The Last Days of Disco
Gramercy Pictures (I) | Release Date: May 29, 1998 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
76
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 24 Critic Reviews
Positive:
19
Mixed:
4
Negative:
1
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
100
Boston GlobeJay Carr
Stillman has become a master at escalating the laughter by waiting an extra beat and then understating something devastatingly funny, as when someone looks Chris Eigeman's club manager, Des, in the eye and says, "I consider you a person of integrity - except, you know, in the matter of women." Read full review
100
Rolling StonePeter Travers
The last days of guilt-free glitz had consequences for more than two white chicks and their boyfriends, and Stillman shows how with delicious malice and unexpected compassion.
100
Christian Science MonitorDavid Sterritt
Stillman brings his usual sharp wit to this exploration of upper-middle-class angst, completing the comic trilogy he began with "Metropolitan" and "Barcelona." Read full review
91
Entertainment WeeklyLisa Schwarzbaum
The fetching cast (including Jennifer Beals as a histrionic girlfriend), while a long way from Gwyneth and Matt stature, nevertheless reflects Stillman’s enhanced status as an established indie talent. Read full review
90
The A.V. ClubKeith Phipps
Stillman's arch, clever dialogue is as strong as ever, and he conveys in every frame a genuine affection for his characters, however insipid their actions may be at times. These gifts make it easy to forgive Stillman's tendency to let his story meander, especially in Disco's second half. Read full review
90
The New York TimesJanet Maslin
Humorously and fondly, with an entertaining supply of what he has called "prosaic license," Stillman again displays a pitch-perfect ear for both the cattiness and the camaraderie that bind his characters into collective friendship. Read full review
90
Los Angeles TimesKenneth Turan
Disco's exceptional acting ensemble is especially successful at capturing the brittle rituals of this specific group of genteel, well-spoken young people on the cusp of adulthood. Read full review
90
Washington PostStephen Hunter
The director isn't much on orgies; he's all talk. But that's good, not bad, because his talk is so brilliant. Stillman is the Balzac of the ironic class, the Dickens of people with too much inner life. Read full review
88
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)Rick Groen
The score (a nifty collection of vintage but never clichéd period tunes) complements the mood perfectly, and the ensemble cast members hit their own notes to perfection. Read full review
88
Chicago Sun-TimesRoger Ebert
If Scott Fitzgerald were to return to life, he would feel at home in a Whit Stillman movie. Stillman listens to how people talk, and knows what it reveals about them. Read full review
88
New York Daily NewsDave Kehr
A small miracle of comic social portraiture, a sometimes affectionate, sometimes ironic study of a specific group at a specific moment. His work is deeply evocative and enjoyable. Read full review
80
NewsweekDavid Ansen
[Stillman] has a keen sense of group dynamics and a fine comic ear. Read full review
80
SalonLaura Miller
There's something kind of sweet about Stillman's enthusiasm for the long-despised era's thumping backbeat, even if the rhythm of his own work is a lot closer to chamber music. Read full review
80
Chicago ReaderJonathan Rosenbaum
Fortunately, this time around the Ivy League characters project less of a glib sense of entitlement, making them more fun to watch, and Stillman himself gives more evidence of watching rather than simply listening. Read full review
75
ReelViewsJames Berardinelli
Only a handful of working film makers are capable of presenting the English language with the artistry and rhythm employed here (Tarantino and Mamet come to mind), and the director's approach makes apparently-banal conversations come alive. Read full review
70
Washington PostMichael O'Sullivan
Eavesdropping on the glib conversations of witty urbanites can be a pleasant diversion, but after so much volubility, you might find yourself wishing that they would all just shut up and dance. Read full review
67
Austin ChronicleSteve Davis
It is a story about loyalty, friendship, and honor. In other words, it's less titillating than you might expect. Read full review
63
San Francisco ExaminerBarbara Shulgasser
Sometimes, when you watch a Stillman movie, you can't help thinking that the guy ought to get out more. Read full review
63
USA TodaySusan Wloszczyna
It all feels about as spontaneous as a concrete blueprint. Read full review
60
Film ThreatTom Meek
Sevigny and Beckinsale, looking very Parker Posey-esque here, give solid performances, but it's not enough to out weigh Stillman's smugness. Read full review
50
VarietyTodd McCarthy
Whit Stillman's stiff directorial approach ill suits the sensual ambiance of the club scene so intently depicted, and the mostly self-conscious, uptight characters seem to have made a left turn out of "Metropolitan" and walked through the wrong door to turn up in this flamboyant druggie scene. Read full review
50
San Francisco ChronicleMick LaSalle
The most Stillmanesque Stillman movie yet. It's about a mood, part wistful, part sardonic. It's about a time of life, about repartee, about the vivid character saying the unexpected thing. Read full review
50
TV Guide MagazineMaitland McDonagh
But the soundtrack will delight anyone whose blood stirs at the strains of "I'm Coming Out," "Le Freak" or "Doctor's Orders." Read full review
30
SlateDavid Edelstein
This is a rhythmless, stupefying work. A person with no discernible pulse ought not to be directing a movie about disco. Read full review
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