Three O'Clock High (1987)

User Rating:

6.9/10   

Director:

Phil Joanou

Writers:

Richard Christian Matheson (written by) &
Thomas E. Szollosi (written by)

Release Date:

9 October 1987 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Fantasy

Tagline:

Jerry Mitchell just bumped into Buddy Revell. Now Jerry isn't thinking about math or english. Because at three o'clock, he's history.

Plot:

A high school nerd, Jerry Mitchell (Siemaszko) is assigned to write a piece for the school paper about new boy Buddy Revell (Tyson)...

Plot Keywords:

School | Fight | High School | Bully Comeuppance | Money

Cast

Casey Siemaszko	...	Jerry Mitchell
Annie Ryan	...	Franny Perrins (as Anne Ryan)
Richard Tyson	...	Buddy Revell
Stacey Glick	...	Brei Mitchell
Jonathan Wise	...	Vincent Costello
Jeffrey Tambor	...	Mr. Rice
Philip Baker Hall	...	Detective Mulvahill
John P. Ryan	...	Mr. O'Rourke
Liza Morrow	...	Karen Clarke
Scott Schutzman Tiler	...	Bruce Chalmer (as Scott Tiler)
Guy Massey	...	Scott Cranston
Theron Read	...	Mark Bojeekus
Mike Jolly	...	Craig Mattey
Charles Macaulay	...	Voytek Dolinski
Mitch Pileggi	...	Duke Herman

Also Known As:

3:00 High (USA) (alternative spelling)
After School (USA) (working title)
One of These Days (USA) (working title)
The Bell Rings at Three (USA) (working title)

Runtime:

97 min | USA:101 min | USA:90 min (DVD)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

UK:15 | Iceland:12 | West Germany:16 | Australia:M | USA:PG-13

Filming Locations:

Ogden High School - 2828 Harrison Blvd., Ogden, Utah, USA

Company:

Universal Pictures

Trivia:

The name Hugh Conlon III is on the blackboard behind Jerry when he is in Mr. D.'s office. Hugh Conlon was the movie's construction coordinator.

Goofs:

Continuity: Jerry's injuries from the fight disappear when the police arrive.

Quotes:

Buddy Revell: You and me, we're gonna have a fight. Today. After school. Three o'clock. In the parking lot. You try and run, I'm gonna track you down. You go to a teacher, it's only gonna get worse. You sneak home, I'm gonna be under your bed.

Movie Connections:

References Risky Business (1983)

Soundtrack:

Something To Remember Me By

Very good, sadly ignored, teen movie of the 1980s.

This is a teen comedy from the 1980s, every bit as good as anything made by John Hughes in those days (Breakfast Club, 16 Candles, etc.).

The plot: our hero, Jerry, is assigned by the school newspaper to interview the new kid at school. The new kid, Buddy, is a big thug with an attitude. To make his reputation, Buddy bullies and intimidates Jerry, and tells Jerry that, come three o'clock, he is going to beat him up. Jerry spends the rest of the day trying to get out of participating in the fight.

The story is full of the usual parodies of teen-aged stereotypes, but they are somehow more believable and human than the characters in most films of this genre. The protagonist, for example, suffers from under-confidence resulting from being hypoglycemic. The story is all about him overcoming his under-confidence (a process we all go through in high school), which is a really common plot in teen movies. What comes through in this film is that *all* of the students are going through the same process. The cool, spooky girl next door turns out not to be so cool, underneath. The hero's buddy tries to help in the struggle, but gets sick of him and abandons him. The villainous tough ends up feeling ashamed of himself. These comic characters stick with you because they are so much like real teenagers: naive, under-confident, and overreaching.