in New York City during the late 1970s and early 1980s. The film stars Ryan Phillippe, Salma Hayek, Neve Campbell, and Mike Myers. 54 was released in the United States on August 28, 1998, by Miramax Films. Prior to its release, the film was extensively reshot and recut, and then released to poor critical reaction but a somewhat respectable box office. In 2008, a bootleg version of the director's cut was screened at Outfest, leading to interest for its release. In 2015, Christopher and Miramax premiered a new edit of the film at the 65th Berlin International Film Festival, with 45 minutes of original material restored and 30 minutes of studio re-shoots removed. Plot Theatrical version In the summer of 1979, 19-year-old Irish-American filling station attendant Shane O'Shea lives in Jersey City, New Jersey, with his widowed, conservative father Harlan and two younger sisters Grace and Kelly. Shane longs for a more glamorous life across the river in New York City's Manhattan, so one night, he talks his two friends into going to Studio 54, a disco nightclub. Once inside, Shane is exposed to the flashy, hedonistic world of 54, with unbridled alcohol, drugs, and open sex. Against his father's wishes, Shane returns to 54 the next night and is hired by the club's co-owner, Steve, as a busboy. After fighting with his father over his new job, Shane moves out of his family's house in Jersey City and moves in with fellow busboy Greg and his coat-check girl wife Anita, an aspiring singer, in Manhattan. After a short time bussing tables, Shane gets promoted to bartender with the help of club regular Billie Auster, a customer who has a one-night stand with Shane. Shane's promotion causes tension with Greg since Greg feels that he did not get the job because he would not let Steve perform oral sex on him. As Shane gains status and makes a name for himself, he poses for a beefcake photo shoot in Interview magazine, uses drugs, and has sex with multiple women. After a while, he begins to feel as if people only want him for sex. Shane's fame also affects his relationships with his friends and family. Greg, who now deals drugs on the side for extra money, criticizes Shane for his conceited attitude on Christmas Eve and accuses him of trying to sleep with Anita after catching him making a pass at her once before at their apartment. Shane's father Harlan, whom he has not seen or spoken to since he moved to New York City, rejects him when he comes home to visit on Christmas Day after a female family friend who got into 54 one night informs Harlan that she saw Shane doing drugs there. However, Shane does experience some brief happiness during the holidays when he strikes up a short-lived romance with his celebrity crush (and fellow New Jerseyan) Julie Black, a soap opera starlet determined to succeed in the film industry. Shane discovers Julie with Roland Sachs, an agent she plans to sleep with, causing Shane to reject her. In his anger, Shane gets into a fight with Steve. Steve fires Shane and has him thrown out of the club. Simultaneously, the FBI raids 54 and arrests Steve, as he has been skimming money from the club's nightly take. As Shane leaves 54 in disgrace, Julie passes by him, and they part ways but agree to remain friends. An epilogue reveals the fates of the main characters. Julie moves to Hollywood and lands a small part in a film. Anita records a moderately successful album with Casablanca Records and Greg takes a job in construction after six months' probation for dealing drugs at 54. Shane works nights as a restaurant manager in Greenwich Village and takes business classes at NYU during the day. Steve is convicted and sentenced to 18 months in jail, causing 54 to close as a result; upon release, he is forced to sell 54 but remains as a consultant under the new management. Shane reunites with Greg and Anita at the newly 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. Ultimately, 54 closes permanently in 1986, and Steve dies of AIDS in 1989 at age 45. Director's cut additions The director's cut opens with a new narration of the film's original opening as Shane is seen leaving 54 after being thrown out on New Year's Eve. Shane's narration from the theatrical version is omitted. Shane is openly bisexual. In a moment of confusion, he kisses Greg in the VIP room on Christmas Eve. Shane then has sex with Anita in the ladies' room after she and Greg have a fight. Anita sees Steve watching them. She hits Shane in the stomach and runs out of the ladies' room in shame. When Shane runs low on cash due to his numerous debts, Greg lets him in on his drug-dealing operation. Shane steals some of Steve's skimmed cash as capital and repays it on New Year's Eve. Greg eventually agrees to let Steve perform oral sex on him for the bartender job, but Steve says he would rather watch Greg and Anita have sex instead, as he did on Christmas Eve. Greg goes to the cloakroom to confront Anita and sees her hugging Shane. Greg gets into a fistfight with Shane. Shane freebases cocaine to ease his emotional pain. After Greg and Anita reconcile following her interrupted debut performance, Anita leaves with Billie for a photo op. Shane discovers G-men raiding Steve's office and runs back upstairs to warn Greg, but Greg ignores him. Greg then runs to retrieve his belongings from his locker when he sees Shane being thrown out of the club but discovers that a G-man has already beat him to it and has found his drugs. After Shane is thrown out of 54, he sees Greg running up behind him. Shane offers him his garbage bag cloak, and Greg begrudgingly accepts. Anita runs to them in a lavish fur coat and cloaks Greg in it with her as they both depart. Greg calls for Shane to come along with them, just as Julie pulls up alongside in her limousine and offers Shane a ride. Shane declines and leaves with Greg and Anita, the three of them staying together as a family instead of drifting apart. Cast Production Based on two short films Mark Christopher made, Miramax Films persuaded Christopher to direct the full-length feature about Studio 54. He had spent five years researching the club and the time period while working on a screenplay. Miramax purchased a partial screenplay in 1995 and developed the script with the filmmaker for over a year. Christopher shot the film in Toronto over two months in the fall of 1997. However, studio head Harvey Weinstein and Christopher differed on their respective visions of the film. Christopher intended for the film to capture Studio 54's notoriety as "the epicenter of the gay cultural explosion in New York City" and wanted the story to be told from the perspective of "Shane, a kid from New Jersey who sleeps his way to the top of the 54 pecking orde.... Discover the Dottie Randazzo popular books. Find the top 100 most popular Dottie Randazzo books.