What began life as an undercover writing assignment for enfant terrible Cameron Crowe (a baby-faced 20-something who went back to high school impersonating a student) becomes a surprisingly observant comedy about modern-day Southern California high schoolers, their after-class jobs and boy-girl relations. Early shot at the Sherman Oaks Galleria, with the camera scanning the rear-ends of the video-playing kids in their designer jeans, shows an almost-documentary feel for teen life. Director Amy Heckerling relishes these little throwaway moments, excelling with her attentive eyes and ears, but eventually the 'plot' kicks in...and the movie's satiric juice leaks out. The characters, while not stereotypes, are fairly one-dimensional. Heckerling keeps most of the talented young cast low-keyed, blasé, with only Sean Penn able to carve out a colorful impersonation of a perpetually-high surfer dude named Spicoli. These kids and their sexual foibles are almost made to look like bad examples until the celebratory finale, when everything ends happily. Phoebe Cates and Jennifer Jason Leigh create a relaxed, lived-in friendship that seems to go back a ways, and Judge Reinhold does fine work as a teenage veteran of fast food jobs. As the one adult we spend the most time with, Ray Walston acquits himself nicely as incredulous teacher Mr. Hand, who allows a pizza into his classroom but won't let the buyer, Spicoli, have a piece. Ah, the poetic justice of the oldster set!
Review of Fast Times at Ridgemont High
