Three O'Clock High

Customer Reviews:

A Forgotten Gem.......2007-08-17

This is one of the best high school movies of the 80's. I loved it then and love it now.

I can't help it, I love this movie.......2007-03-07

The 80's spawned one high school teen movie after another, and John Hughes was the king of that genre. But somehow along the way among the Breakfast Clubs and the Pretty in Pinks, Three O'Clock High got overlooked. It's quite rare when I actually meet someone who's heard of this comedy gem. I had quite a lot of trouble even finding a copy of it on DVD and was going to purchase a copy here on Amazon, but finally found it at a buy/sell/trade store in Hollywood.

So anyway, while I am very happy to finally have this movie on DVD in widescreen for the first time, instead of watching it on my VCR on a recorded scratchy tape, I was a little dissapointed that there were no features whatsoever on this disc (movie reccomendations don't count, you can get plenty of those on Amazon). Further proof that not enough people know or care about this movie.

Furthermore, Casey Siemaszko, the star, the heart and soul of this movie, failed to develop as a lead actor since this movie never really got any recognition, (he had a lot of supporting roles in the late 80s such as Young Guns, Stand By Me and Back to the Future) which is a shame because he is too funny in this movie. The movie has a good cast too, even though the antagonist of the film who looks 15 years too old to be in high school, he's the perfect school bully. Not to mention this movie has the best school yard fight you'll ever see.

Please, check this one out. John Hughes isn't the only one who could make good 80's highschool movies and this is certainly one of the best ones.

Great 80's flick, but watch out for the language!.......2007-03-01

This movie was filmed at my high school, and a lot of my friends are in it as extras. I remember watching it back in the 1980's and thinking it was so great, which it is very funny. I hadn't seen it for years so I recently bought the dvd so that I could show it to my kids. We sat down to watch it as a family, and I was quickly reminded of the frequent foul language in it. I hadn't taken much notice of this as a teen, but now that I have kids myself I was a bit shocked and wishing that I had some way to edit this movie! It's a fun watch, as long as you are prepared for some strong words.

Unlikely Hero.......2007-02-28

This movie follows in the footsteps of John Hughes-style, coming of age classics like 'Sixteen Candles' and 'Weird Science'. It is an absolutely hilarious movie from start to finish. Lots of funny high school moments that you can totally relate to. And an ending that will tickle your funny bone and warm your heart. I have watched this movie more than six times and I love sharing it with friends and family(they are always amazed).A must have.

"Looks like its going to be one of those days Jerry".......2006-12-07

Three O'clock High is one of the best 80's teen films there was. Unfortunately, it didn't seem to attain the instant cult status that other films of similar theme like "Fast Times at Ridgemont High" and "Ferris Bueller's day off" did.

Nearly 20 years after its release, Three O'clock High is still a film that is classic in every aspect of 1980's high school antics on the big screen. With big hair, colorful clothes and an instrumental soundtrack from Tangerine Dream, the film takes us back to the day Jerry Mitchell met Buddy Revell.

Buddy Revell (played by Richard Tyson, who in film would later go on to be a pilot in "Black Hawk Down", a sinister villain in "Kindergarten Cop" and an intense Detective in "There's Something about Mary") is a new kid in school. The problem is, he's a problem child. He's big, mean and has been known to go ballistic when people touch him. Revell arrives at this new high school amid a swarm of urban legends and hallway gossip that strike fear into the student body. Jerry Mitchell is a kid who works at the school bookstore, has an occult obsessed girlfriend who is more wannabe than weird, and a friend who works on the school paper with him. The friend is in charge of finding someone to to interview Buddy to find out more about him. Through an accidental meeting in the bathroom, Jerry conveys the papers intentions to Buddy, which by now has held a sneer so long he is being compared to Charles Manson. Jerry makes the mistake of patting Buddy on the shoulder, and the rest is history: Buddy informs Jerry to meet him at 3:00pm so that they can fight. The problem? Buddy looks like a large axe murder while Jerry resembles more of a kid who is on his way to becoming an accountant or something.

The rest of the day plays out in a series of bizarre events that are wrapped up in some high school fact as well as teenage spoof reel. Jerry goes through a variety of antics to get out of the fight, and in the process slowly turns his own good image into one of trouble. By noon the entire school not only knows of the fight, but also is taking bets on how long Jerry will last. It appears Jerry is doomed, and as he continues to try and do everything he can to change things, the acts only backfire to keep him within the walls of his high school till the sound of the final bell. The movie does an excellent job in the execution of the overall filming, as it does many quick zoom shots as well as odd angles to add to the uniqueness of the overall experience we see as Jerry goes about his day.

The film is nostalgic but not too cheesy on the time period of the 80's, which is easy to scoff at now. The attention of the film is centered on the characters and the storyline a bit more than others of its genre. From the school disciplinarian resembling a Prison Warden to the constant guilt trips the principal plays on Jerry about his permanent record being marred, its idealisms and humor are easily recognizable. Tyson is superb as the scary, imposing bully type student while Casey Siemasziko does a great job portraying the small, pale student named Jerry Mitchell, who despite having a bad day, ends up finding out what its all about to stand up for yourself. A classic 80's film that never, ever got the credit it deserved.

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