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‘Fast Times at Ridgemont High’ With Bill Simmons, Chris Ryan, and Mallory Rubin

May 28, 2024 · Fast Times at Ridgemont High (1982) · Comedy · Drama · 1:47:04 · ▶ Listen on Spotify

IMDb ↗Letterboxd ↗

Categories

Great Shot Gordo Award

Bill Simmons▶ 30:00Agrees with the Phoebe Cates pool scene, calling it 'the most important nude scene of all time'
Mallory Rubin▶ 29:24The Phoebe Cates pool scene - her stepping out of the pool in her red bikini and removing her bathing suit top, which he calls 'one of the most iconic stretches in the history of film'

Most Rewatchable Scene

Bill Simmons▶ 39:30The intro with credits, first day of Mr. Hand's class, the blowjob carrot scene, Brad breaking up with Lisa and getting fired, Damone's five-point plan
Chris Ryan▶ 40:27Agreed with intro and first day of school scenes, noted the blowjob carrot scene and Damone's five-point plan
Mallory Rubin▶ 39:53Praised the intro for establishing characters and setting, discussed the blowjob carrot scene and Damone's five-point plan

Big Kahuna Burger Award

Bill Simmons▶ 1:00:12The pizza delivery scene with Taylor Negron - double cheese and sausage pizza that looks nice and greasy

Butch's Girlfriend Award

Chris Ryan▶ 1:00:26No weak link - doesn't think the movie has one
Mallory Rubin▶ 1:01:03Insufficient sports presence in the movie - likes the football scenes but feels sports elements are underdeveloped and box-checking

Sequel/Prequel/Limited Series/Remake

Chris Ryan▶ 1:01:41Friday Night Lights style treatment but at Ridgemont with these characters
Mallory Rubin▶ 1:01:48Agreed with Friday Night Lights approach, wants to see characters in gym shooting hoops before the Rat Damone locker room fight

What's Aged the Worst

Bill Simmons▶ 1:09:32Pat Benatar look reference, scalpers and bookies being wiped out by the internet, Perry's pizza looking gross, teenage names like Linda/Lisa/Stacy being outdated, circle pins with band pictures on jackets, and the 1986 Fast Times TV series
Chris Ryan▶ 1:09:02Switching to Sanka (decaf coffee crystals) - 'tastes like old barbecue coals'
Mallory Rubin▶ 1:07:07Linda's relationship advice to Stacey, particularly her inadequate blowjob advice using a 'skinny little carrot' that doesn't properly prepare Stacey

Is There a Better Title?

Bill Simmons▶ 1:13:53No

Stephen A. Smith Hottest Take Award

Bill Simmons▶ 1:16:25Ron Johnson (the stereo salesman) is a child predator who should go to jail
Mallory Rubin▶ 1:15:01Spicoli is a genius and scholar who understands life and has keen philosophical insights, not just a dumb stoner

Dion Waiters Award

Bill Simmons▶ 1:19:37Questions Mr. Hand's eligibility, suggests they have him on their list
Chris Ryan▶ 1:19:48Vincent Schiavelli — Mentions Whitaker, Jefferson, Russo or Stultz, then states 'I vote for Jefferson'

Casting What-Ifs

Bill Simmons▶ 1:20:16Kelly Preston — Recast Brad's girlfriend, suggests Kelly Preston as alternative

Half-Assed Internet Research

Bill Simmons▶ 1:21:53Provided multiple trivia facts: mall scenes at Sherman Oaks Galleria, high school scenes at Van Dyke High School, Mark Ratner based on Andy Rathbone who wrote For Dummies books, Jennifer Jason Lee worked at Perry's Pizza for three weeks to prepare, Phoebe Cates was a teen model on Seventeen Magazine covers, Lana Clarkson appeared in film and was later murdered by Phil Spector

Apex Mountain

Bill Simmons▶ 1:25:21Sean Penn — Young Sean Penn (1981-85) - this movie over Bad Boys; Phoebe Cates - yes; Jennifer Jason Leigh - no, early 90s with Single White Female; Tom Hanks as Brad for Cruiser Hanks
Chris Ryan▶ 1:25:32Sean Penn — Young Sean Penn - this movie over Bad Boys; agrees on Hanks for Cruiser Hanks; discusses mall movies and Valley movies
Mallory Rubin▶ 1:25:44Jennifer Jason Leigh — Jennifer Jason Leigh is 'hard one for Apex Mountain'; participates in other discussions but no clear definitive picks

Picking Nits

Bill Simmons▶ 1:32:18The timeline inconsistency between Christmas scenes and football season - football season ends in early November in California but the movie shows football games happening around Christmas time, which is about three months after football season ends
Chris Ryan▶ 1:32:25Agrees with the timeline issue and acknowledges missing this nitpick, noting that football happens in October/November but the movie structure made it less obvious
Mallory Rubin▶ 1:33:13Discusses the sequencing issues but focuses more on explaining how certain scenes relate to each other rather than offering a specific nitpick

Is This Movie Better With

Bill Simmons▶ 1:34:54Lists a series of actors/characters (Wayne Jenkins, Danny Trejo, Sam Jackson, JT Walsh, Byron Mayo, Harling Mays, Ramon Raymond, Philip Baker Hall) as potential additions, establishing the category's premise.
Chris Ryan▶ 1:35:19Wayne Jenkins working at All-American Burger, delivering a threat to Brad about Lisa and flipping burgers.

Just One Oscar

Bill Simmons▶ 1:35:49Sean Penn — Pen

Probably Unanswerable Questions

Bill Simmons▶ 1:35:57Multiple questions: Did Doug exist? (No), kids sneaking out with Find My iPhone, Jefferson's stats, and football gambling details
Chris Ryan▶ 1:35:59Doug didn't exist - Linda made up boyfriend and sex advice, kids sneaking out question, Jefferson playing college ball at Miami/Nebraska
Mallory Rubin▶ 1:37:01Doug could exist as a way to keep guys at bay ('the veil of Doug'), questions about kids sneaking out being good for them

Best Double Feature

Bill Simmons▶ 1:39:15Valley Girl — Either Valley Girl or Last American Virgin to stay in the same year/theme, or Fast Times/Clueless combo
Chris Ryan▶ 1:39:21American Graffiti — American Graffiti because Heckerling acknowledged it as a huge touchstone
Mallory Rubin▶ 1:39:27American Graffiti — Either American Graffiti or Dazed and Confused for the high school stoner tie

Coach Finstock Life Lesson

Bill Simmons▶ 1:41:14How to cheat during exams - taping cheat sheets to your leg when wearing shorts, using sunglasses, hiding notebooks in the bathroom
Chris Ryan▶ 1:41:07Spicoli's point about Jefferson - that we need our own rules
Mallory Rubin▶ 1:40:49Lock your door - to avoid invasion of personal space that occurs throughout the movie

Who Won the Movie

Chris Ryan▶ 1:42:42Praised the movie's depiction of maturity differences between men and women, highlighting how women are more mature and open about sex while men just fantasize
Mallory Rubin▶ 1:44:49Sean Penn — Summarized Craig as being 'in on female empowerment, sexual empowerment, agency, out on one of the greatest performances in the history of cinema' (referring to Sean Penn)

Movies Referenced (41)

Clueless (1995)

9 mentions · Bill Simmons, Chris Ryan, Mallory Rubin▶ 20:03IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Forrest Gump (1994)

7 mentions · Bill Simmons▶ 2:57IMDb ↗Lb ↗

American Graffiti (1973)

4 mentions · Mallory Rubin, Bill Simmons▶ 6:26IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Blade Runner (1982)

4 mentions · Bill Simmons▶ 34:12IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Boogie Nights (1997)

4 mentions · Bill Simmons▶ 1:26:36IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Fargo (1996)

4 mentions · Chris Ryan, Bill Simmons▶ 27:05IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Valley Girl (1983)

4 mentions · Bill Simmons▶ 12:25IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Bad Boys (1995)

3 mentions · Bill Simmons, Chris Ryan▶ 15:54IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Dazed and Confused (1993)

3 mentions · Mallory Rubin, Chris Ryan▶ 6:25IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Rocky (1976)

3 mentions · Bill Simmons▶ 34:00IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Rushmore (1998)

3 mentions · Bill Simmons, Chris Ryan▶ 1:02:07IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope (1977)

3 mentions · Bill Simmons▶ 35:04IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Directors Referenced (10)

Sean Penn

15 mentions · Bill Simmons, Mallory Rubin, Chris Ryan · Known for Mystic River, 21 Grams, Dead Man Walking▶ 7:20IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Cameron Crowe

10 mentions · Bill Simmons, Chris Ryan · Known for Almost Famous, Jerry Maguire, Vanilla Sky▶ 11:45IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Amy Heckerling

7 mentions · Bill Simmons, Mallory Rubin, Chris Ryan · Known for Fast Times at Ridgemont High, Look Who's Talking▶ 17:59IMDb ↗Lb ↗

David Lynch

5 mentions · Chris Ryan, Bill Simmons · Known for Inland Empire▶ 19:55IMDb ↗Lb ↗

John Hughes

4 mentions · Bill Simmons, Chris Ryan · Known for Planes, Trains & Automobiles, Uncle Buck, The Breakfast Club▶ 4:09IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Kosta Jokic

2 mentions · Bill Simmons, Chris Ryan · Known for Fair Play▶ 41:34IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Paul Bellany

1 mentions · Bill Simmons · Known for The Bourne Ultimatum, Stardust▶ 0:05IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Spike Lee

1 mentions · Chris Ryan · Known for Do the Right Thing, Malcolm X, She's Gotta Have It▶ 22:28IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Stanley Kubrick

1 mentions · Bill Simmons · Known for 2001: A Space Odyssey, A Clockwork Orange, Barry Lyndon▶ 1:27:45IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Tom Brady

1 mentions · Bill Simmons · Known for The Hot Chick▶ 1:41:38IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Actors Referenced (66)

Brad Hamilton

42 mentions · Bill Simmons, Chris Ryan, Mallory Rubin▶ 9:12IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Linda Barrett

34 mentions · Bill Simmons, Mallory Rubin, Chris Ryan · Known for Shock Corridor▶ 21:08IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Damone

22 mentions · Bill Simmons, Mallory Rubin, Chris Ryan · Known for Freaky Friday▶ 14:28IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Phoebe Cates

13 mentions · Bill Simmons, Mallory Rubin, Chris Ryan · Known for Fast Times at Ridgemont High, Gremlins 2: The New Batch, Gremlins▶ 8:03IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Jennifer Jason Leigh

10 mentions · Bill Simmons, Chris Ryan · Known for The Hateful Eight, Single White Female, Short Cuts▶ 12:20IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Judge Reinhold

8 mentions · Bill Simmons · Known for Beverly Hills Cop, Fast Times at Ridgemont High▶ 30:34IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Led Zeppelin

6 mentions · Bill Simmons, Mallory Rubin, Chris Ryan · Known for The Adam Project▶ 18:31IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Van Halen

6 mentions · Bill Simmons, Chris Ryan · Known for Spaceballs, Ready Player One, Mission to Mars▶ 35:07IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Jason Lee

5 mentions · Bill Simmons, Chris Ryan · Known for Almost Famous, Chasing Amy, Vanilla Sky▶ 20:50IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Tony Romo

5 mentions · Chris Ryan, Bill Simmons▶ 1:20:39IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Vincent Schiavelli

4 mentions · Bill Simmons · Known for Tomorrow Never Dies, Ghost, The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension▶ 1:11:52IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Crazy Town

3 mentions · Chris Ryan, Bill Simmons · Known for Something's Gotta Give, Saving Silverman, Orange County0:00IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Writers Referenced (1)

Roger Ebert

4 mentions · Bill Simmons, Mallory Rubin, Chris Ryan▶ 35:50IMDb ↗Lb ↗