Fast Times at Ridgemont High (1982)

Fast Times at Ridgemont High (1982)

After viewing Fast Times at Ridgemont High, my first thought was “Why are all history teachers portrayed in media evil?” Such an odd thought, but a worthy thought given my own experience. All of my history teachers/professors were cool, but I guess Hollywood has a thing against history. That said, I did like Mr. Hand and his paranoia of everyone being high on dope. Anyhow, this 1982 film is essentially the American Graffiti of the 1980’s. It is a realistic, honest portrayal of how high school life was like back then. My high school life was a good twenty-five years after the film, but I can relate to the themes, because all generations go through the same thing. Love, betrayal, abortion, poor jobs-well, everyone knows how that is like. This decade is well-known for its teen comedies, so Amy Heckerling’s film was the one to kick everything off.

The movie was written by future filmmaker Cameron Crowe based on his adventures of growing up in a California high school. He tackles all the important elements of what makes growing up unique. The film really does not have a plot, per se. It’s all about the characters, how they deal with the everyday life of home, school, and work. Maybe it is just best to introduce the characters. Jeff Spicoli (Sean Penn) is your laidback surfer dude whom history teacher Mr. Hand despises. I guess that is what happens when you order pizza in the middle of class, eh? Brad Hamilton (Judge Reinhold) is a guy everyone expects a lot out of, but he works at various fast food places and doesn’t know what he wants in life. His younger sister, Stacy Hamilton (Jennifer Jason Leigh) is a teen virgin and she wants to find her first love. Her role model and best friend is Linda Barrett (Phoebe Cates) who is a very confident young woman. Working at a movie theater, Mark Ratner (Brian Backer) is one of the nerdy types, but he does have a big crush on Stacy. The dream of his is broken when he is betrayed his friend Mike Damone (Robert Romanus), who scalps tickets for a living.

As you see, there are many characters whose stories we get to follow. The above characters are only the main ones, as there are many important characters here. The performances are all wonderful because the actors made them realistic. Of course, Crowe’s sharp screenplay captured the highs and lows of life during high school very well. If anything, I could relate to many of these characters at one point or another. Sean Penn gave the best performance of the film. The guy is just so chill, and it’s really funny that he ordered pizza during class. I enjoyed watching Judge Reinhold as Brad. His attitude working at these fast food places is spot on. I loved when he told that business customer that he is not right. Way to go, dude! Jennifer Jason Leigh gave a realistic, even heartbreaking performance because her character goes through teen pregnancy drama.

I was not expecting heavy drama in such a light-hearted comedy, but Cameron Crowe is known to do that with his films. Maybe that is something he went through, but then idea of abortion is heavily prevalent here. I was very surprised, but I applaud his effort of tackling this issue in the film. I will not go overly political here, but teen pregnancy is an issue that high school kids deal with. It’s not fun nor pleasant, but a fact of life. Many critics of the 80’s criticized these scenes, but it’s something that needs to be talked about, even in today’s political environment.

Honestly, watching this film made me wish I grew up in the 1980’s. Sure, I hung out at the mall a few times, but nothing like this mall. The music/soundtrack adds more to the film’s vibe. Nothing like jamming out to the likes of Tom Petty while watching these characters in action. There are many individual scenes that are memorable, but there is a bikini scene that ranks neat the top because of just how awesome and relatable that scene is. The film handles sex in a way that is not too awkward and there is a truly hilarious scene that is an all-time classic. So, definitely keep an open mind! This movie introduces many stars of this decade and the next. Keep an eye out for Nicolas Cage, Anthony Edwards, just to name a few!

Overall, Fast Times at Ridgemont High is a sharp, moving, and honest portrayal of high school life. If anything, Cameron Crowe’s script still holds up very well today. The settings may be different, but the characters are instantly relatable and that will never change. That is the reason I enjoyed watching this movie so much-the relatable characters. In the decade that spawned relentless amounts of teen movies, this ranks in the upper echelon.

My Grade: A-