The Wild Life (1984)

Laserdisc Release. Movie Review: By T. M Rogers "tommy1138" (Az United States) In high school, I watched this movie every time it was on and it is still entertaining 22 years later. People assume this is a "sequel" To Fast Times At Ridgemont High. It was written by Cameron Crowe (who wrote Fast Times) and stars Chris Penn (Sean's brother). It was directed by Art Linson (who produced Fast Times) but it IS its own film. I like to think of it as a companion movie to Fast Times. What happens immediately AFTER high school? The Wild Life tackles that question and does a great job at it. The character of Jim (Ilan Mitchell-Smith) was me in high school. I was 15 when the Wild Life came out, so Jim was the character that I could relate to the most. I lived with my single mom and sister. I was obsessed with Vietnam (and WW2). I also wore camouflage pants to school about 3 days a week, hated authority figures and hung out in a bowling alley (as well as the mall arcade). The other characters are also interesting as well, but Jim was just the one that "clicked" with me. I assume Cameron Crowe based these people on real life versions just like he did with his Fast Times script and chances are, you will relate to someone in this film. I have always liked Eric Stoltz and in this he plays the straight guy to Chris Penn's obnoxious character. They work well together, but it's a friendship of necessity not choice. This is a much more serious film than Fast Times but still has some great, funny moments. Cool soundtrack with ORIGINAL songs by Bananarama and Eddie Van Halen. Release a dvd Universal. Don't underestimate the fan base for this film! A whole generation watched The Wild Life on cable over and over again. Release this movie ASAP as my VHS tape is getting haggard. Product Description