Jeff is a surfer dude who is very laid back but despises the structure of school - especially his history teacher Mr Hand with whom he clashes frequently. Brad flips burgers for a living but doesn't know what he wants to be, although people expect great things of him. Stacey is a man mad girl who has a constant desire for love, sex and attention that leads her into the arms of some very dodgy guys. She is secretly loved by a nerd called Mark, and her best friend Linda serves as a saucy role model. There is really not much plot to the film, it is more of a character study of a group of young people and their trials and tribulations in High School. As a character study, it works very well with the viewer given plenty of scope to identify with the protagonists as they think back to their high school years. Fast Times at Ridgemont High was a spring board to success for a plethora of actors and actresses. Sean Penn, as Jeff the stoner dude, really impresses and steals the show with his running battle with Mr Hand, while other big names in the film include Forrest Whittaker, Nicolas Cage, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Anthony Edwards, Eric Stoltz and Phoebe Cates. Often billed as a teen comedy, Fast Times at Ridgemont High is funnier and has more depth than your average teen movie like American Pie. It was one of the first teen comedies to treat teenage pregnancy in a sensitive and thoughtful manner and it touches on other topics that teens are concerned with - for example, the dilemma of what you are going to do with your life and matching up to other people's expectations is explored through the character of Brad. It is also an awesome flashback to the 1980s for those of us with a taste for anything retro - there are some pretty cool arcade games. As a teen movie, it doesn't come much better than this.
My first film watched was Carrie aged 2 on my dad's knee. Educated at The University of St Andrews and Trinity College Dublin. Fan of Arthouse, Exploitation, Horror, Euro Trash, Giallo, New French Extremism. Weaned at the bosom of a Russ Meyer starlet. The bleaker, artier or sleazier the better!
