Fast Times at Ridgemont High | |
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Theatrical release poster
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Directed by | Amy Heckerling |
Produced by | |
Screenplay by | Cameron Crowe |
Based on |
Fast Times at Ridgemont High: A True Story by Cameron Crowe |
Starring | |
Cinematography | Matthew F. Leonetti |
Edited by | Eric Jenkins |
Production
company |
Refugee Films
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Distributed by | Universal Pictures |
Release date
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Running time
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90 minutes |
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Budget | $4.5 million |
Box office | $27.1 million (domestic) |
Fast Times at Ridgemont High: Music from the Motion Picture | |
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Soundtrack album by various artists | |
Released | July 30, 1982 |
Genre | Rock, Pop |
Length | 65:50 |
Label | Elektra |
Professional ratings | |
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Review scores | |
Source | Rating |
Allmusic |
Fast Times at Ridgemont High is a 1982 American coming-of-age comedy film written by Cameron Crowe, adapted from his 1981 book of the same name. Crowe went undercover at Clairemont High School in San Diego and wrote about his experiences.
The film was directed by Amy Heckerling (in her directorial debut) and chronicles a school year in the lives of sophomores Stacy Hamilton (Jennifer Jason Leigh) and Mark Ratner (Brian Backer), and their respective older friends Linda Barrett (Phoebe Cates) and Mike Damone (Robert Romanus), both of whom believe themselves wiser in the ways of romance than their younger counterparts. The ensemble cast of characters form two subplots with Jeff Spicoli (Sean Penn), a stoned surfer, facing off against uptight history teacher Mr. Hand (Ray Walston), and Stacy's brother, Brad (Judge Reinhold), a senior who works at a series of entry-level jobs in order to pay off his car, and who is pondering ending his relationship with his girlfriend (Amanda Wyss), until she dumps him.
In addition to Penn, Reinhold, Cates and Leigh, the film marks early appearances by several actors who later became stars, including Nicolas Cage, Forest Whitaker, Eric Stoltz, and Anthony Edwards. Among these actors, Penn, Cage, and Whitaker would later win the Academy Award for Best Actor, with Penn winning twice.
In 2005, the film was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".