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Carolyn Farina, Edward Clements, Christopher Eigeman, Taylor Nichols, Allison Rutledge-Parisi ... see more see more... , Dylan Hundley , Isabel Gillies , Bryan Leder , Will Kempe , Stephen Uys , Ellia Thompson , Alice Connorton , Roget W. Kirby , Catherine Atzen , Caroline Bennett , Victoria Chickering , Frank Creighton , Hank Foley , Linda Gillies , Andrew Lyle , Blayne Perry , J. Harden Rose , Kevin Schack , Joel S. Schreiber , Tina Thornton , Tomas R. Voth , Donal Lardner Ward , John Carroll Lynch

The debut film from writer-director Whit Stillman etches a sophisticated comic portrait of New York debutante society at the twilight of the 1980s. Set during the Christmas season, the film is told fr... read more read more...om the vantage point of Tom Townsend (Edward Clements), a self-professed proletarian radical who stumbles into the social sphere of a group of well-off Upper East Side twentysomethings calling themselves the SFRP (or Sally Fowler Rat Pack, named in honor of a frequent party hostess). The group includes Nick (Christopher Eigeman), an acidic misanthrope; sweet-natured Jane Austen acolyte Audrey (Carolyn Farina); Charlie (Taylor Nichols), a tongue-tied bumbler secretly in love with Audrey; and femme fatale Cynthia (Isabel Gillies). Quickly, Tom, who comes from much more humble beginnings, finds himself caught in the middle of the group. Audrey even develops a crush on him, but Tom is still reeling from a broken relationship with renowned man-eater Serena (Elizabeth Thompson), a peripheral member of the SFRP. It all leads to a romantic climax at the Southampton vacation home of Nick's womanizing arch-enemy Rick von Sloneker (Will Kempe). ~ Jason Ankeny, Rovi

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83% liked it

4,727 ratings

Critics

88% liked it

26 critics

PG-13, 1 hr. 38 min.

Directed by: Whit Stillman

Release Date: August 3, 1990

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DVD Release Date: February 14, 2006

Stats: 337 reviews

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Flixster Reviews (337)

  • stevenecarrier
    June 28, 2011
    stevenecarrier
    Whit Stillman's blazingly original, triumphantly witty "Metropolitan" is a signal independent film of the 1990s. The dialogue is like music and the performances from the unknown actors are pointed and scathing. This is the kind of film that Woody Allen would be able to make if he... read more let an idea gestate rather than churning out a film a year. "Metropolitan" is an insanely precise social observation and satire.
  • ebs90
    February 21, 2010
    ebs90

    Metropolitan is a witty, cerebral yet stylish comedy about a group of upper class teenagers in New York City as they go through the debutante season. The entire narration does not surpass two weeks in the film's time, and yet so much conversation and play goes on in their nigh

    ... read moretly balls that by the end of it the insight we can have about the characters is unusually complex, as is our possible empathy towards them.

    In essence, Metropolitan concerns just about what every other film about teenagers will usually revolve around: romantic relationships, friendships, gossip, getting drunk, discussing about society in general and about individual prospects. Only that these characters belong to a very privileged elite and are only now beginning to come to terms with what that means: what will they do? what is really their place? can there be any further upwards mobility or is it downhill from where they are? They talk about prejudice, snobbery, religion, moral propriety, as if they knew there's some place they have to occupy that they want to be prepared for. And then there are some who don't care about any of that and just dance and drink and play strip poker.


    Audrey, Nick, Charlie, Cynthia, Fred, Jane and Sally attend every debutante ball together. Their alliance is almost strategic: they have thus ensured that each girl will have an escort through the entire season. However, they're still short of one male member and they recruit Tom one night when they get on a cab that he was about to take. Tom says it's OK, Nick insists that they share, then they invite Tom to their party, he says yes. Suddenly, Tom is caught up in their charming social life, going out with them almost every night although he's a disinherited, West-sider, self-proclaimed outsider who goes to the same schools as them but definitely was not planning on participating in debutante season.


    Although the premise of seeing a group of people through the eyes of someone who does not belong to it is not new, it works well enough. In fact, the story makes an interesting progression in which Tom almost stops being an outsider and becomes, say, a subversive element within the group for reasons much different from what we are led to believe at first.


    Whit Stillman creates with great attention to detail the universe of his upper-class characters. It's almost seductive to watch. The film's cinematography, set design and costumes are evocative of both a bygone time (the 90s, with their peculiar aesthetic) and a decidedly sophisticated (and to me, unfamiliar) variety of places, lobbies, ballrooms, upscale apartments and probably overpriced restaurants.


    Seductive is a good word for this film. Stillman refrains from stuffing his characters in common places and shapes their personalities in individual and unexpected ways that make them not only amusing, but genuinely interesting. In some ways, it's possible to want to be there with them. Most importantly, their dialogue is the most attractive feature of the film: equally intellectual and superficial, at times devastatingly serious and then followed by a few cliches or "whatevers", consistently funny although at times sad. The actors deliver it with as much credibility as possible -many of them unfamiliar, fresh faces that could belong perfectly in that context.


    In spite of the love he obviously feels for his group of socialites and their hazy, troubled family or romantic stories, Stillman does critique the excesses of a youth that talks about life and does nothing about it, and that criticism is contained, surprisingly, in the words of the characters themselves. Avoiding the easy alternative of pointing out the flaws of an entire social group (which is, in its generalization, irresponsible), he prefers to let them be and show us, in their own environment, why they behave and think the way the do. We are allowed to judge by ourselves, all the while being reminded that nobody chooses to be born in whichever circumstances, and that we all eventually need to come to terms with them, whether they involve Christmas at the Plaza or not being able to afford a taxi to the other side of town.
  • hobster1
    June 25, 2008
    hobster1
    Utterly original and unique film makes a group of young Park Avenue socialites sympathetic. The witty script rightfully earned an Oscar nomination.
  • littlecharmer1959
    June 30, 2009
    littlecharmer1959
    It started out ok, but there's only a certain amount I can take of watching Manhattan socalite bourgeoisie brats philosophize and go to debutante balls.
  • Chosen718
    February 12, 2008
    Chosen718
    Good film, interesting.
  • kingmob6
    February 22, 2010
    kingmob6
    Snappy, understated dialog that recalls classic film, you have to keep a sharp ear to keep up with everything.

    Terrific film, well worth a rental.
  • jam233
    October 9, 2009
    jam233
    What on earth does everyone see in this film? It's about a bunch of pretentious future Yuppies endlessly yacking about nothing! I don't care about any of these people, they are jerks. It is well produced though, the cinematography is good, as well as costumes and sets, but other ... read morethan that a bunch of tripe.
  • SDphotoggirl
    October 13, 2008
    SDphotoggirl
    Amusing film...very low-budget and with lots of dialogue. I totally can relate to the Audrey character. She could be me in many ways. Definitely worth a watch.
  • leeguess2005
    December 31, 2007
    leeguess2005
    Breakfast Club for the preppies. Witty, gentle comedy of bourgeoisie manners. Even bad things seem to have a gentle existence in this alternate universe for the rich.
  • sponsorless
    August 24, 2007
    sponsorless
    At first I thought that this film was going to bore me, thank god I was so wrong. I'm no rich kid but I like how sometimes directors portray this type of people in a very human way. Whit Stillman did this at it's very best (Wes Anderson also did a great job with portraying rich k... read moreids in the amazing 2001 film The Royal Tennenbaums which is an awesome film). Set during the 1990 debutante season in New York this one gives you an inside look at a world that not of us can't truly see. Although not much happens in the film the excellent dialogue written by Stillman himself does justice to the lack of action on the film. Many people will think that these people are snobs but hey, I thought that they are cool snobs and very normal kids.

View All Metropolitan Reviews

Critic Reviews

Jonathan Rosenbaum
July 18, 2008
Jonathan Rosenbaum, Chicago Reader

Whit Stillman's crafty independent feature about wealthy Park Avenue teenagers and a middle-class boy who joins their ranks over one Christmas vacation is certainly well imagined, and impressively act... Full Review

Variety Staff
July 18, 2008
Variety Staff, Variety

Filmmaker Whit Stillman makes a strikingly original debut with Metropolitan, a glib, ironic portrait of the vulnerable young heirs to Manhattan's disappearing debutante scene. Full Review

Desson Thomson
January 1, 2000
Desson Thomson, Washington Post

True appreciation for this movie may be restricted to those with firsthand experience in this kind of world, or a certain upper-haute stamina. Full Review

Roger Ebert
January 1, 2000
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times

Not very much happens in Metropolitan, and yet everything that happens is felt deeply, because the characters in this movie are still too young to have perfected their defenses against life. Full Review

Rita Kempley
January 1, 2000
Rita Kempley, Washington Post

Like chamber music, Metropolitan is sprightly, intimate and all too self-aware. Full Review

Tim Brayton
April 10, 2012
Tim Brayton, Antagony & Ecstasy

Stillman's script is so present at every moment that it's easy to overlook how precisely the film has been directed. Full Review

Angie Errigo
July 18, 2008
Angie Errigo, Empire Magazine

Unusual subject matter handled with competent self-assurance. Full Review

Matthew Leyland
July 18, 2008
Matthew Leyland, BBC

A witty, urbane portrait of Manhattan's debutante scene. Full Review

James Mottram
July 18, 2008
James Mottram, Film4

As low-budget as the film looks, Stillman overcomes financial limitations by providing a learned script and eliciting polished performances. Full Review

Philip French
July 18, 2008
Philip French, Observer [UK]

It's wearing surprisingly well, yet is touchingly dated. Full Review

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Metropolitan Trivia

  • Who has heat vision and is the hero of Metropolitan?  Answer »
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