Watching Fast Times at Ridgemont High for the FIRST TIME!! // Reaction & Commentary // Damone su*ks!

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Watching Fast Times at Ridgemont High for the FIRST TIME rounded out these teen movies for me in the best way!! I loved loved this one.
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Important Time Stamps!
00:00 - Intros
02:01 - Offer from Skillshare!
03:59 - Start Watching
24:55 - Thoughts and trivia
OTHER WATCHES:
DAZED AND CONFUSED:
• Watching Dazed and Con...
The Princess Bride:
• Watching the Princess ...
BIG (1988)
• Watching Big (1988) fo...
Back to the Future (1985)
• Watching BACK TO THE F...

[@ShanelleRiccio]

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[@Elizabeth-yp8re]

16 Candles, Breakfast Club..... there are so many

[@pete_lind]

Only few high school movies left ... Rebel Without Cause 1955 , movie story is of a 24 h period , James Dean, Natalie Wood, Sal Mineo, Jim Backus The Last Picture Show 1971 , set to 1951 to a dying Texas city , Timothy Bottoms, Jeff Bridges, Cloris Leachman, Cybill Shepherd Classic Blake Edwards comedies , S.O.B 1981 ... it has musical number and tells what happens to loved director , when movie flops .

[@peterwalsh2470]

I am old enough to have experienced the copy paper sniffing ritual, it was a real thing! haha. It smelt like some kind of sweet smelling alcohol. One of our teachers was hilarious, old Mr Bird, he would also partake in the sniffing at the same time, and roll his eyes upward and pretend he was getting high.

[@christhompson6010]

Lol...sadly this was my generation. I had graduated when this came out. This was before AIDS scared the hell out of everyone. Until that it was all about party and sex . Fast Times where good times then.

[@versetripn6631]

The Pen Carry For #'s started with Robert Downey in the Pick-Up Artist.

[@craigvancil4410]

Kids today will never know what ditto ink smelled like, that's so crazy.

[@MAGAveritas]

The ink contained methanol and isopropanol.

[@davepasnthru]

I think we called it a mimeograph machine. The smell was chemical and slightly intoxicating. It went straight to your brain and you got a few second high..

[@MAGAveritas]

@@davepasnthru ditto & mimeograph are similar, but two different things.

[@dawn_bestofj2]

I loved the smell of dittos and that wet feeling they had when you got them fresh from the machine.

[@snowfort77]

Lol the video of kids today trying to dial a rotary phone

[@danhelphrey6260]

"Did you carry around an address book?" - Nope, we wrote phone numbers on our hands.

[@dr.burtgummerfan439]

I still have the gum wrapper in my wallet that my wife of 26 years wrote her number on when we met.😁

[@dawggirl]

@@dr.burtgummerfan439 Aw, that is so sweet. :)

[@glenmcdonald375]

Table napkins. And I carried a little piece of paper in my id and cards folder (wallets were too bulky so I kept my money in my left pocket) that had all pertinent phone numbers written on it

[@claytoncourtney1309]

That was my plan, if I ever got one. lol

[@ThatGuy-cb3yv]

Memorized the rest.

[@jimjames8660]

My HS years were 1980-84 and even though we were almost 3000 miles away in NJ, this movie came real close to what we experienced ....Van Halen rules! 😝

[@deaconbluezzz]

Class of '84 rules LOL

[@nonplayerzealot4]

Jim, you're the same age as my older sis. She was a MASSIVE Roth fan if not VH in total. So am I to this day. She's the one who got me into them as a kid. Her bedroom was wall-to-wall w/ VH pix from Creem mags, etc. We lived in San Bernardino, CA at the time, which was where the US Fest was. She was old enough to go w/ my other older sis to the 83 one. They had to lock arms not to get separated. Unfort, as you probably know, Dave was blitzed by the time the VH set came on at the end. But they got to see Ozzy, Priest, Scorps, Crue, etc. I missed out being 10 yrs younger than you.

[@metadeth578]

i was in HS 84-88 in jersey

[@jimjames8660]

@@metadeth578 I was up at Morris Knolls in Denville

[@shawn6669]

82-86 for me. Fast times is some spot on.

[@glenmcdonald375]

"Can't buy me love" is an underrated high school movie

[@scottski51]

... Not to mention a GREAT early Beatles song !!!

[@86forever]

love that one!!!...... ALSO "Some Kind Of Wonderful" w/ Eric Stoltz, Mary Stuart Masterson & Leah Thompson .... also a great 60s song :)

[@glenmcdonald375]

@@86forever that is another great high-school 'romcomdram'

[@JoeD0403]

The mimeograph ink had a sweet smell to it but also was unique to just those purple copies. Smelling your quiz or worksheet before putting it down was a common ritual 😵‍💫

[@zeer0squared]

Yeah, like a sweet/alcohol type smell.

[@SteinMeister72]

I always thought it smelled like white out

[@jeffreyseidman8100]

@@SteinMeister72 I thought it smelled like bubble gum

[@piratetv1]

My science teacher lit a desk on fire with duplicating fluid every year and put his hand in the fire to show that it didn't hurt the desk or his hand because it's burning temperature was too low to burn him

[@mj95b]

That smell was absolutely irresistible! I wonder how many brain cells we killed off due to all of ink sniffing...

[@leehanson1416]

Random blonde in convertible was Nancy Wilson, one of the Heart sisters. She was either married to Cameron Crowe, or his GF. She's also my celeb crush.

[@kennethtilton6137]

Had a close up look at her at an 84 concert....WOW!

[@ronstephens8214]

They were married. She also arranged the music for his movie "Almost Famous"

[@Skeezer66]

I looked it up, and they got married in 1986, so they were probably dating.

[@CygnusKC]

While "Fast Times" was THE fun movie from this era, "The Breakfast Club" was the one that highlighted the pressures inherent in those teenage years. It also showed that the pressure existed no matter what clique (or "loner", which was it's own type of clique...) you found yourself in. The pressures were different ("win at all costs", "be more popular", "be noticed", "be top in my class") but very real. It's really a message to parents and teachers.

[@FernandoRiley]

Jennifer Jason Leigh has the most drama ever.Basically date raped by a much older guy,Then teen pregnancy which leads to her abortion.

[@txsurfnturf]

You are so correct. I've always said that the movie should be included in the school curriculum to be analyzed and discussed.

[@hubriswonk]

My youth was way more like Fast Times..........

[@keithdean9149]

It kind of depends on which cut of Fast Times you are watching. It has been recut to make it seem like much more of a comedy. Look up the deleted scenes, most of which were in the original release and added a lot more drama.

[@misterkite]

Smelling a fresh mimeograph.. jesus I'd forgotten. I don't know exactly how it works but when a teacher would go make copies of a test or whatever, the paper would come out damp and reeking of chemicals (and the ink was always purple).

[@dr.burtgummerfan439]

And we would always compare to see who had the freshest, strongest smelling copy.🤣

[@catsmom129]

My step mom was a teacher. One time I went to school with her, and got to hand-crank the wheel.

[@eurofritz4617]

no nostalgia, no retro, that is straight what is was like, filmed in 1982.

[@disprogreavette8545]

I didn't start high school til a few years after this was filmed but there were definitely similarities to my experience.

[@eurofritz4617]

@@disprogreavette8545 yea a lot of us obviously did not have the California vibe to our 80's before the movie, but we all started wearing Vans after lol

[@disprogreavette8545]

@@eurofritz4617 I still love the checkered vans. It's about my only fashion choice my kids don't laugh at. Cheers

[@trhansen3244]

I'm not sure how America survived the 80s. It was so barbaric.

[@bayareathrasher666]

@@trhansen3244 Nah...it was golden

[@inarar5334]

A joke that can be easily missed: Damone tells Rat to put on Led Zeppelin IV. It cuts to Rat and Kashmir is playing. Wrong album.

[@dannyjoe3343]

Yeah. I bought Led Zep 4 after seein this hopin' to get that song. Still wasnt dissapointed... but still.

[@broken927]

They didn't get permission to use the Zep song until after the filming was complete. Zep IV was off the table but Kashmir was available so they went with it.

[@chrisleebowers]

And it's hysterical because Kashmir is awesome but is totally not make-out music. The smash cut to the two of them sitting in the car listening to it is so awkward...

[@LennoxTim]

One always wonders if Mark was clueless or just couldn’t buy a copy of IV in time.

[@inarar5334]

@@LennoxTim even though I know the behind the scenes reason, I've always gone with clueless based on his characterization to that point.

[@bradforddillman7671]

Here’s some tricky trivia: in one scene, Mark Ratner is wearing a Popeye movie T-shirt starring Robin Williams from 1980. Mr. Hand played Popeye’s dad two years earlier

[@KevyNova]

That’s right! I love him as Pappy!

[@michaelbuhl4250]

*Rock and Roll High School* is really silly, but it fits the theme and it's fun.

[@andrewcharles459]

And Heathers!

[@charliemac64]

THE RAMONES!!!

[@habitsrabbit]

@@andrewcharles459 heathers is an absolute banger of a classic.. too bad the show sucked.

[@DustinHawke]

It's also free on KZbin.

[@stephenmcdonald8474]

Cameron Crowe went undercover as a high school student to write the book. The book is great.

[@professordogwood8985]

So I guess this was where 21 Jump Street came from.

[@porflepopnecker4376]

@@professordogwood8985 That came from "The Mod Squad."

[@professordogwood8985]

@@porflepopnecker4376 Dang, I hate no idea about that. Mister, you just taught me something today.

[@TheCkent100]

The book also has some differences from the movie. For example, in the book, Damone did not scalp tickets. That was another character that was apparently cut out of the screenplay and incorporated into the Damone character. Also, the book is supposed to be a true story - although I'm sure Crowe did take a few liberties.

[@therenegade79]

You hate Mr Hand? But he was my favourite Martian. And yes that was Nicholas Cage.

[@martyslazenger935]

The older I get, the more I understand Mr. Hand.

[@thrakkorzog75002]

That was Nicholas Copola back before he changed his name so people didn't think he got his jobs just because his uncle was was a successful film maker. And he's a comic book geek who changed his name to Nick Cage. Like from the Avengers.

[@CSM100MK2]

also Forest Whitaker!

[@BoomerandZoomerReacts]

Other stoner Eric Stoltz

[@okeefe757]

Mr. Hand is a great hardass teacher because he has a sense of a humor.

[@daynemiller]

I'm surprised that neither Better Off Dead nor Say Anything made it into the watch list.

[@chriswood232]

The 80's aren't complete without some Cusack.

[@jonanderson559]

We did carry around pens at all times! I remember, because I ruined more than one pair of jeans because ink leaked through the pocket. Good old 80s technology...

[@norwegianblue2017]

Yes, that was Nicholas Cage. Also didn't see you mention Eric Stoltz or Anthony Edwards (Spicoli's stoner surfer buddies). And how did you miss Forrest Whittaker???

[@versetripn6631]

Few recognize Nancy Wilson (Heart) who giggles at Capt Brad Sparrow. 🤣🤣

[@versetripn6631]

I just thought of something. Damone had his mom's Geeen Gremlin, the Little Prick. Real life named car "Sheldon" was Brad's 'Cruising Vessel', and Jefferson's Z28 Camaro was... Physically Grafittied by Spicoli/Lincoln High. 🤣

[@versetripn6631]

Brad was: Dissed by a Ken Doll at All-American Burger. Dissed by a Rock Goddess while delivering Fish and Chips. Robbed at the register late at the Mart. He was legit FED-THE F**K UP!! 😎 That's why he's all up in bathrooms talkin to "Big Hairy Pu...", and thinkin of Big Hair above...boobies!

[@hephner78]

@@versetripn6631 wow this was one of my fave movies growing up and i NEVER knew nancy wilson was in this!! props for the info!!

[@oneilprovost2287]

Nicholas Cage, Forrest Whittaker, Sean Penn... all Oscar winners for Best Actor. Don Phillips, the casting director responsible for launching these amazing careers, also cast Dazed and Confused, the first major movie for Matthew McConaughey, Ben Affleck and Renee Zelwegger each of whom also won Oscars for Best Actor/Actress not to mention Milla Jovovich, Anthony Rapp, Joey Lauren Adams, Adam Goldberg Cole Hauser and Parker Posey.

[@steverakas3573]

Another piece of trivia you didn't mention,,. Spicoli's 2 buddies were Anthony Edwards (Goose in Top Gun, Dr. Mark Green on ER) and Eric Stoltz(Some Kind of Wonderful, Mask, etc.)

[@needles1987]

Eric Stoltz is another method actor, just like Sean Penn.

[@yw1971]

& of course Revenge of the Nerds... (& the sequel).

[@davidpeters44]

Stoltz was later the heroin dealer in Pulp Fiction

[@eurofritz4617]

@@davidpeters44 and was the original Marty McFly in BTTF

[@anthonybaker4155]

Not sure if any one has said it but "Heathers" is a good high school movie, on a different level though.

[@jkt4748]

Hell yeah!

[@DaveHof]

"Heathers" is brilliant - but so dark.

[@anthonybaker4155]

Yes it is. I feel a lot of people identify with high school that way and not the cool people way.

[@ThefetchNZ]

Shan Elle is the only person I want to see react to Heathers, it is my favourite movie of all time❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️

[@maceomaceo11]

"I love my dead gay son."

[@jflaugher]

Sean Penn's character became the stereotype for stoner, surfers from the Valley. Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure and Waynes World were variants on the character that Sean Penn created.

[@ladida1031]

Yeah.

[@jflaugher]

@@RockAndFunk thanks for the info. Sean Penn is an actor and Jeff Spicoli is an amazing character - best character in the whole movie.

[@kevinhegwood615]

I've said it on other vids looking for '80s movies, someone HAS to do "better off dead"

[@johnboydTx]

Everybody wants some 😂👍💞✌

[@HobGungan]

@@johnboydTx I want some too.

[@pthor6265]

Two dollars..!

[@eurofritz4617]

"Now that's a real shame when folks be throwing away a perfectly good white boy like that."

[@disconnexionsdotcom]

That's in my top 5 movies. Love it so much.

[@adnap]

In all seriousness, Jackson Browne’s “Somebody’s Baby” IS Stacy’s theme song. Lyrically, it walks the fine line of innocence had and innocence lost.

[@map3384]

That scene creeped me out. Stacy was 15 losing her virginity to a guy who was 27 or 28.

[@Margit-rn3te]

@@map3384 this was common back then.

[@msmrsro]

I can’t hear Jackson Browne “Somebody’s Babe” without thinking of this movie.

[@robertmckinnon7003]

$20 in 1982 adjusts for inflation to roughly $55.79. Now consider he bought this tickets at $4. That's a heck of a profit.

[@MrSheckstr]

Roughly 5 times markup…. Sounds like a lot but when you consider back in the day that acquiring those tickets took. Not entirely sure WHEN the ability to purchase concert tickets at satellite locations versus only being able to get the tickets at the place of performance started, but it’s pretty much implied that he had to go and do the traditional thing of waiting in line overnight at the arena to get the tickets, maybe having to employ smurfs to hold his place inline and or purchase some of the tickets (some venues limited the number of tickets one person could purchase to avoid scalpers) so a Mark Up for a sold out concert of 5 times original purchase is fairly reasonable, especially when your dealing with both high school kids who might not have been allowed to wait in line overnight, and adults with real jobs who wouldn’t have time to do so

[@James_Loveless]

Concert tickets in 1982 were anywhere from $9.50 to $15 for all the big name Rock Bands back then. Even in 1985 &1986 I saw Jimmy Page with The Firm (I still have those ticket stubs) the Concert Tickets were $15.50

[@SuperMarioBrosIII]

@@James_Loveless Damn I miss the 80's!

[@mcassidy1976]

Fast times holds a special place in me And my wife’s heart, not only because We both grew up in the 80’s but because when my son was born in 2005, it was playing on TBS in the hospital room, we watched it while she was in the early stages.

[@jscan4442]

The purple ditto papers smelled like ink. The wetter the ink, the better.

[@willcool713]

Nothing else smells quite like purple mimeograph paper.

[@goldenageofdinosaurs7192]

God, I just had a complete flashback to the cool, damp paper & the smell of the ink!

[@sidewaysoul]

It's an odor that doesn't really exist in the world anymore, and that's a little depressing!

[@sipesthebest128]

As a 1983 HS graduate in Phoenix AZ, I can attest FTARH is a spot-on depiction of life during high school in the early '80's. The soundtrack is classic, and the film.is still one of my favorites.

[@Phi1618033]

I was 10 when this film came out. I connived my way into seeing it -- yeah, at 10. I also grew up in Sherman Oaks, California, where the Sherman Oaks Galleria used to be, which is where the interior mall shots were filmed (the exterior was actually the old Santa Monica mall). There was actually a Perry's Pizza in the Sherman Oaks Galleria, so I have literally eaten at the pizzeria that is in this movie. The record store in the mall was called Licorice Pizza (for real) and that's where I bought both Prince's _Purple Rain_ and the _Ghostbusters_ soundtrack on cassette tape.

[@hubriswonk]

Awesome!

[@chrisleebowers]

Cameron Crowe was a journalist for Rolling Stone magazine who started working for them when he was 15. ("Almost Famous" is the fictionalized auto-biographical story of how it all happened) "Fast Times" was an article he wrote after going into a Southern California high school posing as a student, later published as a book. Hollywood called and asked for the rights and he negotiated writing the script himself and that began his film making career. The soundtracks to his movies are known for being amazing due to his contacts in the music industry. For the longest time, he was one of the only film makers who could even license a Zeppelin song. (An inside joke in "Wayne's World" alluded to this when the music store employee pointed to the "No Stairway to Heaven" sign)

[@kevinramsey417]

I thought the No Stairway sign came from when Stairway to Heaven was big on the charts and music stores got so sick of customers always playing it that they banned it.

[@chrisleebowers]

@@kevinramsey417 HA - I stand corrected www.gq.com/story/no-stairway-denied-waynes-world

[@keithbrown8490]

Check out "Animal House" large unknown cast at the time that many went on to very long careers in front and behind the camera.

[@michaelbuhl4250]

*Heathers* would be a good one for this month's theme.

[@christinehorror8178]

Yes Heather's is my fav high school movie!

[@OneEyedJack1970]

"I LOVE MY DEAD GAY SON!"

[@millerk20]

If you like 80s Nick Cage you should check out Valley Girl. It's from 83 and has an awesome soundtrack.

[@PaulA-bv1rt]

Deb Foreman was gorgeous. One great soundtrack. I have the CD of it.

[@luvlgs1]

@@PaulA-bv1rt super cute. wasn't she also in Real Genius?

[@mmille10]

Another 80s high school movie with Nick Cage is "Peggy Sue Got Married," with Kathleen Turner playing Peggy Sue. It starts with her high school reunion, and definitely has that feel about it. It has her magically travel back in time to the early '60s when she was in high school, and she gets to experience her adolescence with all her adult memories. The running theme through it all is based on the fact that she's divorcing her high school sweetheart, but she meets him again as a teenager, and has the chance to re-evaluate that relationship.

[@brads2362]

After high school, go to college - National Lampoon's Animal House!

[@Thundarr100]

Don't forget "Revenge Of The Nerds"!

[@AB2B]

Real Genius.

[@stevenwright6573]

Classic movie. I will say, my daughter is 10, if 5 years from now a 26 year old is messing with her....you would never find his body.

[@barbherrera5613]

I graduated in 1979 and yes, our Biology class did go to the morgue. No masks, no gloves, no permission slips back then. This movie was spot on for my high school years.

[@kennethtilton6137]

The amount of actors in this that became more prominent later on....Sean Penn, Forrest Whitaker, Phoebe Cates, Jennifer Jason-Leigh, Judge Reimhold, Anthony Edwards, and Nicholas Cage, under his real name Nicholas Coppola. He started using the Cage name on his next movie Valley Girl. And a cameo by Nancy Wilson of Heart, married to Cameron Crowe at the time.

[@paulymar5996]

Don't forget Eric Stoltz as one of Spicoli's buds.

[@st0n3p0ny]

Nancy Wilson? You're lying...

[@IdealUser]

Phoebe Cates really didn't have a huge career. She's just an icon because of this movie.

[@Slade347]

The seven in the OP and Stoltz are (I'm assuming) eight of the nine actors in the trivia item about being successful adult actors. I'm wondering who the 9th was? Amanda Wyss?

[@johncampbell756]

@@st0n3p0ny Nancy was the woman in the Corvette that laughs at Brad. But she wasn't married to Cameron Crowe yet.

[@JoseChavez-rf4ul]

Consider it straight up anthropology: Fast Times is a perfect time capsule piece. Cameron Crowe and Amy Heckerling get the tone and the flavors just right. Although ‘Fast Times’ was filmed during its actual time period, ‘Dazed and Confused’ was filmed 16 years later than the time period conveyed in that film, therefore kudos to Richard Linklater for capturing as close to perfection in that case.

[@jameslipski]

Ray Watson who played Mr Hand was in the 1960s My Favorite Martian. After that show ended he was type cast and had trouble getting better roles. When this film came along he was so happy to be known for this role. It saved his acting career.

[@erictaylor5462]

"I can fix it." Best line ever. And just *HOW* he fixes it!

[@metadeth578]

what is he going to do shit or kill us? first he going shit then kill us!

[@erictaylor5462]

@@metadeth578 Yea, but he fixed it. That's the point.

[@frankrodriguez2999]

Porkys (1981) 50s high school

[@SPAMDAGGER22]

I was in high school 1980-1984. It's fairly accurate, although drinking to excess was a much bigger thing.

[@maceomaceo11]

A serious lack of alcohol and cocaine to be completely accurate. This movie is more about the train wreck of trying to establish your sex life though. Combine this with Dazed and Confused and you basically have high school from the early 70's to the early 90's. No wonder they packaged them together at the video stores.

[@deaconbluezzz]

@@maceomaceo11 Cocaine? You must have hung out with richer kids than I did. Class of '84 here, and we mainly stuck with weed, LOTS of booze, and the occasional acid/speed/mesc. . Nobody dreamed of touching heroin back then either.

[@3DJapan]

The teacher you hate is famous for the old B&W sitcom My Favorite Martian.

[@reesebn38]

I was 17 when this came out and yes it was just like this. Also this came out in the summer of 82, the greatest summer of movies of all time!! Look at what came out from May to Aug in 82.

[@Significant7rapsongs]

What came out?

[@reesebn38]

@@Significant7rapsongs "The Road Warrior", "Conan The Barbarian", Rocky III", "Poltergeist", "Star Trek II:The Wrath Of Khan", "E.T.", "Blade Runner", "The Thing", "Tron", "An Officer and a Gentleman", "Night Shift". Look up every summer in the 80s full of classic movies. You sure don't see that now.

[@paulgarcia9682]

The Go-Gos are one of my favorite 80s bands

[@darrenmacdonald1499]

I was going to suggest "Heather's", but I see that a few people have mentioned it already. So I'll suggest "Pump Up The Volume" with Christian Slater and "Bad Boys" with Sean Penn. One of his first, and best, roles.

[@catsmom129]

Pump up the Volume! It’s so underrated

[@Madbandit77]

@@catsmom129 Amen. You should also watch "Empire Records", which is directed by Allan Moyle, who directed "Volume".

[@txsurfnturf]

Oh, Bad Boys is such a good movie! That might have also been Ally Sheedy's first major motion picture before War Games.

[@irktog5175]

Three actors from this would later win an Oscar for Best Actor.

[@LeviAckerman-cb5ji]

And one would later on play a deranged murderous she devil in The hateful eight.

[@Lubetube111]

The end of the "Stacy's Mom" video was a direct throwback to this movie.

[@ShanelleRiccio]

Yessss and bring back the name Stacy please!!

[@iKvetch558]

In 1982, I was just entering high school in suburban Boston. This movie felt almost nothing like my experiences back then when I first saw it...California was like an alien planet.

[@samuelplacensia753]

The rest of the country were still stuck in the 70s when the 80s hit Los Angeles. And growing up in Southern California was absolutely one of the best experiences if you were born and raised here.

[@iKvetch558]

@@samuelplacensia753 Stop...you are making me jealous...even more than I already am. New England childhood vs California childhood...2 different planets

[@samuelplacensia753]

@@iKvetch558 I’m sure it was. No offense, and I’m not trying to make anybody from the East Coast jealous or angry but, I meet so many transplants from New England and New York out here in Los Angeles that when they first come out here they all act like it’s their first time at Disneyland. I don’t know if it’s because people from the East Coast have watched way too many movies and television shows about Southern California that they seem to all have these pre-conceived notions about my hometown. Also, aside from all the theme parks there’s just so much to do out here. You have the beaches the mountains, lakes, rivers, and parks and canyons and Joshua Tree and Death Valley and best of all...really really beautiful women. Especially if you grew up in East LA where women are just voluptuous and gorgeous and exude sexuality.

[@samuelplacensia753]

@@iKvetch558 A lot of new people to Southern California don’t know this but, Southern California really does have the best cuisine in the world. I mean, whatever international food you’re into you can find it right here in Los Angeles. I met a native New Yorker out here once while I was driving for Lyft and she was telling me that she absolutely fell in love with Jack-in-the-Box. I thought it was so funny because Jack in the box is considered kind of ghetto to us native Californians. But she absolutely loved Jack-in-the-Box. Another place that East Coast people really love is Carl’s junior. There’s a lot of great burger joints out here maybe too many burger joints but if you want a great burger there’s no other place in the world other than Southern California.

[@iKvetch558]

@@samuelplacensia753 Now you are just being a bully LOL

[@kermitlacock5930]

Forest Whitaker appears in this movie too. Can you believe 3 future Oscar winners are in this movie.

[@thegorn68]

4 Oscar nominees since I believe Jennifer Jason Leigh was nominated at least once.

[@kermitlacock5930]

I said Oscar Winners. Whitiler, Penn, and Cage have all won.@@thegorn68

[@jeffpope3221]

Phoebe Cates has been married to Kevin Kline ("A Fish Called Wanda") for decades. Cameron Crowe actually wrote the original book, based on a year he spent undercover as a student at a Southern California high school.

[@sydhamelin1265]

A bit off the radar - Better Off Dead, One of John Cusack's first roles, and a really absurd sense of humor.

[@habitsrabbit]

"first we have frawnch fries, and frawnch dressing, and frawnch bread. And to drink..Peru!" Better off dead is definitely in my top 10 80s movies.

[@sydhamelin1265]

@@habitsrabbit "It has raisins in it. You like raisins..."

[@KevyNova]

“What are you doing, Lane?” “Nothing.” “Yes, you are.”

[@stephenmcdonald8474]

Our high school had a smoking section. Administration got rid of it my Senior year.

[@disprogreavette8545]

We had The Pit at my high school outside between the gymnasium and the cafeteria and it was always packed (even with non smokers).

[@kennethtilton6137]

Ours did too. The jazz band provided music one day.

[@paulp9274]

Same here. We even had cigarette vending machines on campus in 1986.

[@robertmckinnon7003]

Valley Girl would be a good next movie.

[@davidmc1489]

The 80s one...not the remake

[@michaelherbert1395]

With a young Nicolas Cage.

[@trhansen3244]

Another movie without any diversity.

[@trhansen3244]

@@BlackavarWD We now have the technology to digitally change characters skin color and, in the name of equity, we should do it.

[@fmatson]

"Linda, Go Key His Car!" - It scares me how quickly you nailed that one.

[@mattn1093]

One vote for Almost Famous being next. That would be right up your alley.

[@sidrat2009]

Not really a high school movie, sure the kid is in high school, and the rest of the cast probably should be too, but still.

[@adnap]

Me: So, Jennifer Jason Leigh is in Fast Times At Ridgemont High. Guy: “Oh yeah, I haven’t seen that… What does she do in in it?” Me: Umm.. Well..

[@Theomite]

"Everyone. She does everyone."

[@bernardsalvatore1929]

Just started watching this reaction about 7 Minutes in and you were startled or thought it was kind of funny that the kids all smelled the paper!! And yes it was the ink that they were smelling but it was not the days before they had copy machines or fax machines when we wanted to make copies we used what was called a mimeograph machine!! And the ink that was used had a very distinctive sweet, cool kind of smell that you just had to sniff it when you got your paper!!

[@Slade347]

Phoebe Cates and Jennifer Jason Leigh became life long best friends after this movie. Cates even came out of retirement to appear in Leigh's co-directorial debut, The Anniversary Party.

[@adrianhunter109]

The 80's, you could order a pizza and the delivery guy could walk right into the school and deliver to the classroom.

[@JakeToll37]

"All I need are some tasty waves, cool buzz, & I'm fine." -Jeff Spicoli

[@igotheretoo1450]

It's cool buds

[@tjones8719]

@@igotheretoo1450 ...really...sht...forty years and i thot it was frikin buzz...

[@RideAcrossTheRiver]

Blows reward money hiring Van Halen to play his birthday party

[@deathproofpony]

Yes, that was Nicholas Cage (using his real name, Coppola) as one of the stoner buds. One of the best soundtracks ever.

[@dravenblackthorn4765]

He's one of the workers at the burger place, not one of the stoner buds. In the credits he's listed as Brad's bud. The stoner buds were played Eric Stoltz and Anthony Edwards.

[@psafkow]

"Hey Rat, show em how you can stand up under water" always amused me.

[@spqrtejano8026]

Having been a teenager during the 80s, this movie is somewhat accurate.

[@mike-xn1qj]

at 7:13 mimeograph copies had a weird smell, that was before xerox machines were widespread.

[@cavalryscout9519]

And the whole paper was damp (not just the ink). It's weird how when you add a distinct touch and smell, otherwise innocuous memories become stronger.

[@topomusicale5580]

yeah mimeographs used an original which was written on, then put on a drum and rotated as this mimeograph fluid was used to make the "ink" transfer from the original to the copies. The fluid evaporated but gave the copies that sweet, chemically smell.

[@stephenmcdonald8474]

Valley Girl. Best soundtrack ever. Nick Cage. Second film after FastTimes. I think in this film he is credited at Nicholas Coppola.

[@barbaramcgee8933]

I second that recommendation! I watched Valley Girl a million times during my teens.

[@IggyStardust1967]

Have to disagree with you on that "Best Soundtrack" part.... that honour goes to Transformers: The Movie. There isn't a bad track on it, and I can listen to that whole album beginning to end.

[@SteinMeister72]

Valley Girl is a mandatory watch for 80’s teen movies. Deborah Foreman is amazing.

[@reesebn38]

@@SteinMeister72 I was so in love with her.

[@SteinMeister72]

@@reesebn38 I have a thing for Valley Girl accents to this day because of her. 😍😍

[@donnyrodenbergerjr4757]

When Brad was delivering food, the girl who pulled up beside him was Nancy Wilson from the band HEART. She was the guitarist, while her sister Ann was the singer. Oh, by the way, football player Jefferson was Forest Whitaker.

[@rodneywoodcock8235]

I was in high school in the 1980's. At lot of the attitudes and situations in the film are pretty accurate for the era. Parents were more hands off in that era and often in the background of life in general. We didn't have cell phones or the internet, so Malls were a huge deal, usually packed and the place you went to socialize and find out about new stuff. My school used a ditto machine and yes, we used to sniff the papers like that, some people claimed to get a "high" from it, but it was just this strange warm smell that's unlike anything else.

[@BeastrealDT]

Got a lot of school DVD's in my collection. This is my second favorite high school film, right after, "The Breakfast Club." "Animal House", is my favorite college film. ✌❤🌹

[@kellymarklong]

Gotta do Say Anything… and Singles, both by Cameron Crowe.

[@adonispina6167]

and [5:00 High.]

[@darrens2558]

Great movies....Almost Famous is his masterpiece. He won the Oscar for best screenplay.

[@tylerhackner9731]

Yessss love those movies too along with Almost famous

[@tempsitch5632]

Yes and Yes.

[@willcool713]

Say Anything, is an absolute must.

[@wolfmanjack3451]

"Better off Dead" would this coming of age,early 80's sense of humor chaotic film hold up?..

[@mikemath9508]

Best "wheat happened?" Cards are in Animal House. Its a school movie, but college frats, not high school

[@PApro]

Best single line in the movie comes after Specoli asks the question "Is he gonna shit or is he gonna kill us?" and the kid with no hesitation says "First he's gonna shit, Than he's gonna kill us" Also like to point out the piece of popcorn during the football celebration that flies out of the guys box into the mouth of the guy next to him on accident.

[@eurofritz4617]

lol, I agree- "Relax, all right? My old man is a television repairman, he's got this ultimate set of tools. I can fix it"

[@Dolfan5413]

Next should be Valley Girl…..total 80’s…..early Nick Cage…..

[@dr.burtgummerfan439]

Save the radio!

[@OneFatCat1116]

I am a 1982 grad and I’ve probably seen this movie 30 times it is so spot on and the 80’s were the best decade without a doubt. I couldn’t believe how good Jennifer Jason Leigh was in The Hateful Eight. She was nominated for an Oscar WOW.

[@mrkrinkle72]

You need to see Sean Penn's best performance of his career, Bad Boys, he made it after this. And no not the Will Smith one!

[@kenthunter6850]

That's a great film with Clancy Brown, Easi Morales, Reni Santori, small roles for Alan Ruck and Alley Sheedy. Excellent film.

[@scottski51]

Uh... maybe for the Young S. Penn. In middle age, he was pretty fair in the dark drama, Mystic River as a grieving dad. Also, I Am Sam was pretty decent.

[@porflepopnecker4376]

There's a fight scene in BAD BOYS where one of the cameramen is in the scene with his hand-held camera.

[@barbaramcgee8933]

I graduated in 1988, this was pretty accurate to my experience. We definitely had a smoking area at school, I went to 2 different high schools one sanctioned smoking one didn't, the only time I got detention was for getting caught smoking.

[@cavalryscout9519]

Heh. At my high school the smoking pit was right next to the playground for the day care.

[@fredgarvin716]

I graduated in 1987 and our school had an unofficial smoking section too. It was next to the bike cage. I don't think it was really allowed, but most teachers looked the other way.

[@j.m.watkins5169]

You must follow this up with Valley Girl. Great companion film to Fast Times!

[@TheBigLlamaShow]

Another awesome video. I love the trivia at the end of the breakdown

[@BrettLesPaul]

I was 15 when this was in the theater. We all lied about our age to see it. It’s very accurate to those times.

[@Hayseo]

My school had a outside smoking area. No, not copier paper, mimeograph paper gives sweet chemical alcohol smell

[@JayM409]

My High School didn't have a mimeograph machine, we had an old Gestetner instead.

[@RideAcrossTheRiver]

We had TWO smoking areas, portables, train tracks, and local car dealers did commercials on the soccer field

[@warlord1002]

80s high school you gotta do "can't buy me love" or the classic "breakfast club"!!!!

[@IsraelShekelberg]

The first 20 minutes of "Almost Famous" are also uncannily like life in San Diego in the early 70s. So the film is later, but Crowe was there. I went to high school about three blocks away from Clairemont HS in San Diego (the original 'Ridgemont'). I could name about four surfer-types off the top of my head who were nearly exact clones of Jeff Spicoli.

[@O_Towne_Bear]

"Heathers" is a must. Sorta High School extreme. ALSO: Phoebe Cates was every boys dream in the 80s, she's married to Kevin Kline and an added tidbit she and Jennifer Jason Leigh have been besties since filming this movie together. ALSO-ALSO: Jennifer Jason Leigh's father was character actor Vic Marrow who was sadly killed while filming the Twilight Zone movie (decapitated by a helicopter).

[@Jml416]

I was a freshman in high school when this came out. (Actually summer between freshman and sophmore years) and this was sooo accurate at the time. Although, being from Texas, Dazed and Confused was even more accurate for me personally. A mix between the two was my life in high school! Lol

[@lindsaywilmoth3747]

I graduated in 1982 and seen fast times in the theater the summer after I graduated. It seems really surreal to me to this day, and yes it did represent high school in the 80s.

[@Johnfreedom64]

I graduated in 83 and I was spicoli in my high school....I had a 1974 silver dodge custom van and when I open the door smoke would come out

[@peterrenevitz3059]

This was based on Clairemont High in San Diego (my rival high school). Crowe had gone here - and went back undercover in preparation for writing the screenplay. There was actually a Mr. Foot at CHS at the time. This was my time in High School - 1981. I am able to place a classmates name to everyone in the movie. So glad you are watching.

[@GregDAgostino13]

I was 17 in 1982 and always thought this was so accurate in terms of the posing and cluelessness of young men. I had also completely forgotten about smelling the mimeographed papers, we inhaled those all the time. And yup, was one of the many many guys that fell in love with Phoebe Cates.

[@npflaum]

Yup. I was in high school, in San Diego in 1982. I knew a million Spiccoli's. To this day, Fast Times is the most realistic high school movie I have ever seen. I also love Valley Girl. (the same era, Southern Califonia, and Nicolas Cage!)

[@NOLAgenX]

This was the first big high school movie of and for us Gen X’ers who were in high school in the first half of the 80’s. Thanks so much for reacting! We didn't need permission slips for pretty much anything back then. Parents thought nothing of even letting us go off all over the city on our own day and night. We actually had a guy who was already in school before the movie came out who was a dead ringer for Spicolli!

[@Psilocybin77]

Continue the high school movies with "Edge of Seventeen" with Hayley Steinfeld and Woody Harrelson. You will love it.

[@robertbowersock3471]

I was a freshman in high school in southern California 1982. Movie wasn't too far off from reality.

[@larrybremer4930]

not far off at all, I was junior in '82 and every character in this reminds me of someone I knew back then.

[@robynhurley5119]

My movie!! I was 14 when this came out. Sean penn, phoebe cates, jennifer jason leigh, judge reinhold and Nicholas cage!! Way back when they started

[@mikesmoviereviews]

I was very pleased by your review of "Fast Times at Ridgemont High". Too many younger people see films like this as "problematic", but the truth is that this is a very realistic representation of how High School life would have been in a Southern California school in the early 1980s. You mention a lack of adults, that's true, too. That is why Gen X (people born in the 60s, high school in the 80s) were often known as "latchkey kids", because they would come home and their parents were both at work. They would be alone in the house (similar to Brad and Stacy's characters). It's amazing to look back at history and see how times change. People and time.

[@robynhurley5119]

Yep born in 1967 here

[@robertleeluben]

This is actually a very interesting book.

[@inarar5334]

Back then the stuff they used for dittoing would give you a quick buzz if you sniffed while it was relatively fresh.

[@davidpeters44]

Funny, I don't remember that. I had to resort to marijuana.

[@inarar5334]

@@davidpeters44 I think they were called mimeographs? And you probably would have anyway. When I say quick, I mean how long it lasted. My school had them til about 4th grade, which would have been about 1986 or 87 when they made the switch to xerox style copiers.

[@davidpeters44]

@@inarar5334 Yeah I remember the dittos, but I don’t recall getting buzzed from them. I think that’s a myth.

[@andrewr2997]

I was 16 and working at a drive-inn movie theater when that came out. Back then everyone would come see it on 2 dollar night so they could see the movie and party with everyone outside watching it. Lots of beer drinking at the drive-inn. Fun times when I was not mopping up the floors in the bathrooms. Ugh. lol

[@bob5074]

Just so you know…it was exactly like this in the 80’s…goddamn I miss those simple days

[@shadoweyes5808]

If you so interested in this era then you deffinitely have to watch "The Last American Virgin" from 1982.

[@Cavey2000]

Incredibly underrated movie, largely forgotten compared to Fast Times and many John Hughes flicks. Another good 80s soundtrack. Difficult to find streaming, though.

[@shadoweyes5808]

@@Cavey2000 The dvd wouln'd be that much today or for that matter i Imagine the blue ray. Its something I think she would want a copy of. Especially to see it and compare it to its original Israeli Lemon Popsicle version.

[@lanemyer774]

I agree. Real underrated movie, with the most devastating, yet realistic ending in a teens movie ever.

[@porflepopnecker4376]

I hated that movie. Lawrence Monoson makes me nauseous.

[@eurofritz4617]

@@porflepopnecker4376 lol, same here. He made it so hard to watch. I would love to see them replace him in the movie like they did with Tig Nataro in the Army of the Dead just recently.