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Year One
Stars indicate the most critically-acclaimed movies.
Fast Times at Ridgemont High
EMAILPRINTMCA / Universal Pictures
Generally favorable reviews
Based on 13 critic reviews
How did we calculate this?
Based on 5 votes
Read user comments
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Movie Info
Genre(s): Drama
Written by: Cameron Crowe (also novel)
Directed by: Amy Heckerling
Release Date:
Theatrical: August 13, 1982
DVD: December 21, 1999
Running Time: 90 minutes, Color
Origin: USA
Summary
RATING: R
Starring Sean Penn, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Judge Reinhold, Robert Romanus, Brian Backer, Phoebe Cates, Ray Walston, and Forest Whitaker
Amy Heckerling's chronicle of a year in life of a group of teenagers at a Southern Calfornia high school in the 1970s is based on Cameron Crowe's undercover experiences and has clearly set the bar for all teen comedies to shoot for.
What The Critics Said
All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...
New Times (L.A.) Luke Y. Thompson
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).
Read Full Review >Austin Chronicle Marjorie Baumgarten
Amy Heckerling’s portrait of high school/shopping mall life in Southern California is still just about as good as it gets...The panoply of teen types and turmoils is dead-on accurate.
Read Full Review >The Onion (A.V. Club) Keith Phipps
A Trojan horse of a teen comedy that balanced lowbrow gags with subtle humor, genuine insight—Crowe spent a year undercover as a high-school student—and pathos.
Read Full Review >Film Threat Brad Laidman
Sean Penn's scenes are still so stunning...His Jeff Spicoli is an unabashed kick every second he is on the screen.
Read Full Review >The Globe and Mail (Toronto) Rick Groen
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.
Read Full Review >The New Yorker Pauline Kael
I was surprised at how not-bad it is. It may fall into the category of youth-exploitation movies, but it isn't assaultive, and it's certainly likable. [1 Nov 1982, p.146]
TV Guide Staff (Not Credited)
The film's most memorable character is the perpetually stoned surfer played by Sean Penn. His confrontations with Mr. Hand (Walston), a draconian history teacher, provide the film's finest moments.
Read Full Review >Variety Staff (Not Credited)
The nice thing is that Crowe and director Amy Heckerling have provided something pleasant to observe in all of these characters though they really are sadly lacking in anything gripping.
Read Full Review >The New York Times Elvis Mitchell
There's a lot to make [Heckerling's] film likeable, but not much to hold it together. [3 Sept 1982, p.C6]
Wall Street Journal Joy Gould Boyum
At least the film has a sense of humor and a degree of energy... [but the] film never carries any of its characters or situations much beyond weary cliche. [10 Sept 1982, p.29(E)]
Washington Post Rita Kempley
Heckerling lacks the intuition to let things flow. The actors seem rushed and the scenes incomplete. For instance, Stacy and her brother Brad (Reinhold) almost build a poignant scene outside the abortion clinic. Just when they're about to show us their stuff, poof, it's off for a car crash or a football game. [13 Aug 1982]
Washington Post Richard Harrington
It's an uninspired blend, integrating the boys from "Porky's" and the girls from "Foxes" into a vehicle resembling the worst of "American Graffiti" and the best of "Rock and Roll High School." [13 Aug 1982]
What Our Users Said
The average user rating for this movie is 7.8 (out of 10) based on 5 User Votes
Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.
John Yeager gave it a10:
Very funny movie.
Andrew M gave it a 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!
J. Lava gave it a 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!!!
Yoon Min C. gave it a 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.
