The soundtrack album Fast Times at Ridgemont High: Music from the Motion Picture was released by Elektra Records on July 30, 1982. It peaked at #54 on the US Billboard 200 album chart. The soundtrack features the work of many quintessential 1980s rock artists.

Several of the movie's songs were released as singles, including Jackson Browne's "Somebody's Baby", which reached #7 on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart. Other singles were the title track by Sammy Hagar, a cover of The Tymes' "So Much in Love" by Timothy B. Schmit which reached #59 on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart, "Raised on the Radio" by the Ravyns and "Waffle Stomp" by Joe Walsh. In addition to Schmit and Walsh, the album features solo tracks by other members of the Eagles: Don Henley and Don Felder. The soundtrack also included "I Don't Know (Spicoli's Theme)" by Jimmy Buffett and "Goodbye Goodbye" by Oingo Boingo (led by Danny Elfman).

Five tracks in the film not included on the soundtrack are "Moving in Stereo" by the Cars; "American Girl" by Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers; "We Got the Beat" by the Go Go's, which is the movie's opening theme; Led Zeppelin's "Kashmir"; and "Winter Wonderland" by Darlene Love. In addition, the live band at the prom dance during the end of the film played two songs also not on the soundtrack: The Eagles' "Life in the Fast Lane" and Sam the Sham's "Wooly Bully".

The Donna Summer track "Highway Runner", was recorded in 1981 for her double album titled I'm a Rainbow; however, the album was shelved by Geffen Records but ultimately released in 1996 by Mercury Records.

Todd Rundgren also recorded the song "Attitude" for the film at Crowe's request. It was not included in the film, but was released on Rundgren's Demos and Lost Albums in 2001. A track titled "Fast Times" was recorded by Heart but was not used in the film. The track ended up on their 1982 album Private Audition.

In some countries, the album was released as a single LP with 10 tracks.

Heckerling, in the DVD audio commentary, states that the 1970s artists, like the Eagles, were insisted upon inclusion in the film by one of the producers. Irving Azoff, one of the film's producers, was the personal manager for the Eagles and Stevie Nicks.

Track listing

Release

The film was initially given an X rating by the MPAA due to a protracted sex scene and brief male frontal nudity during the pool house scene. Positive word-of-mouth, with audiences showing up to repeat viewings and quoting dialogue from the film, prompted the studio to expand the release. The DVD included audio commentary with Heckerling and Crowe, as well as the making-of documentary "Reliving Our Fast Times at Ridgemont High". The Criterion release restores Heckerling's original cut of the film. Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "B+" on an A+ to F scale.

On its initial release, multiple critics dismissed the film as just the latest in a wave of teensploitation films such as Porky's and The Last American Virgin. In later years, Ebert reevaluated his opinion of the film and became a big supporter of Cameron Crowe's directorial career. Richard Corliss of Time compared the film negatively to another teen coming-of-age movie, American Graffiti. Janet Maslin of The New York Times wrote that it was "a jumbled but appealing teen-age comedy with something of a fresh perspective on the subject."

In contrast, LA Weekly praised the film, particularly its screenplay, direction, and the performances of Leigh and Penn. The review read, "While neither as slapstick as Animal House, nor as apocalyptic and biting as Over the Edge, Fast Times at Ridgemont High is both serious and funny enough to hold its own in their company." The review added the film presents "a portrait of modern school life that speaks lightly but truly to the fears and trials of post-Watergate teens".

In Collider, Grace Neave noted that in teen comedy films like Porky's, the women are typically objectified and are chased by the male characters; however, in Fast Times, Stacy and Linda are fully formed characters that also pursue the guys. Neaves added that unlike most teen comedies of its time, which tended to "encourage misogyny as a comical gag", "Stacy's enthusiasm about sex is never shamed or used as a plot point to cast judgment over her character." Of Heckerling's decision to depict the scene, Crowe later said, "She said 'you know what, this is life. I want to shoot this like life.' She just quietly did it, and in an almost European way, she put this young girl's life onscreen in a way for you to judge—this is just how life is. And it meant a lot when she did it at the time, and it still means a lot. It was a very courageous thing to do, and it actually is the one thing about the movie that I'm probably happiest about at this point."

Accolades

Crowe's screenplay was nominated for a WGA Award for Best Comedy Adapted from Another Medium. The film ranks No. 15 on Bravo's "100 Funniest Movies" and No. 2 on Entertainment Weeklys list of the "50 Best High School Movies".

The film is recognized by American Film Institute in these lists:

  • 2000: AFI's 100 Years...100 Laughs – #87

National Film Preservation Board

  • 2005: National Film Registry, Fast Times at Ridgemont High After the table read, Cameron Crowe and Amy Heckerling hosted a discussion about the film.

See also

  • Fast Times at Barrington High, an album by the band The Academy Is..., is a play on the title of the film.
  • Fast Times at Buddy Cianci Jr. High, a Family Guy episode from Season 4.
  • Fast Times at Fairmont High, a novella by Vernor Vinge, is named in reference to the film.
  • Stacy's Mom, a song by Fountains of Wayne which pays homage to the film.
  • The Last American Virgin, a remake of Lemon Popsicle and a film released in the same year with similar themes.
  • "Phoebe Cates" from the album Lechuza, a song by the band Fenix TX about Phoebe Cates' role in the film.
  • "Fast Times at Clairemont High", a song by Pierce the Veil, off of their 2010 album Selfish Machines, is also a play on the title of the film.

Notes

References

  • Production Notes at TheUncool.com
  • Fast Times at Ridgemont High: A Kid's-Eye View – an essay by Dana Stevens at The Criterion Collection