It's a very episodic movie, which I held against it upon first viewing. I did the same for Dazed and Confused. Both are movies that benefit from repeated viewings, where you get to hang out with the characters rather than look for a plot.
So I saw Last American Virgin whenever it hit HBO (we didn’t have cable, but my grandparents did, so I binged HBO whenever I was there), was probably 10. I still remember the gut punch. To this day, the song Just Once makes me want to tear up; I remember watching the credits begin and feeling as lost and blindsided as the main character. Thinking about it as an adult, that was a really bold move for the filmmakers and studio.
That's one of the most dismal facts of life, sometimes the person you like just doesn't like you back, no matter what, no matter how much it "doesn't make sense".
Loved this essay ... I've often tried to define the je ne sais quoi that makes FAST TIMES so enduring. I think this gets pretty close: "That it works as a teen comedy first is part of what makes it so successful, easing viewers into deeper waters than they might have expected." It's so damn entertaining and hilarious at times ... but also bracingly adult in its themes and tone. And it's aged so much better than anything John Hughes ever did. If there's a Mount Olympus for '80s teen comedies, FAST TIMES belongs on top ... with VALLEY GIRL a few feet below.
It's a very episodic movie, which I held against it upon first viewing. I did the same for Dazed and Confused. Both are movies that benefit from repeated viewings, where you get to hang out with the characters rather than look for a plot.
So I saw Last American Virgin whenever it hit HBO (we didn’t have cable, but my grandparents did, so I binged HBO whenever I was there), was probably 10. I still remember the gut punch. To this day, the song Just Once makes me want to tear up; I remember watching the credits begin and feeling as lost and blindsided as the main character. Thinking about it as an adult, that was a really bold move for the filmmakers and studio.
That's one of the most dismal facts of life, sometimes the person you like just doesn't like you back, no matter what, no matter how much it "doesn't make sense".
Loved this essay ... I've often tried to define the je ne sais quoi that makes FAST TIMES so enduring. I think this gets pretty close: "That it works as a teen comedy first is part of what makes it so successful, easing viewers into deeper waters than they might have expected." It's so damn entertaining and hilarious at times ... but also bracingly adult in its themes and tone. And it's aged so much better than anything John Hughes ever did. If there's a Mount Olympus for '80s teen comedies, FAST TIMES belongs on top ... with VALLEY GIRL a few feet below.
given how close this is to the book, it really makes me wonder how "dramatized" Crowe's work was to begin with