Hot Times at Montclair High

The title says it all. "Hot Times at Montclair High"? Is that the best they could do? Change the word "Fast" for "Hot", and come up with a different name for the school? This gives you an idea of this movie's level of creativity.

It feels episodic, but shouldn't. This is because there is no believable set-up for any of the things that happen in the movie, so everything feels disconnected, and you never come to know any of the "characters". The jock and the punk could've been in a better movie, but the nerd is so over-the-top that he makes the actors in Revenge of the Nerds look subtle. When characters are this much of a collection of clichés, it wears pretty thin when you have to see them on screen for most of the movie's runtime, and it certainly discredits the "serious" issues this one tries to bump up against, ala the Amy Heckerling movie it ripped its title off of.

Issues like child abuse, drug dealing/addiction, and sexual assault get short shrift, all dealt with in such a contrived, perfunctory way that you don't know or care what they're doing in the movie. Of course, there's also some raunch, including a scene with the nerdy characters spying on girls showering. "Ridgemont High" got away with sex and nudity because it dealt with these things in a realistic way, not just to satisfy the audience's need for boobs. They were used to service the plot, not to reveal that the "plot" was in bad need of servicing.

Hot Times At Montclair High in a school presided over by teen idol in days of yore Troy Donahue tells the story of three boys whose trip to detention forms the basis of an unlikely friendship.

Ross Hamilton is the popular high school hero jock who is hoping for a football scholarship. But that might not be possible unless he keeps up his grades. Brent Jasmer is the local hood whose bullying ways are caused by a bad home life. Johnathan Gorman is a refugee of that odeto nerddom Revenge Of The Nerds.

I guess detention brings out the best in some people because the three form one unlikely bond. At least it wouldn't have happened in my school.

I've seen worse teen flicks and this one is far from the worst of the genre. The characters and relationships could have been better developed, but it was better than I expected.

I am probably the most passionate person when it comes to teen movies - I absolutely love them. But this film flat out sucks! The dialogue is so clichéd and awkward, and the acting in general is quite poor. Again, I don't want to make generalisations about all the actors, as a couple (Troy Donahue and Jonathan Gorman to an extent) are actually passable in patches, but the film is a perfect example of the school of overacting. And what's with the dragging 3-minute music scene? Surely it could've been cut to 30 seconds... maybe it was a time filler, considering the film was barely 80 minutes.

My rating: 1/10 (the 1 is for the close-ups on Kim Anderson's bust!).

My take: Any aspiring screenwriters, watch this film... then walk away and completely do the opposite when penning your own piece. This film, if i serves for anything other than a sleeping pill as another gent alluded to, is the blueprint for how to NOT write and direct a film.

Mike

I really hate 80's teen movies truth be told (it was bad enough actually BEING a teenager in the 80's without watching a bunch of movies about it). This movie though is almost an unintentional parody of 80's teen movies, and it's SO dumb it completely short-circuited my brain and left me with a vague feeling of being slightly entertained. Despite the title, this is not a blatant rip-off of "Fast Times at Ridgemont High"--no, instead it's a blatant rip-off of "The Breakfast Club" and "Revenge of the Nerds". Three guys--a nerd, a jock (and dead ringer for Emilio Estevez) and a tough guy (who looks way too old to be in high school)--meet in detention, where two of them have been sent for spying on girls in the shower. They improbably become friends and band together to rescue the girlfriend of the jock (Kim Valentine) from some drug dealers.

Kim Valentine (from "Grandma's House") plays the stereotypical girl-next-door, while an even more obscure actress (the one on the poster) named Kim Anderson plays the sex bomb. Of course, Valentine is hardly plain-looking, while Anderson is a plastic-surgery disaster (albeit a sexy one) who looks like she should be camped out in the lobby of a hotel where Motley Crue is staying. (Although there's actually not nearly as much nudity as you'd expect in one of these films). And fulfilling the washed-up star quota we have Troy Donahue playing the principal.

This movie has apparently only been available on video in Australia and (in a cut version) on the TBS television station in America. Strangely though, it's been released again more recently on DVD as a "drive-in" triple feature with the 70's flick "Pickup Summer" and a Corey Feldman/Haim movie that's best not spoken of. Only one of these no doubt actually ever played at a drive-in, but oh well. . .

As a period piece of it's own time, I like the contrast between late 80s and early 80s Ridgemont high. Not as well made, much cheaper movie, but what surprised me was the music, it really helped this movie place itself in time. There's that hint of grunge that was stirring in the late 80s, and it's a good capture of that. Otherwise it's a predictability cheap ass shot at good comedy film. Doesn't really carry it's own weight in that regard, but the soundtrack is actually quite remarkable. Plus there's some hot chicks and the hairstyles are totally authentic 80s. So it has that to balance things out, like I said, as a period piece of it's own time.