Arena Comes Alive for ‘Flatliners’ Party

The Scene: The premiere of Columbia Pictures’ new film “Flat-liners,� held Monday night at Mann’s Chinese Theater. Thunder and lightning flashes helped set the mood at a party held afterward at the cavernous new discotheque Arena. The rain was certainly welcome, even if the muggy conditions were not. (By the way flat-liner is a dead person, and the title refers to the flat line on an EKG machine.)

Who Was There: “Flatliners� ’ stars Kiefer Sutherland, Julia Roberts and Oliver Platt; along with the film’s producer Michael Douglas, Maria Conchita Alonso, Drew Barrymore, Stephen Bishop, Cathy Lee Crosby, Suzanne de Passe, Laura Dern, Richard Grieco, Khrystyne Haje, Pat Riley, and Jennifer Tilly.

Dress Code: The invitation specified casual, which ranged from suits and ties to shorts, although yellow slickers might have been more practical. Several people carried umbrellas around the party, while others straggled in looking half-drowned.

Fashion Statements: Shelley Duvall wore a bright pink baseball cap, a schoolgirl’s plaid skirt, and mismatched high-top sneakers. She was with a gentleman dressed to match (although he substituted plaid slacks for the skirt).

Chow: Buffets catered by Ambrosia featured quesadillas filled with goat cheese, black beans and crab, as well as roast beef sandwiches, stuffed grape leaves, and pumpkin ravioli. Dessert included fresh berries and some lethal chocolate bars, two of which were rich enough to turn the healthiest person in the world into a flatliner.

Noted: True to the theme of the movie, one woman passed out in the lobby of the Chinese Theater. Fortunately, she was revived with no ill effects.

Overheard: “You work in Burbank? I never go out to Burbank,� one man said with a shudder. Apparently he thought that people who venture north of Hollywood run the risk of falling off the edge of the Earth.

Pastimes: Trying to muscle through the incredibly crowded VIP area, which was crowded mostly with people trying to spot VIPs. Once the crowd subsided, a few energetic people swung out onto the dance floor to the strains of Janet Jackson, Madonna and M.C. Hammer. Others hung in doorways, trying to get fresh air.

Triumphs: Considering that the movie industry is having two or three major premieres a week these days, Columbia drew quite a large crowd for a rainy Monday night. (The next few days alone will bring premieres of “Air America,� “Wild at Heart,� and “Pump Up the Volume.�)

Glitches: Arena is a great new place for a party, but it’s only got one small air-conditioned room.