Studio 54

The heyday of the famed night club STUDIO 54 was historically situated on one end between the upheavals of the Vietnam War and Watergate and, on the other, an economic recession, the advent of the Pill, which pried open many sexual restrictions, and the AIDS epidemic, which convinced many that sex could be deadly. The film chronicles a bygone era, the onset of an age of fascination with celebrity that persists today, and also a time when so many in the LGBTQ community remained closeted because of social stigma and worse. Interviewees applaud the fact that although many ordinary people were turned away at the door of the club, it welcomed those made to feel different by society for their sexual orientation. One observer recalls that gays and trans people mixed freely with straights, and that male celebrities allowed themselves to be seen with gay companions at the club. According to contemporaries, co-owner Steve Rubell's boasting brought the club down as he bragged to a journalist about how much money the club was raking in. The IRS raided the place, allegedly finding a second set of books, as well as stashes of quaaludes, cocaine, and cash hidden on the premises. After Rubell and his best friend and partner Ian Schrager did their time, they successfully opened two New York City hotels. Rubell died of AIDS in 1989, but Schrager went on to become a famed hotelier. He publicly speaks about their collaboration for the first time here, showing remorse and contrition for their wrongdoing but also pride for the originality of their singular creation.