Films That Capture a Specific Decade Better Than Any Documentary

Whit Stillman captured the witty, articulate, and rapidly fading world of young Manhattan debutantes navigating upper-class society at the turn of the decade. By documenting formal debutante balls and late-night apartment debates, the film offers a rare, microscopic look at old-money privilege confronting modern democratic culture. It remains an exquisitely detailed study of aristocratic subculture.