Contrary to the slogan shouted by Daniel and Ken in Freaks And Geeks
and worn on t-shirts in The Last Days Of Disco (and in other movies and in real life), disco has never and will never suck. In fact, its actually super fun. I know this, Nick Andopolis knows this, and these movies and songs DEFINITELY know this. To quote Marv from Thank God Its Friday, "Dancing. Everything else is bullshit." You dig it?
The Last Days Of Disco (1998)
Chloe Sevigny and Kate Beckinsale star as Manhattanite book editors Just Trying To Make It Work In The Big Cityâ„¢. Alice (Sevigny) and Charlotte (Beckinsale) deal with their toxic friendship, careers, and dude drama all while boogie-ing the night away at their local disco. Its one of those movies where the characters have that quick and witty repartee and part of you is like "ohmygod this is so pretentious" but a bigger part of you is like "this is so great I wish everyone talked like this!!". Its set in the early 80's as disco culture is fading away much like their group of friends. Also Josh (Matt Keeslar) gives this really great speech at the end about the death of disco:
"Disco will never be over. It will always live in our minds and hearts. Something like this, that was this big, and this important, and this great, will never die. Oh, for a few years - maybe many years - it'll be considered passé and ridiculous. It will be misrepresented and caricatured and sneered at, or - worse - completely ignored. People will laugh about John Travolta, Olivia Newton-John, white polyester suits and platform shoes and people going like this (disco pose), but we had nothing to do with those things and still loved disco. Those who didn't understand will never understand: disco was much more, and much better, than all that. Disco was too great, and too much fun, to be gone forever! It's got to come back someday. I just hope it will be in our own lifetimes."
Saturday Night Fever (1977)
A true disco classic, John Travolta stars as dance floor king Tony Manero as he deals with his dead-end home life by cutting it up at the discotheque soundtracked by the Bee Gees. After meeting Stephanie (Karen Lynn Gorney), the two begin training together in hopes of winning the club's dance competition Although the white suits and Staying Alive walking-through-New York sequence amp up this movie's cheese-factor, it takes on some super heavy issues like racism, sexual assault, and even death. Saturday Night Fever is a pop culture staple and a definite landmark of disco culture.
Boogie Nights (1997)
Not to seem exaggeratory, but this is the best film ever made. And I mean e-v-e-r. A+ acting, soundtrack, story, cinematography, dialogue, and characters that you end up loving so much that you cry every time you hear God Only Knows regardless of the context? Its all here. Set in the 70's, the film follows Eddie Adams (Mark Wahlberg) running away from home and becoming a star, a star, a star, a big bright shining star in the porn industry as Dirk Diggler. Taken under the wing of director Jack Horner (Burt Reynolds), he joins the makeshift family of their production studio (and top notch ensemble cast) of fellow porn stars Amber Waves (Julianne Moore), Rollergirl (Heather Graham), Reed Rothchild (John C. Reily), Becky Barnett (Nicole Ari Parker), and Buck Swope (Don Cheadle) and that's not even MENTIONING the crew, namely Phillip Seymour Hoffman as the cameraman slash sweet baby angel, Scotty. Seriously, if you haven't, please watch this movie (if you're chill with the hard R rating). You will laugh, you will cry, you will be extremely tense during the Jessie's Girl scene, and be extremely happy during the God Only Knows scene. WATCH THIS MOVIE.
Thank God Its Friday (1978)
Released at the height of disco, Thank God Its Friday has all of the staff and club-goers of the Zoo disco coming together for a wild Friday night. Sue (Andrea Howard) and her uptight husband Dave (Mark Lonow) celebrate their 5th wedding anniversary, Carl (Paul Jabara), Ken (John Friedrich), Jennifer (Debra Winger), and Maddy (Robin Menken) are looking for love, Frannie (Valerie Landsburg) and Jeannie (Terri Nunn) convince Marv (Chick Vennera) to sneak them in to the club in hopes of winning KISS tickets in the dance contest, sleazy club owner Tony (Jeff Goldblum) tries to pick up chicks and Nicole (Donna Summer) is desperately looking for her big break. Featuring performances from Donna Summer and The Commodores, who are playing the Zoo that night, this film is just super fun. Plus there are few things I love more than all-in-one-night intertwining-plot-lines ensemble movies.
54 (1998)
Taking place at the famous New York City nightclub, Shane (Ryan Phillippe) is a bartender at Studio 54 where he meets singer Anita (Salma Hayek), busboy Greg (Breckin Meyer), and soap opera star Julie (Neve Campbell) who he quickly falls in love with. As Shane tries to become a bigger name in the club, he is sucked in to the party scene, consumed by the promise of drugs, sex, and disco. 54 is another big-ensemble-cast several-different-stories movie, following the downward spiral of its main characters along with the club itself.
Xanadu (1980)
Kira, played by Olivia Newton-John is a human incarnation of a Greek muse sent to inspire men to achieve their dreams. Weird plot, I know. Kira is out to inspire Sonny Malone (Michael Beck), a down-on-his-luck artist commissioned to paint an album cover for The Nine Women, a group of beautiful women, one of which looks oddly familiar... So obviously that girl on the cover is Kira, short for Terpsichore (the muse of dance). Set out to find her, Sonny befriends a man Kira had inspired years before, Danny McGuire (Gene Kelly) and the two are inspired to open a roller disco nightclub in the auditorium from the album cover. Sonny and Kira fall in love and because she is literally an Olympian muse and the daughter of Zeus, this raises some problems. With music by Olivia Newton-John and Electric Light Orchestra, the soundtrack was the only thing that critics didn't hate proving once again that critics just don't get camp.
I Love The Nightlife // Alicia Bridges
Super Trouper // ABBA
Best Of My Love // The Emotions
Got To Be Real // Cheryl Lynn
September // Earth, Wind & Fire
Boogie Shoes // KC and The Sunshine Band
Hot Stuff // Donna Summer
Heart Of Glass // Blondie
Xanadu // Olivia Newton John
You Spin Me Round (Like A Record) // Dead Or Alive
I'm Coming Out // Diana Ross
I'm Every Woman // Chaka Khan
Funkytown // Lipps Inc.
Night Fever // BeeGees
I'm Alive // Electric Light Orchestra
We Are Family // Sister Sledge
Native Love // Divine
Super Freak // Rick James
You Sexy Thing // Hot Chocolate
I Will Survive // Gloria Gaynor