The Place For The Latest Movie Reviews
Cast: Rikki Rauhala
In 1984, young filmmaker Keva Rosenfeld (Twenty Bucks) set out to make a film about the experience of being in high school. He spent a year following the senior class at a typical California school and edited the footage into All American High. Told through the eyes of a visiting foreign exchange student, the film presented an uncensored view of teens in an era of big hair and parachute pants. A "real-life Fast Times at Ridgemont High," said People magazine. "Keva Rosenfeld does a spectacular job of candidly capturing the life of typical suburban teens. It is true. It is hilarious. It's a little frightening."
But the film was locked away in a storage vault and remained unseen until Rosenfeld came upon it three decades later. In that vault, Rosenfeld also uncovered a review that said the film captured "the values and attitudes of middle-class teenagers who will lead America into the 21st century." Wondering if this prediction came true, the director set out to locate those 17-year-old students he'd met 30 years earlier. After many phone conversations and much planning, Rosenfeld began to film the very same people he profiled long ago. By bringing this story full circle, then and now - a generation later, ALL AMERICAN HIGH REVISITED was born.
This unique case study of former students looking back on the exuberance of their youth highlights the differences between being a teenager now and one from a pre-digital era. The poignant interviews and humorous memories reveal dreams both fulfilled and forgotten, and remind us that life can be fleeting and full of surprises. It's a timeless story for anyone who survived high school.
First of all let me say how great an idea this was to create such a wonderful time capsule. "All American High Revisited" must be an amazing piece of the past for all those students who participated in the original film. I did not graduate in 1984 but it still brings back memories from my own high school years.
Another great thing about the film was using the foreign exchange student as the voice of the film. This really opened eyes about how different things were in the U.S. school system from other parts of the world. Sadly it shows that the system failed on many different levels when it came to education and I am sure it is still failing today. But that was such a small part of the film, there are plenty of good things as well including how well people communicated face to face before there was social media for cell phones in everyone's hand. The days when you left your house to go out and make friends or spend time with friends you already have.
A lot of what these kids did in 1984 we all can relate to, partying and hanging out with friends. There are certainly a lot of good memories to relive. "All American High Revisited" is often very funny and touching at times as well. The idea of revisiting some of these students now to see how they are doing and if they followed their dreams after graduation was fun to watch as well. Some ended up doing what they wanted to do well others did not but it seems like they are living their lives and are happy.
I really enjoyed watching this documentary and I highly recommend checking out this fun film. I believe that it will bring back memories of your own high school years as well. Available now on DVD, you can order it HERE.
Released by Virgil Films and Entertainment
***** Out Of *****