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Fast Times at Ridgemont High

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"Ridgemont High" redirects here. For high schools called Ridgemont High, see Ridgemont High School (disambiguation).

Fast Times at Ridgemont High
Theatrical release poster
Directed byAmy Heckerling
Screenplay byCameron Crowe
Produced byArt Linson
Irving Azoff
Starring
CinematographyMatthew F. Leonetti
Edited byEric Jenkins
Production
company
Refugee Films
Distributed byUniversal Studios
Release date
  • August 13, 1982 (1982-08-13)
Running time
90 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$4.5 million
Box office$27,092,880 (domestic)

Fast Times at Ridgemont High is a 1982 American coming-of-age teen comedy film written by Cameron Crowe, adapted from his 1981 book of the same name. As a freelance writer for Rolling Stone magazine, Crowe went undercover at Clairemont High School in San Diego, California, and wrote about his experiences.

The film was directed by Amy Heckerling (in her feature film directorial debut) and chronicles a school year in the lives of sophomores Stacy Hamilton (Jennifer Jason Leigh) and Mark Ratner (Brian Backer), and their respective older friends Linda Barrett (Phoebe Cates) and Mike Damone (Robert Romanus), both of whom believe themselves wiser in the ways of romance than their younger counterparts. The ensemble cast of characters form two subplots with Jeff Spicoli (Sean Penn), an irresponsible stoned surfer, facing off against uptight history teacher Mr. Hand (Ray Walston), and Stacy's brother, Brad (Judge Reinhold), a senior who works at a series of entry-level jobs in order to pay off his car, and who is pondering easing out of his relationship with his girlfriend until she dumps him.

In addition to Penn, Reinhold, Cates and Leigh, the film marks early appearances by several actors who later became stars, including Nicolas Cage, then billing himself as Nicolas Coppola, Forest Whitaker, Eric Stoltz, and Anthony Edwards. Among the actors listed, Penn, Cage, and Whitaker would later on in their careers win the Academy Award for Best Actor, with Penn winning twice.

In 2005, Fast Times at Ridgemont High was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".

Plot

Brad Hamilton is a popular senior who is looking forward to his last year of school and almost has his 1960 Buick LeSabre paid off. He has a part-time job at a burger joint where his girlfriend, Lisa, also works. He is pondering how to end his relationship with Lisa so he can play the field during his senior year. However, Brad is fired for losing his temper at an obnoxious customer; and when he tries to tell Lisa how much he needs her, she says she is dumping him to see other guys. Brad quits his next job because of the humiliation of having to wear a pirate costume when delivering food. He gets a job at a convenience store, where he successfully thwarts an attempted robbery and is promoted to store manager.

Brad's sister, Stacy Hamilton, is a 15-year-old sophomore. She is worried that she is not attractive or experienced enough to even meet, let alone have a relationship with, a guy. While working at the mall she meets a 26-year-old stereo salesman who asks her out (after she tells him she is 19). She sneaks out to meet him and they have sex at a secluded make-out spot. She reveals the loss of her virginity to her friend, popular (and sexually experienced) senior Linda, who assures her that it will hurt less as she does it more.

Mike Damone, who earns money taking bets and scalping tickets, fancies himself a ladies' man. He lets his younger friend Mark Ratner in on his secrets for picking up girls. Mike coaxes Mark into asking Stacy out to dinner at an upscale restaurant. Stacy invites Mark into her bedroom after the date, but he quickly shies away and leaves when Stacy tries to initiate sex with him.

Later, Damone goes to Stacy's house for a swim in the backyard pool, which leads to sex in the pool house with Stacy. When Stacy later informs Damone that she is pregnant, he agrees to pay half the cost of an abortion and to drive her to the clinic, but reneges. Desperate, Stacy asks Brad to drive her to a bowling alley, but after he drops her off, Brad sees her going to the abortion clinic across the street. He goes back and waits for her, and she makes him promise not to tell their parents. Word gets around school about Damone and Stacy, which leads to a confrontation between Damone and Mark in the boys' locker room.

Jeff Spicoli is a surfer and habitual marijuana user who runs afoul of strict history teacher, Mr. Hand, who has no patience for Spicoli's carefree attitude and tardiness. Finally, on the evening of the graduation dance, Mr. Hand shows up at Spicoli's house and informs him that since he has wasted eight hours of class time over the past year, Mr. Hand intends to make up for it that night. They proceed to have a one-on-one session that lasts until Mr. Hand is satisfied that Spicoli has understood the lesson. Spicoli wrecks Ridgemont football player Charles Jefferson's 1979 Chevrolet Camaro Z28 then parks the car in front of the school with slurs painted on it supposedly written by Ridgemont's rival, Lincoln High. When Ridgemont plays Lincoln, Jefferson is so angry about his car that he injures several of Lincoln's players. Ridgemont wins the game in a blowout.

In addition to Mark and Stacy's continuing relationship and Brad's promotion to manager at the convenience store, fates of some of the other characters are revealed in subtitles: Spicoli saves Brooke Shields from drowning and then wastes the reward money hiring Van Halen to play at his birthday party; Linda gets accepted to UC Riverside and moved in with her Abnormal Psychology professor; Damone gets arrested for scalping Ozzy Osbourne tickets; and Mr. Hand believes everyone is on drugs.

Cast

Soundtrack

Untitled
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic[1]

The soundtrack album, Fast Times at Ridgemont High: Music from the Motion Picture, peaked at #54 on the Billboard album chart.[2] The soundtrack features the work of many quintessential 1980s rock artists.

Several of the movie's songs were released as singles, including Jackson Browne's "Somebody's Baby", which reached #7 on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart.[3] Other singles were the title track by Sammy Hagar, "So Much in Love" by Timothy B. Schmit, "Raised on the Radio" by (The Ravyns) and "Waffle Stomp" by Joe Walsh. In addition to Schmit and Walsh, the album features solo tracks by two other members of the Eagles, Don Henley and Don Felder. The soundtrack also included "I Don't Know (Spicoli's Theme)" by Jimmy Buffett.

Five tracks in the film, but not included on the soundtrack, are: "Moving in Stereo" by The Cars, "American Girl" by Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, "We Got the Beat" by The Go Go's, Led Zeppelin's "Kashmir," and "Jingle Bell Rock" by Bobby Helms. In addition, the live band at the prom dance during the end of the film played two songs also not on the soundtrack: "Life in the Fast Lane" and "Wooly Bully".

The Donna Summer track, "Highway Runner", was initially recorded in 1981 for her double album entitled I'm a Rainbow; however, the album was shelved by Summer's then-label, Geffen Records, but ultimately released in 1996 by Mercury Records. The album is once again out of print.

Todd Rundgren also recorded the song, "Attitude", for the film at Crowe's request. It was not included in the film, but was later released on Rundgren's Demos and Lost Albums in 2001.

Amy Heckerling, in the DVD audio commentary, states that the 1970s "classic rock" artists, like the Eagles, were introduced by one of the film's producers. Coincidentally, Irving Azoff, one of the movie's producers, was the personal manager for the Eagles.

  1. "Somebody's Baby" (Jackson Browne) – 4:05
  2. "Waffle Stomp" (Joe Walsh) – 3:40
  3. "Love Rules" (Don Henley) – 4:05
  4. "Uptown Boys" (Louise Goffin) – 2:45
  5. "So Much in Love" (Timothy B. Schmit) – 2:25
  6. "Raised on the Radio" (The Ravyns) – 3:43
  7. "The Look in Your Eyes" (Gerard McMahon) – 4:00
  8. "Speeding" (The Go-Go's) – 2:11
  9. "Don't Be Lonely" (Quarterflash) – 3:18
  10. "Never Surrender" (Don Felder) – 4:15
  11. "Fast Times (The Best Years of Our Lives)" (Billy Squier) – 3:41
  12. "Fast Times at Ridgemont High" (Sammy Hagar) – 3:36
  13. "I Don't Know (Spicoli's Theme)" (Jimmy Buffett) – 3:00
  14. "Love Is the Reason" (Graham Nash) – 3:31
  15. "I'll Leave It up to You" (Poco) – 2:55
  16. "Highway Runner" (Donna Summer) – 3:18
  17. "Sleeping Angel" (Stevie Nicks) – 3:55
  18. "She's My Baby (And She's Outta Control)" (Palmer/Jost) – 2:53
  19. "Goodbye, Goodbye" (Oingo Boingo) – 4:34[4]

Origins and production

The film is adapted from a book Crowe wrote after a year spent at Clairemont High School in San Diego, California. He went undercover to do research for his 1981 book Fast Times at Ridgemont High: A True Story, about his observations of the high school and the students he befriended there, including then-student Andy Rathbone, on whom the character "Rat" was modeled.[5][6]

Heckerling shepherded the young cast, which included Nicolas Cage in his first feature-film role. He was credited as "Nicolas Coppola" for the only time in his career.[7] It was also the film debut for Eric Stoltz and provided early roles for Anthony Edwards and Forest Whitaker. Crowe's girlfriend at the time, and later, wife, Nancy Wilson of Heart, has a cameo as "Beautiful Girl in Car".

Filming locations

Fast Times was filmed in the San Fernando Valley of Los Angeles (although it is never explicitly mentioned as such in the film) in late 1981, and many people identify the movie with that area and the teen culture that existed there, or was perceived to, in the early 1980s. "Ridgemont" is a fictional name. Crowe applied it to Clairemont High School in San Diego where he attended the school undercover. (Spicoli mentions surfing at Sunset Cliffs, a genuine surf spot in San Diego.) Most of the exteriors of Ridgemont High School were shot at Van Nuys High School, and other scenes were shot at Canoga Park High School. The "carrot" scene and football game were shot at James Monroe High School in Sepulveda, CA. The "Ridgemont Mall" shown in the film was actually the Sherman Oaks Galleria, with its exterior shot at Santa Monica Place. Both have since been converted to open-air malls. "The Point" was filmed at the Encino Little League Field in Encino.

In the DVD commentary, director Amy Heckerling tells of how Phoebe Cates was initially reluctant to carry out her character's poolside topless scene at the house in West Hills because she thought the neighbors might be spying on the set from the surrounding rooftops.

Reception

Box office

Universal Pictures gave it a limited theatrical release on August 13, 1982, opening in 498 theaters. It earned $2.5 million in its opening weekend. The release was later widened to 713 theaters, earning $3.25 million and ranking 29th among US releases in 1982. The movie has since earned more than $27 million,[8] six times its $4.5 million budget, gaining popularity through television and home video releases.

Over the years the film has obtained an iconic status. In an interview, Sean Penn stated "None of us had any idea it would take on a life of its own."

Critical response

The film has an 80% "Certified Fresh" rating on Rotten Tomatoes based on 47 reviews, with the site's consensus stating "While Fast Times at Ridgemont High features Sean Penn's legendary performance, the film endures because it accurately captured the small details of school, work, and teenage life."[9]

It was panned by critics at the time. Roger Ebert called it a "scuz-pit of a movie", though he praised the performances by Leigh, Penn, Cates and Reinhold.[10] Janet Maslin wrote that it was "a jumbled but appealing teen-age comedy with something of a fresh perspective on the subject."[11]

Accolades

Crowe's screenplay was nominated for a WGA Award for best comedy adapted from another medium. The film ranks #87 on the AFI's 100 Years... 100 Laughs list, is #15 on Bravo's "100 Funniest Movies"[12] and is #2 on Entertainment Weekly's list of the "50 Best High School Movies".[13]

American Film Institute recognition

Television spinoff

The movie inspired a short-lived 1986 television series for CBS called Fast Times. Ray Walston and Vincent Schiavelli reprised their roles, respectively as Hand and Vargas, the biology teacher. Other cast members were Courtney Thorne-Smith (Melrose Place) as Stacey, Wally Ward as Mark, Claudia Wells (Back to the Future) as Linda, Patrick Dempsey (Grey's Anatomy) as Mike Damone, Dean Cameron as Jeff Spicoli and James Nardini as Brad. Kit McDonough played teacher Leslie Melon, a character that was exclusive to the series.

Moon Zappa was a "technical consultant" for this television series.[14] She was hired in order to research slang terms and mannerisms of teenagers, as she had just graduated from high school at the time and had a much better grasp of then-current high school behavior than the writers, and Danny Elfman (Oingo Boingo) wrote and performed the television series theme.

See also

References

  1. ^ Fast Times at Ridgemont High (Original Soundtrack), Allmusic
  2. ^ Mike Duquette (March 4, 2011). "Friday Feature: "Fast Times at Ridgemont High"". The Second Disc. WordPress.com. Retrieved August 24, 2012.
  3. ^ Charts and Awards, Allmusic.
  4. ^ Discogs (2012). "Various – Fast Times At Ridgemont High • Music From The Motion Picture". Discogs. Discogs. Retrieved August 24, 2012.
  5. ^ Fast Times at Ridgemont High at IMDb
  6. ^ Russell, Lisa (March 13, 1995). "Geek God: Once the Butt of Fast Times at Ridgemont High, Best-Selling Author Andy Rathbone Becomes a Computer Guru". People. Retrieved April 20, 2011.
  7. ^ Lauren Schutte (February 14, 2012). "Nicolas Cage on Turning Down 'Dumb & Dumber,' Winning Another Oscar and the Movie that Made Him Change His Name". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved August 24, 2012.
  8. ^ Fast Times at Ridgemont High at Box Office Mojo (retrieved on December 6, 2006).
  9. ^ "Fast Times at Ridgemont High". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved December 6, 1982. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
  10. ^ Ebert, Roger (1982). "Fast Times at Ridgemont High". Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved December 6, 2006. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |work= (help)
  11. ^ Maslin, Janet. September 3, 1982. "Ridgemont High", New York Times (retrieved via registered-user account on December 6, 2006).
  12. ^ "Bravo's 100 Funniest Movies List is Laughable", Manroomonline.com, June 2, 2006.
  13. ^ "50 Best High School Movies". Filmsite.org. September 15, 2006. Retrieved April 20, 2011.
  14. ^ IMDb (1990–2012). "Filmography by year for Moon Unit Zappa". IMDb. IMDb.com, Inc. Retrieved August 24, 2012.
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