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Fast Times at Ridgemont High
User Score
8.2 out of 10

Universal acclaim- based on 6 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 5 out of 6
  2. Mixed: 1 out of 6
  3. Negative: 0 out of 6

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  1. J.Lava
    May 5, 2004
    9
    Don t get heavy on me, comedy!!! Talk about a real escape from reality, loved the breakfast refund scene, i don't know anyone who didn't like this film!!!
    • 0 of 0 users said yes
  2. AndrewM
    Aug 30, 2004
    6
    As a young bloke I was in awe of this film. In many ways it gave me my first real dose of profanity, nudity and sex on film, and boy was it exciting!!! I felt like I'd been finally given membership to an exclusive club or something. At the same time it made me feel a little guilty, and it was also all a little scary. I must have watched Fast Times about a dozen times in a couple of months; I just kept going back to it. But this was all about 17 or 18 years ago... I caught Fast Times again just last year on tv and managed to tape it (for reminiscences sake, if nothing else) I watched it a couple of days later...and what a let down when I realised that this film is....really....only average. It's just another coming-of-age film that doesn't really cover any ground that other films haven't covered also. Maybe at the time it was ground-breaking in some ways, thereby warranting it more respect, but at the end of the day it's still just average! The performances are generally good. Leigh for me is the standout - she dominates every scene she's in. Reinhold is in auto-pilot mode with his character (he could do it in his sleep) and Cates shows why she never made the big(ger) time. And then, of course, there's Mr Penn. If you've heard all the wrap, and then seen the film, and then felt that Penn's performance is somewhat run-of-the-mill or cliched, just remember that he nailed it first! He is the original doped-out, pizza-eating, surfer dude. And he's just great to watch, uh-heh-heh. The actors lift the film's overall quality - they do a great job with the material - but, for me, it's just standard teen fare material. To be fair, the script and directing are occasionally incisive in terms of teen behaviour, but mostly this vehicle just casually trudges along, stopping at the prescribed stops along the way, and picking up all the pre-ordered passengers. Worth seeing but, in truth, these days it's all been seen before. Most credit comes for it's influence over the years and the performances of the young actors. Just get American Pie instead - you'll certainly laugh more!… Expand
    • 0 of 0 users said yes
  3. JohnYeager
    Oct 12, 2006
    10
    Very funny movie.
    • 0 of 0 users said yes
  4. YoonMinC.
    Sep 27, 2003
    5
    Equally promising and corrosive, honest and fraudulent, this movie is the product of Cameron Crowe's earnest crowing crossbred with Amy Heckerling's superficial, lipstick glossed cynicism. Just when it seems to get honest about kids it veers into exploitative mode; just when it gets smart about relatiohships it degenerates into bawdy slapstick routine. Well, thank god for the videotape and the fast forward button. Ultimately, this movie shouldn't be taken seriously and should be enjoyed for Sean Penn's truly inspired--not to mention, incomparable and immeasurably influential--role as the archetypal California teenager; it's silly but it's also totally awesome. … Expand
    • 0 of 0 users said yes
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Critic Reviews

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Metascore
67 out of 100

Generally favorable reviews - based on 13 Critics

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 6 out of 13
  2. Mixed: 6 out of 13
  3. Negative: 1 out of 13
  1. The Globe and Mail (Toronto)
    Reviewed by: Rick Groen
    75
    If the publicity release can be believed, he worked an entire year "undercover as a student to research teenage life". On the basis of what surfaces here - one stock phrase (the kids say "Go for it]" a lot) and a multitude of stock characters - Crowe might better have spent the time curled up with re-runs of Ozzie and Harriet. Give this intrepid researcher 12 months at General Motors and he might just discover the wheel.
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  2. New Times (L.A.)
    Reviewed by: Luke Y. Thompson
    100
    Perfectly capturing the zeitgeist of American high school life in the '80s, complete with a Rubik's cube reference, the funny and occasionally harsh Fast Times, with all due apologies to John Hughes and Mickey Rooney, may be the greatest teen movie ever made (even though Cates was the only real teen).
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  3. Film Threat
    Reviewed by: Brad Laidman
    80
    Sean Penn's scenes are still so stunning...His Jeff Spicoli is an unabashed kick every second he is on the screen.
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