This documentary about the notorious New York nightclub tells the story of its inception in 1977, and its eventual downfall, in its founders’ words. Created by Steve Rubell and Ian Schrager, two entrepreneurial Brooklyn boys, Studio 54 co-opted the culture of black and queer underground nightlife and made it high-end and exclusive. The film is interested in the dry particularities of what would happen to Rubell and Schrager – both went to prison for tax evasion – and what the club represented as the seductive new-money era of the 80s beckoned, though it’s frustratingly broad on its place in club culture.
