History Film / SaturdayNightFever

* ShoutOut: "[[AlPacino AL PACINO!!! AL PACINO!!!]] [[DogDayAfternoon ATTICA! ATTICA! ATTICA!]]

A sequel titled ''Staying Alive'' was released in 1983. [[{{Sequelitis}} It didn't do as well with the critics,]] especially since director/co-writer SylvesterStallone also decided to heavily feature his brother Frank on the soundtrack.

* MadonnaWhoreComplex: Tony believes that a girl can be either a [[ProperLady "nice girl" you enter into a serious relationship with and maybe even marry eventually]] or a [[CountryMatters "c**t" that you sleep with]], not both.

* [[ThereAreTwoKindsOfPeopleInTheWorld There Are Two Kinds of Girls in the World]]: Tony's philosophy is that a girl can either be a [[MyGirlIsNotASlut "nice girl"]] or a [[CountryMatters "c**t"]], but not both. He seems to have a case of the MadonnaWhoreComplex.

* DoNotDoThisCoolThing: Despite portraying Tony Manero's life as violent, shallow and ultimately pointless, the movie won Disco millions of new fans.

-->-- '''Music/TheBeeGees'''

* DrivenToSuicide: [[spoiler: Bobby C.]]

* IHaveNoSon: After Frankie [[spoiler: leaves the priesthood]], his parents are heartbroken (especially his mother), and eventually disown him.

* VeryLooselyBasedOnATrueStory: "[[http://nymag.com/nightlife/features/45933/ Tribal Rites of the New Saturday Night]]" by the New Yorker. Played with, since it's now known that the article itself was made up by Nik Cohn (who wisely added a disclaimer "Everything described in this article is factual and was either witnessed by me or told to me directly by the people involved. Only the names of the main characters have been changed", which basically said "If the people who told it to me are lying, then I'm blameless."[[note]]Said people, however, ''didn't exist''.[[/note]]

* UnintentionalPeriodPiece

* Driven to Suicide: [[spoiler: Bobby C.]]

* {{Jerkass}}: Tony himself is quite a douchebag, but his friends are outright self-absorbed machos. Tony's Parents are this as well.

* OnlySaneMan: Stephanie and Frank. Tony as well, at least compared wth his friends.

* {{Jerkass}}: Tony himself is quite a douchebag, but his friends are outright self-absorbed machos.

* {{Flanderization}}: The film is often boiled down to "that disco flick where Travolta dances to corny music and little else happens", ignoring its ''very'' mature themes and serious characterizations. The fact that the sequel ''Staying Alive'' is substantially LighterAndSofter may or may not be a factor.

A sequel titled ''Staying Alive'' was released in 1983. [[{{Sequelitis}} It didn't do as well with the critics,]] especially since director/co-writer SylvesterStallone also decided to feature his brother Frank heavily.

* {{Flanderization}}: The film is often boiled down to "that Disco flick where Travolta dances to corny music and little else happens", ignoring the fact it features very mature themes and serious characterizations.

* NobodyTouchesTheHair: Tony

* ShirtlessScene: Travolta shows his pectorals a lot.

* UnbuiltTrope: The movie's portrayal of Disco lifestyle is decidedly unsentimental and depressing enough to be labeled as a grim {{Deconstruction}} of dance flicks and night club culture in general. The twist is that this film was the '''{{Trope Maker|s}}''' of the 70's Disco craze.

* WalkingInRhythm: Tony, to "Stayin' Alive" at the beginning of the film. One of John Travolta's most famous movie scenes, subject to much StockParody.
* WhatTheHellHero: Stephanie and Tony's friends didn't take too kindly to Tony [[spoiler: handing over the first-place dance contest trophy to the Puerto Rican couple who took second.]]
----

* StarMakingRole: For Travolta, obviously. Although he'd already made a name for himself in ''WelcomeBackKotter'', this movie pushed him into true superstardom almost overnight and, together with ''Film/{{Grease}}'' and ''Film/PulpFiction'', remains his most memorable performance.

* {{Deconstruction}}: The film is a deconstruction of the hedonistic culture of the 1970's. Sure, there were beautiful clothes, music, and lots of dancing, but there was [[HiddenDepths a dark side]] to the life led by such people like Tony and his friends. For example, Tony has no thought for the future (and the culture as a whole didn't either), and his friends are involved with [[SexDrugsAndRockAndRoll drugs, drinking, and casual sex]] which does cause some problems. See also UnbuiltTrope.

* {{Deconstruction}}: The film is a deconstruction of the hedonistic culture of the 1970's. Sure, there were beautiful clothes, music, and lots of dancing, but there was [[HiddenDepths a dark side]] to the life led by such people Tony and his friends. For example, Tony has no thought for the future (and the culture as a whole didn't either), and his friends are involved with [[SexDrugsAndRockAndRoll drugs, drinking, and casual sex]] which does cause some problems. See also UnbuiltTrope.

[[SugarWiki/MomentOfAwesome And it's got Travolta dancing]]. Need I say more?

* {{Deconstruction}}: The film is a deconstruction of the hedonistic culture of the 1970's. Sure, there were beautiful clothes, music, and lots of dancing, but there was a dark side to the life led by such people Tony and his friends. For example, Tony has no thought for the future (and the culture as a whole didn't either), and his friends are involved with [[SexDrugsAndRockAndRoll drugs, drinking, and casual sex]] which does cause some problems. See also UnbuiltTrope.

But the film is mostly remembered for being a reflection of the Disco era at its height in New York in TheSeventies, and the UnconstructedTrope of the modern dance flick. Subsequently, the film sparked a national Disco craze that didn't die out until the onset of TheEighties. Thus, ''Saturday Night Fever'' remains a late-Seventies [UnintentionalPeriodPiece period piece]], such as it is.

But the film is mostly remembered for being a reflection of the Disco era at its height in New York in TheSeventies, and the UnconstructedTrope of the modern dance flick. Subsequently, the film sparked a national Disco craze that didn't die out until the onset of TheEighties. Thus, ''Saturday Night Fever'' remains a late-Seventies period piece, such as it is.

* StarMakingRole: For Travolta, obviously. Although he'd already made a name for himself in ''WelcomeBackKotter'', this movie pushed him into true superstardom almost overnight and, together with ''{{Grease}}'' and ''PulpFiction'', remains his most memorable performance.

A sequel titled ''Staying Alive'' was released in 1983. [[{{Sequelitis}} It didn't do as well with the critics.]]

* MemeticOutfit: Travolta's white outfit became synonymous with Disco culture and a sort of a uniform for {{Disco Dan}}s worldwide.

* Don'tMakeMeTakeMyBeltOff: Tony's father often slaps him, even for minor things.