User Reviews

This 39-minute retrospective covers a good deal of interesting and informative ground on the making of the early 80's teen classic "Fast Times at Ridgemont High." Producer Art Linson talks about how he met writer Cameron Crowe on a movie set and praises Crowe for capturing what it was like to be a teenager in his book and script with exceptional accuracy. Director Amy Heckering notes that the culture was starting to change when the film came out. Ray Walston reveals that he was basically trusted to play Mr. Hand. Robert Romanus describes his character of Damone as a transplant from New Jersey. Moreover, we also learn that Sean Penn stayed in character as Spicoli throughout the shooting of the picture, everyone hung out in their own groups, Judge Reinhold was Heckerling's neighbor when he read for Brad, the cast was primarily made up of then unknowns who went on to have big careers, the character of Arnold was expanded during the shooting of the film, and Universal studio executives hated the movie so much that they initially planned on canceling its East Coast release. Worth a watch for fans of the film.