RSVP : Important People Seen in the Best Light

The Scene: The “special industry screening” of Warner Bros.’ “Disclosure” at the Bruin theater in Westwood. A densely packed party followed at Spago. One guest described this type of low-key premiere as “something to schmooze the people who matter.”

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Who Was There: The film’s stars, Michael Douglas and Demi Moore; co-stars Donald Sutherland, Caroline Goodall and Dennis Miller; producer-director Barry Levinson; producer-screenwriter Michael Crichton; executive producer Peter Giuliano; studio execs Bob Daly, Terry Semel and Rob Friedman; plus 800 guests (400 at the party), including Warren Beatty and Annette Bening, Mike Ovitz, Barbara Davis, Kelly Preston, Neil Simon, Ben Kingsley, Anne Archer, Ellen DeGeneres and Joely Fisher.

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Standout Guest: Vermont’s Democratic Sen. Patrick Leahy (a Batman aficionado who filmed a bit part in the upcoming “Batman Forever” that day) said he enjoyed being in Hollywood rather than the capital. “After the way it’s been the last few weeks, listening to statementsfrom Jesse Helms and others, I’m glad to be in a place where they make an art form out of fantasy.”

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The Buzz: The film’s sexual harassment theme would make it a perfect argue-with-your-date movie. It was also described as “Fatal Attraction” meets “Wall Street.” Demi Moore said: “It’s too limiting to say it’s a movie about sexual harassment. I think it’s equally limiting to say it’s a movie about corporate infighting. It’s about power and manipulation and political intrigue within a corporate situation.”

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Quoted: Director Levinson said, “This is a suspense film. But it has no one who’s going to kill anybody. It’s a dialogue-driven movie. You’re trying to create tension that puts the audience on the edge of its seat without shooting someone. That’s tough to get a spin on in a movie these days. Shooting someone has become the replacement for drama.”

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The Setting: The lighting at Spago turns toward the golden-brown hues in the back room. Said DeGeneres: “This is the kind of lighting that perpetuates the cosmetic facial industry in this town. At Roy Rogers, you’d never get this.”