As "can't believe it happened" as 80s mall culture seems now, back then the idea it would ever go away would have seemed equally foreign to many of us then. In a weird way this movie seems kind of like an exaggerated documentary in retrospect. Completely and perfectly of its time. Another great review.
As much as I adore John Hughes films (even the "problematic" ones like Sixteen Candles and Weird Science), gotta say as a teen I found the "Fast Times" crew the most relatable, and I appreciate the movie's non-judgmental tone when it comes to things like teen sex, pregnancy, abortion, etc. Maybe since the screenplay was based on real life high school kids, but also being made in the early 80s might account for the "no big deal" late '70s attitude towards issues that could be considered deadly serious in later teen films. Great video btw!
Even though culturally it looks like 1982, the relaxed attitudes in Fast Times feel a bit more late 1970s to me as well...perhaps because Crowe's book was written about his experience in 1979. I do think the AIDS epidemic had some affect on how casual sex was depicted in teen films later in the decade, with the focus turned more toward cliques or satire.....like Can't Buy Me Love or Heathers....and less about getting laid.
Good review. This movie came out my senior year of high school. I remember seeing it in the theater with a bunch of my friends and we were all shocked how closely it mirrored our own school. We had the surfer cult, we had a consummate B.S. artist who was always running some kind of hustle, we had the really strict political science teacher and a weird, eccentric biology teacher. We all had the same kind of after-school jobs. I don't think people were jumping in the sack quite as quickly as they did in this movie and our pep-rallies were pretty rowdy affairs, but otherwise, it was a very accurate depiction of high school in the early 80s.
I loved this review! I watched that film so many times I remember a lot of the dialog, although I didn't get to watch it until I was older. I was too young, when it came out and my parents would not have approved. Looking forward to Ferris Bueller!
I'm going to have to give this movie another watch because I could never really get into it when watching it in my twenties other than reliving my 9yr old boyhood crush on Phoebe Cates. With my sensibilities having changed a lot over the years, it wouldn't surprise me if I have another moment like I had with John Carpenter's The Thing. I was terrified as a child, hated the movie in my twenties, but end up thinking it's one of the greatest horror films ever made in my thirties and forties.
One of my all time favourite movies. This was about my high school graduation since I graduated from Rock Bridge High School. The theme for the yearbook for RBHS was Fast Times at Rock Bridge High in the same kind of lettering. By the way the Hamilton House is 24124 Welby Way which is West Hills, California with iconic pool without the diving board and the steps that Stacy used to get of that pool. Oingo Boingo's Goodbye, Goodbye which in the key of D major but a D jazzy progression kind of thing.
Even as Gen X parents were alarmed by the movie, the Living In Stereo sequence was one of the earliest "did you see THAT?" scenes that boys would discuss amongst ourselves.
I remember watching ‘In & Out’ when I found out she was his wife. I couldn’t help but feel a grudging respect. That scene in ‘Fast Times’ was burned into my mind at a young age
Sean Penn is great in this movie. I loved ‘Bad Boys’, but hate having to preface with the this movie has nothing to do with the Will Smith/Martin Lawrence Buddy cop movie if I bring it up Even though I hadn’t heard of Pat Benatar by the time I saw this movie, that joke landed for me. There was a clique of girls at my school with a penchant for mimicking whichever girl was “it” at the time.
I graduated HS in 1982 - Fast Times captures the scene almost perfectly. Accidental pregnancy and weed smoking were ubiquitous and the social hierarchy was non threatening. We all got along. We all had McJobs. Absent parents. And our friends helped us cope when we messed up. We raised each other.
Non threatening? In reality no. I knew a number of girls in high school who slept around, got pregnant and either chose to keep the baby or chose to abort. Their lives were train wrecks. The stoner dudes I knew didn’t get off unscathed. One dude smashed into a car when he was stoned and was killed. A couple of dudes died of drug overdoses and two took their own lives. What I learned from that movie in 82 when I was 16 is it’s better not to play around because you’ll get burned.
@@map3384 respect for your experience. It wasn’t a gravy train. We did the best we could. And as I said the social hierarchy at my HS wasn’t bad. The rest - we obviously got into trouble.
I entered Catholic high school in 1986, the same school as my older cousin who was a Senior. Years later my cousin would tell me how my Freshmen class gave off the most toxic vibes (jaded, angry, obnoxious, divided) in comparison to her graduating class that was quite unified and supportive of each other. She said many of the things you stated. You guys were so really lucky to have caught the last wave of 1960s/70s positivity because my class of 1990 defined the toxicity of '80s- The Breakfast Club!
Eric Stolz is one of Sean Penn's surfer/stoner buddies in this too. Since you've covered so many 80's teen classics at this point, any chance for a review of "The Wild Life"? Criminally underrated flick. Great characters, performances, and soundtrack. Tons of great character actor cameos. It's considered the "spiritual sequel" to Fast Times.
@tylerdurden3891 Eric Stolz was in that as well with a young Lea Thompson whom Stolz would work with again in Some Kind Of Wonderful and yes Back To The Future before Michael J. Fox would takeover the role after Stolz was fired! Producers had original wanted Michael J. Fox but refused because of his time working on Family Ties. So he would shoot Family Ties during the day and Back To The Future at night. Now this is HEAVY LOL!🤗🤔🚗💥
Hate me now, I have never seen this movie. I have heard all about it, every detail. I should give it a go, it always sounded like fun. Question, where can we send a request?
I wonder how Jefferson got to school the day he found his car “vandalized “? Did he think it was stolen before finding it parked outside of the school? That’s bothered me for 40 years.
it's absolutely insane watching this movie for the first time in 2023 as a 27 year old without too much background on 80s high school culture and being absolutely stoned out of my mind trying to understand how things were like back then and if it's an accurate portrayal or what the modern equivalent to this would be like wow would it be like Euphoria or maybe more like chill like I don't know, American Pie but evolved holy fuck I'm stoned
American Graffiti: "Late '50s into the '60s, FTRH: Late 70s into the '80s, Breakfast Club: The '80s, Heathers: The early '90s, KIDS: Late '90s into 2000s
While viewed by some as another teen sex romp at the time, I think there's a lot of subtext to this film that isn't just casual. While the consequences in the film may not resemble those of an afterschool special level of disaster, they are still generally depicted as naive misadventures by the nominal lead character that eventually lead her to the actually pretty conventional view of emphasizing romance over casual sex. An initially sexually curious gal discovering the more chaste and romantic Nice Girl inside herself while her supposedly more experienced friend turns out to not be so smart about love after all is about as conservative an outcome as could have happened without more overtly punishing the characters. This is not a Porky's movie. If anything, it's almost the opposite. The movie was merely frank in depicting teen realities from age gap affairs to sexual adventurousness at that awkward age. I think people were just so not used to such things being treated frankly in media, that some read it as a simple endorsement when it is shown.
Funny when you point out people like Springstein's sister or Ann Wilson or director Martin Brest. You said Brest directed "Beverly Hills Cop" and "Scent of a Woman," but "Midnight Run" is his real masterpiece.
Kick-ass review! This movie was the in thing in its day, and I think what I liked most about it was how contemporary pop culture it was. I thought it was watchable but overrated. In think a lot of my schoolmates could simply relate to it. It is as you say, a series of vignettes. I also recall Roger Ebert calling this movie a scuz pit that wasn't worthy of Jennifer Jason Leigh.
David here from Sebring Florida and I been a movie buff for over fifty years and I’ve seen the movie many times before and have always liked it. But the whole sex thing that bothers me is that her Girlfriend does a lot of talking but she doesn’t do anything, I know her Boyfriend was away and I always wondered if she really did anything with him. That’s why she shouldn’t have taken advice from her, she didn’t even talk to her about birth control. It seems like the abortion was not that big a deal to her. I understand that it was her choice. Did you notice that there was very little adults involved with the teenagers, to get help from, including parents. Over all it is the 1980’s version of American graffiti I give it 4 out of 5 popcorn boxes. It’s a time capsule that we will never see again 😊
I was 16 and a junior in high school back in 82. Saw the movie and was kind of shocked with the sex scenes. The movie truly showed what high school was like in those times. A lot of girls I knew had boyfriends in their 20s. Heck one girl on my block who was 14 had a boyfriend who was 20 and would pick her up on his motorcycle. My mother had a lot to say about the girl and her mother.
I love every old movie I’ve seen for far, seriously, but this movie broke that streak. It isn’t bad, it’s just really boring. It’s funny here and then but for the most part it’s overrated. Didn’t like it in general but definitely glad I watched it. Only old movie I didn’t really like
No. This series is about films that Gen-Xers watched in their early years that might have influenced them. It covers films made from 1980-1989. As I say in the very first line of this video, these are the films that shaped the MTV Generation, which I am very much a part of. Trust me, I do not have my generations mixed up.
As "can't believe it happened" as 80s mall culture seems now, back then the idea it would ever go away would have seemed equally foreign to many of us then. In a weird way this movie seems kind of like an exaggerated documentary in retrospect. Completely and perfectly of its time. Another great review.
As much as I adore John Hughes films (even the "problematic" ones like Sixteen Candles and Weird Science), gotta say as a teen I found the "Fast Times" crew the most relatable, and I appreciate the movie's non-judgmental tone when it comes to things like teen sex, pregnancy, abortion, etc.
Maybe since the screenplay was based on real life high school kids, but also being made in the early 80s might account for the "no big deal" late '70s attitude towards issues that could be considered deadly serious in later teen films.
Great video btw!
Even though culturally it looks like 1982, the relaxed attitudes in Fast Times feel a bit more late 1970s to me as well...perhaps because Crowe's book was written about his experience in 1979. I do think the AIDS epidemic had some affect on how casual sex was depicted in teen films later in the decade, with the focus turned more toward cliques or satire.....like Can't Buy Me Love or Heathers....and less about getting laid.
Good review. This movie came out my senior year of high school. I remember seeing it in the theater with a bunch of my friends and we were all shocked how closely it mirrored our own school. We had the surfer cult, we had a consummate B.S. artist who was always running some kind of hustle, we had the really strict political science teacher and a weird, eccentric biology teacher. We all had the same kind of after-school jobs. I don't think people were jumping in the sack quite as quickly as they did in this movie and our pep-rallies were pretty rowdy affairs, but otherwise, it was a very accurate depiction of high school in the early 80s.
Lol must be universal for the times… except the sex part, my high school was a f$$k fest
@@AnthonyAnthony-tk4ye I've heard my high school was too, but girls treated me like I had the Ebola virus so I never found out first hand.
Gotta love Fast Times. I can't believe I didn't watch this until the early 90's.
This one was soooooo good! I had a smile plastered to my face the whole time. Can't Hardly Wait till next episode!!! 9x's ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
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As always, great review. Can't wait for Ferris!
I loved this review! I watched that film so many times I remember a lot of the dialog, although I didn't get to watch it until I was older. I was too young, when it came out and my parents would not have approved. Looking forward to Ferris Bueller!
Great episode! One of my favorites. Had no idea it was based on a Cameron Crowe book. Love the details! Loved Sean Penn in this.
I'm going to have to give this movie another watch because I could never really get into it when watching it in my twenties other than reliving my 9yr old boyhood crush on Phoebe Cates. With my sensibilities having changed a lot over the years, it wouldn't surprise me if I have another moment like I had with John Carpenter's The Thing. I was terrified as a child, hated the movie in my twenties, but end up thinking it's one of the greatest horror films ever made in my thirties and forties.
Yeah. I was one of those Gen X ers who had parents that did not allow me to see this Cinematic Masterpiece when it was showed up in theatres in 1982.
One of my all time favourite movies. This was about my high school graduation since I graduated from Rock Bridge High School. The theme for the yearbook for RBHS was Fast Times at Rock Bridge High in the same kind of lettering. By the way the Hamilton House is 24124 Welby Way which is West Hills, California with iconic pool without the diving board and the steps that Stacy used to get of that pool. Oingo Boingo's Goodbye, Goodbye which in the key of D major but a D jazzy progression kind of thing.
Even as Gen X parents were alarmed by the movie, the Living In Stereo sequence was one of the earliest "did you see THAT?" scenes that boys would discuss amongst ourselves.
I remember watching ‘In & Out’ when I found out she was his wife. I couldn’t help but feel a grudging respect. That scene in ‘Fast Times’ was burned into my mind at a young age
Would you ever do a video on the 1986 film Out of Bounds starring Anthony Michael Hall?
You know I basically never subscribe to anyone on YT but this was a great rundown with cool tidbits and insights, so count yourself one more follower
This movie released at the beginning of my senior year of HS in Southern California. It was as spot on to the experience as a movie could’ve been.
Sean Penn is great in this movie. I loved ‘Bad Boys’, but hate having to preface with the this movie has nothing to do with the Will Smith/Martin Lawrence Buddy cop movie if I bring it up
Even though I hadn’t heard of Pat Benatar by the time I saw this movie, that joke landed for me. There was a clique of girls at my school with a penchant for mimicking whichever girl was “it” at the time.
Rat wearing his " I've had all I can stand, and I can't stand no more" Popeye t-shirt when he confronts Damone.
I graduated HS in 1982 - Fast Times captures the scene almost perfectly. Accidental pregnancy and weed smoking were ubiquitous and the social hierarchy was non threatening. We all got along. We all had McJobs. Absent parents. And our friends helped us cope when we messed up. We raised each other.
Non threatening? In reality no. I knew a number of girls in high school who slept around, got pregnant and either chose to keep the baby or chose to abort. Their lives were train wrecks. The stoner dudes I knew didn’t get off unscathed. One dude smashed into a car when he was stoned and was killed. A couple of dudes died of drug overdoses and two took their own lives. What I learned from that movie in 82 when I was 16 is it’s better not to play around because you’ll get burned.
@@map3384 respect for your experience. It wasn’t a gravy train. We did the best we could. And as I said the social hierarchy at my HS wasn’t bad. The rest - we obviously got into trouble.
I entered Catholic high school in 1986, the same school as my older cousin who was a Senior. Years later my cousin would tell me how my Freshmen class gave off the most toxic vibes (jaded, angry, obnoxious, divided) in comparison to her graduating class that was quite unified and supportive of each other. She said many of the things you stated. You guys were so really lucky to have caught the last wave of 1960s/70s positivity because my class of 1990 defined the toxicity of '80s- The Breakfast Club!
This movie, plus Say Anything and Almost Famous, makes for an impressive trilogy by Cameron Crowe.
Eric Stolz is one of Sean Penn's surfer/stoner buddies in this too. Since you've covered so many 80's teen classics at this point, any chance for a review of "The Wild Life"? Criminally underrated flick. Great characters, performances, and soundtrack. Tons of great character actor cameos. It's considered the "spiritual sequel" to Fast Times.
@tylerdurden3891 Eric Stolz was in that as well with a young Lea Thompson whom Stolz would work with again in Some Kind Of Wonderful and yes Back To The Future before Michael J. Fox would takeover the role after Stolz was fired! Producers had original wanted Michael J. Fox but refused because of his time working on Family Ties. So he would shoot Family Ties during the day and Back To The Future at night. Now this is HEAVY LOL!🤗🤔🚗💥
Good call, that movie would be a good one to review!
Hate me now, I have never seen this movie. I have heard all about it, every detail. I should give it a go, it always sounded like fun. Question, where can we send a request?
I just watched fast times again and the girls at the mall said that Stacy wasn’t even in high school yet. Sheesh.
And she was sleeping with a guy who was 26. Today it’s outright creepy to watch a 26 yo dude sleeping with a 15 yo in a movie.
I wonder how Jefferson got to school the day he found his car “vandalized “? Did he think it was stolen before finding it parked outside of the school? That’s bothered me for 40 years.
Amazing how mall culture is no more....
it's absolutely insane watching this movie for the first time in 2023 as a 27 year old without too much background on 80s high school culture and being absolutely stoned out of my mind trying to understand how things were like back then and if it's an accurate portrayal or what the modern equivalent to this would be like wow would it be like Euphoria or maybe more like chill like I don't know, American Pie but evolved holy fuck I'm stoned
I used to be skinny 😭
I feel like KIDS (1995) is the 90's version of FTRH with realistic grounded portrayals of teen life and teen sex with the resulting consequences.
American Graffiti: "Late '50s into the '60s, FTRH: Late 70s into the '80s, Breakfast Club: The '80s, Heathers: The early '90s, KIDS: Late '90s into 2000s
@@juniorjames7076 Over the Edge (1979) is also a good candidate for late 70's early 80's
While viewed by some as another teen sex romp at the time, I think there's a lot of subtext to this film that isn't just casual. While the consequences in the film may not resemble those of an afterschool special level of disaster, they are still generally depicted as naive misadventures by the nominal lead character that eventually lead her to the actually pretty conventional view of emphasizing romance over casual sex.
An initially sexually curious gal discovering the more chaste and romantic Nice Girl inside herself while her supposedly more experienced friend turns out to not be so smart about love after all is about as conservative an outcome as could have happened without more overtly punishing the characters. This is not a Porky's movie. If anything, it's almost the opposite.
The movie was merely frank in depicting teen realities from age gap affairs to sexual adventurousness at that awkward age. I think people were just so not used to such things being treated frankly in media, that some read it as a simple endorsement when it is shown.
My chemistry/physics teacher was a clone of Mr Hand and I was her Spiccoli, even though I was the furthest thing from a pothead that you could get.
Great synopsis.
Funny when you point out people like Springstein's sister or Ann Wilson or director Martin Brest.
You said Brest directed "Beverly Hills Cop" and "Scent of a Woman," but "Midnight Run" is his real masterpiece.
Great classic...but ferris bueller is awsome my favorite movie....SAVE ferris...hey morgan have u seen 3 O'CLOCK HIGH ???
Love 3’ oclock high.
@@kimgrisco it was hilarious
Thats actually a great film about being bullying. I remember being surprised at how well it was done, expecting a fart-fest.
Kick-ass review! This movie was the in thing in its day, and I think what I liked most about it was how contemporary pop culture it was. I thought it was watchable but overrated. In think a lot of my schoolmates could simply relate to it. It is as you say, a series of vignettes. I also recall Roger Ebert calling this movie a scuz pit that wasn't worthy of Jennifer Jason Leigh.
Sorry to point out, but Gremlins came out in 1984, AFTER Fast Times in 1982.
I remember how popular jordash jeans were for the girls. And purple or pink Nike shoes
My boyfriend and I have the same age difference as Ron Johnson and Stacy, but I was 45 when I met him.
David here from Sebring Florida and I been a movie buff for over fifty years and I’ve seen the movie many times before and have always liked it. But the whole sex thing that bothers me is that her Girlfriend does a lot of talking but she doesn’t do anything, I know her Boyfriend was away and I always wondered if she really did anything with him. That’s why she shouldn’t have taken advice from her, she didn’t even talk to her about birth control. It seems like the abortion was not that big a deal to her. I understand that it was her choice. Did you notice that there was very little adults involved with the teenagers, to get help from, including parents. Over all it is the 1980’s version of American graffiti I give it 4 out of 5 popcorn boxes. It’s a time capsule that we will never see again 😊
I was 16 and a junior in high school back in 82. Saw the movie and was kind of shocked with the sex scenes. The movie truly showed what high school was like in those times. A lot of girls I knew had boyfriends in their 20s. Heck one girl on my block who was 14 had a boyfriend who was 20 and would pick her up on his motorcycle. My mother had a lot to say about the girl and her mother.
I love every old movie I’ve seen for far, seriously, but this movie broke that streak. It isn’t bad, it’s just really boring. It’s funny here and then but for the most part it’s overrated. Didn’t like it in general but definitely glad I watched it. Only old movie I didn’t really like
AAAAND "Vision Quest" came out in 1985, AFTER 1982. You clearly haven't done your homework. Bye!
spicoli hates his brother
Gen-X'ers were born 1965-80. This 1982 movie was about the late 70s. You have your generations mixed up!
No. This series is about films that Gen-Xers watched in their early years that might have influenced them. It covers films made from 1980-1989. As I say in the very first line of this video, these are the films that shaped the MTV Generation, which I am very much a part of. Trust me, I do not have my generations mixed up.
@@MorganRichter Very well spoken and I agree Morgan!🤗❤🙏🤲
Agree - I was born in 1964 but definitely identify with GenX more than Boomers. Boomers were in the disco and in college - completely different scene.
Generation x was born between 65 and 80. In 1982 I was 16 and a junior in high school.
1982 was the last of the Boomers, not Gen X
No. Generation x began in 1965, not 82. The oldest boomer in 1982 was 36.