Saturday Night Fever

Saturday Night Fever is really one of the great American films ever. I know it's known mainly for it's music and dancing scenes. But what a remarkable story this is. It's been called an urban tragedy, or perhaps a tragedy of youth. John Travolta plays Tony Manero, who works in a hardware store by day, but is the undisputed king of his world by night -- on the dance floor and among his friends. Yet from his dead end job, the discord in his family life, and the small local dance competitions he practices for, we begin to see that that his world is too small. That his goals are not high enough. It takes his encounter with the ambitious Stephanie, and a tragedy within his circle of friends, to make him realize how limited his world really is. As such, it's a remarkable coming of age story.

This movie is not possible, of course, without John Travolta. This is the movie that made him a household name, and his megawatt star power dominates the film. It grabs us from the opening scene - that fabulous strut down the streets of Brooklyn. It's interesting that the success of his performance is due as much to raw charisma as to any technical ability.