CINEGEEK.DE Dance Movies 70s 

Most beautiful is the scene where Tony Manero (John Travolta) and Stephanie (Karen Lynn Gorney) sit at the Brooklyn Bridge. Tony knows everything about this bridge; how high it is and how much concrete has been used. We experience the eternal motive of a man who wants to escape. Tony dreams of the other side of the bridge, where life must be much more pleasant! Stephanie has characterized his: Tony lives with his parents, hangs out with his buddies, dances Saturday night in 2001 - a walking cliché. Tony knows she's right. His life can probably be described as unfinished and Saturday Night Fever is above all a sad movie. But we remember Tony's moving walk on the New York sidewalk and his dance, all alone, in the middle of the dance floor. Travolta's play, simply wonderful and very endearing! The very first sequences round off his person. Outside, he makes sure to be seen with shiny new shoes; at home, however, he is still treated like a child. Tony gets a four dollar raise. For him, this is the only recognition in his life outside the dance floor - a bad joke for his (unemployed) father. But in his room Tony looks at himself in the mirror, straightens his hair, even strips for himself. The posters of his heroes are stuck to the wall. During dinner, his father beats him and ruins Tony's hairstyle: "I work a long time on my hair, and you hit it!". At home, Tony is trapped there and his parents only admire his brother Father Frank Jr., who has become a priest (after all, we are with Italo-Americans!). The plot is determined by Tony's choice of Annette (Donna Pescow), the girl who loves him, or Stephanie (Karen Lynn Gorney), who represents Manhattan for him. Stephanie has her own apartment and meets really famous people (Paul Anka!) for her work. But in reality she only learned to work as a secretary. Basically Stephanie is a thunderous version of Annette. I thought Annette was the better choice, but Tony wasn't. He is blinded by Stephanie's glamour and basically has no experience with women anyway. We even see him trying awkwardly to overpower Stephanie in the car. Later, in the most horrible scene, we witness Annette being raped by his friends. Saturday Night Fever is far from being a perfect movie (sometimes I even found it quite embarrassing!). Especially the story about the brother Father Frank Jr. is quite poor: The brother returns home, has an almost theological conversation with Tony, tells the family that he doesn't want to be a priest anymore, goes to the disco once and then disappears. From the disco and from the film. Amazing how little space the big dance competition takes! The happy ending in turn gives us hope for a better future for Tony and Stephanie, but without considering the problems of the past. Nevertheless: As Tony Stephanie explains, he would like to try to be a good friend of hers - that's heart-rending! Saturday Night Fever is a big love story! Anyway, Tony's dreams! On the dance floor all his problems are forgotten and everything that devalues his life. Here Tony is larger than life! A nice boy who is allowed to live his dream for a moment! Tony makes mistakes, he feels his way, he always says the wrong thing. Only in the moment that he does what he really loves (dancing!) he grows beyond himself. By the way, Tony also chooses his partner according to whether she can dance well. He even renounces his victory in the competition in favor of a couple from Puerto Rico. In Tony's self-image, this couple was simply better. He explains his own victory with the fact that everything foreign is rejected in this quarter! To sacrifice one's life to what one really loves! This is what Saturday Night Fever is about. Which film has a better message?