Rock 'n' Roll High School

1979 high school musical

Rating: 13/20

Plot: Thanks to rock 'n' roll, the students at Vince Lombardi High School have no interest in obeying the rules or getting an education. After yet another principal has a nervous breakdown, the school board hires Ms. Togar to clean things up and make the school a place of learning. Her agenda conflicts with student Riff Randell, a big fan of punk rockers The Ramones.

This punksploitative teenage comedy's got less laughs than Fast Times at Ridgemont's High, but at least it's got Clint Howard and The Ramones. The Ramones, by the way, display some terrific acting chops. Dee Dee Ramone was so bad that his lines were reduced to "Alright! The pizza's here!" but I can't imagine he's much worse than Joey Ramone who mumbles unintelligibly during his scenes. They get their chance to perform a ton of songs though, so if you're a fan, this is worth checking out. A couple of the songs work like music videos, especially during their first appearance when they show up in their "tour bus," a convertible in which they sit like only punk rockers could. There's also quite a bit of concert footage, and you've got to love a band with a lead singer who needs subtitles for the lyrics. Despite the solid analogy comparing punk rock haters to Nazis with the calling of Principal Togar's plan the "Final Solution," this is really like cartoon punk, almost like Disney decided to make a punk rock movie. Other than The Ramones, the characters aren't especially memorable, and the humor falls completely flat in this low-budget flick. Roger Corman produced.

Summer of Nicolas Cage Movie #7: Fast Times at Ridgemont High

1982 high school movie

Rating: 14/20 (Jen: 12/20)

Plot: Teenagers at the titular high school titillate each other, take some drugs, rebel against their teachers, get their priorities all wrong, knock each other up, make poor decisions, work toward their likely depressing futures, and masturbate.


This episodic look at high school in the eighties barely has Nicolas Cage in it at all. It is filled with a ton of colorful characters and their various misadventures. A few of those misadventures are interesting and/or meaningful, and unfortunately, a few of those characters are annoying. That's right, Sean Penn. I'm talking about you. I did like some of the interactions between his Spicoli and Mr. Hand though. This movie didn't make me laugh, and I didn't hit me on a nostalgic level since it's a bit before my high school time. As an artifact from the 1980s, it's maybe an above-average teen comedy, but if you're watching it only because you're a fan of Nicolas Cage, you're going to be really disappointed.

Blackboard Jungle

1955 teacher movie

Rating: 14/20

Plot: War veteran Richard Dadier (pronounced "Daddio") takes a job teaching English at an all-boys high school only to find out that it's more dangerous than any battlefield. He and his colleagues try to reach the boys because, as a colleague once told me, you've got to reach 'em to teach 'em. But the boys, like ants, are just mean. Oh, snap!

This doesn't hold up very well in 2010. I like the performances. I like Glenn Ford fine despite his character not seeming in any way realistic or coming within chalk-throwing distance of anything that resembles a good teacher. I like the kids despite them being caricatures or stereotypical exaggerations of thugs. You have to give Poitier credit. He does well playing a high schooler, especially considering he would have been, unless my math is way off, around 27 when this was made. I also think it's really interesting how this movie handles race. Issues are maybe only suggested, but at least they're not entirely ignored. I just don't think this was or ever will be a realistic portrayal of what school is like. The storytelling is really episodic. There's no flow to Dadier's first semester, more a choppy progression where the character just has thing after thing happen to him. There was almost no transition between Dadier as a struggling and hated teacher to the point when he starts to reach them, ludicrously by showing them a filmstrip. And the scene in the library? And the goofy dialogue? Yikes. It's all too much. This is still worth seeing, but almost more as a cultural artifact, evidence of how the squares viewed education and delinquency. And perhaps amazingly, there are still some issues raised that are relevant in public education today.