Editing Saves the Day

Walter Murch, an acclaimed editor, identifies film editing as an “art form” that demands the same level of detail and craft of any other art form (Raj). As an art form, however, editing creates, manipulates, and juxtaposes a narrative that clearly conveys the director’s vision (Raj). Michael R. Miller, the film editor for Alek Keshishian’s 1994 film, With Honors, also identifies film editing as a craft that is almost entirely analytical in form (Zahos).  According to Zachary Zahos’ interview with Miller, the task of a film editor has been to condense dozens or hundreds of hours of film footage to a about two hour film.  As an analytical thinker, a film editor orders and structures over a dozen hours of footage that lack coherent pacing, and temporal movement of a film’s cinematography and soundscape (Raj).

With Honors is directed by Alek Keshishian and written by William Mastrosimone for a US release date of April 29, 1994 (With Honors).  The film is produced by Spring Creek Production and Warner Brothers, and the film made a gross amount of $20,043,254 in the United States (With Honors). With a runtime of one hour and 43 minutes, the film’s plot begins with Montgomery Kessler or Monty (Brendan Fraser), a Harvard student, who is obsessed with completing his graduate thesis (Keshishian). In terms of the film’s genre, Monty provides the film with its dramatic tone. Conversely, Simon Wilder (Joe Pesci), a homeless man, who sought warmth and comfort in the furnace room of the Harvard Widener Library (IMDb). In order to understand the plot of the film, one must understand the dichotomy between the drama and comedy genre, which is reflected by Monty and Simon Wilder (IMDb). Because the plot of the film attempted to present a drama/comedy hybrid, the film lacks the ability to explore the realities of homelessness and educational achievement (Caryn).
   

After the film’s plot establishes Monty’s obsession with successes and academic honor, the film quickly escalates with Monty’s first conflict with Simon (Keshishian). Monty’s journey towards graduation is abruptly diverted with a computer overload, which erases Monty’s digital copy of his thesis (Keshishian). With one hard copy left, Monty runs outside to make copies, but he slips and loses his copy inside the furnace room (IMDb).  After falling inside the furnace room of the library, Simon keeps the Monty’s thesis hostage in exchange for food and shelter (Keshishian). With this incident, Simon is evicted from the library and the story begins to unfold. In addition to the two main protagonist of the story, Monty’s growth throughout the plot is supplemented by three supporting characters. Moira Kelly as Courtney Blumenthal plays Monty’s love interest, while Patrick Dempsey as Everett Calloway and Josh Hamilton as Jeffrey Hawks portray Monty’s eccentric friends (With Honors).

In the opening credit scenes of With Honors, the film begins with long shot of Harvard University on a snowy morning in Boston Massachusetts (Keshishian). In addition to establishing the setting of the film, a voice over of Everett Calloway’s enters the scene as a host for the local college radio station. With its slow orchestral music, the sixty second opening scene transitions from a long shot of the roof tops of Harvard to dissolve to the protagonist’s home outside campus, see image#1 (Keshishian). Once the film transitions to Monty’s house, the camera tilts downward to show Monty leaving his house, and the camera then tracks alongside Monty running to campus, see image#1 (Keshishian). The dissolve between the credit and opening scenes during the editing process allows for the passage of time while remaining in the same location (Raj). These two sequences exemplify a successful balance between a dramatic and comedic tone, which degrades towards the high point of the film.

Image#1 Keshishian, Alek, Joe Pesci, Brendan Fraser, Moira Kelly, Patrick Dempsey, Josh Hamilton, and Michael R. Miller. With Honors. Burbank, CA: Distributed by Warner Home Video, 2009.

After the twenty second opening sequence of With Honors, the camera cuts to a long shot of Monty running towards the camera, see image#2 (Keshishian). Then, the camera pans towards the left of the scene to highlight a homeless man at the entrance of Harvard University (Keshishian). Within ten seconds, the scene of Monty running past a homeless man (who may or may not be Simon) foreshadows Monty’s relationship with Simon later in the film (Keshishian). Subsequently, the camera cuts to a medium shot of Monty running and glancing out to the distance, and then to a long shot of students running, see image#2 (Keshishian). After the long shot, the camera cuts once again to a single medium close up shot of Monty reacting to what he is seeing, see image#2 (Keshishian). After a reaction shot reflects Monty’s state of mind, the camera cuts to a medium close-up of Courtney Blumenthal running with her Harvard sweater and hoodie, see image#2 (Keshishian). These two scenes illustrate how editing can increase or decrease the pacing of the film while also highlighting the psychological mindset of one of the protagonist.

Image#2: Keshishian, Alek, Joe Pesci, Brendan Fraser, Moira Kelly, Patrick Dempsey, Josh Hamilton, and Michael R. Miller. With Honors. Burbank, CA: Distributed by Warner Home Video, 2009.

Towards the apex of the film, Calloway is hosting his college radio show with Simon as his radio guest, see image#3. In this scene, the camera continuously tracks 90 degrees around Everett and Simon, which creates a certain level of intimacy (Keshishian). The intimacy of the scene is extended further when the camera cuts to a medium close up of Monty and Courtney sitting in their living room, see image#3 (Keshishian). The cut transition to the Monty and Courtney is linked to the previous scene by extending a voice over of Everett and Simon. The camera then completes a 180 degree track by ending the scene with an profile medium shot of Simon, see image#3 (Keshishian). The visual sequence of this scene ends with the camera cutting to a long shot of Monty, Courtney, and Jeffrey Hawks sitting in the living room (Keshishian). The radio scene in With Honors illustrates a specific style of editing known as “continuity editing” (Raj). Continuity editing allows the film editor to maintain temporal and spatial relationship between the characters, while being in different locations (Raj).

Image#3: Keshishian, Alek, Joe Pesci, Brendan Fraser, Moira Kelly, Patrick Dempsey, Josh Hamilton, and Michael R. Miller. With Honors. Burbank, CA: Distributed by Warner Home Video, 2009.

In film editing, there are two types of editing styles that have been implemented throughout the history of film: continuity and discontinuity editing” (Raj) In regards to the film’s story and plot, the choice of continuity or discontinuity editing effects the way the audience responses to the film. Unlike continuity editing, discontinuity editing may be a distraction because it interrupts the temporal and spatial construct of the film with jump cuts (Raj). As a style favored by mainstream filmmakers, continuity editing becomes invisible to the audience, while also reinforcing the continuous illusion of time and space in the plot (Raj). Overall, as an art form, film editing can either elevate a director’s vision or amplify the weaknesses within the story and plot.

In my opinion, Alek Keshishian’s 1994 film, With Honors, suffers because the film’s story fails to balance the drama and comedy of the film, and the characters that reflect both genres. In other word, the film fails to fulfill the potential which is alluded in Calloway’s voice over during the opening credit scenes of the film:

You are at the greatest University on earth. You know what? You are way over your head, you are drowning, especially you seniors. Only 150 days before your thesis is due and the powers that be decide whether you are destined for greatness or mediocrity. I know what you are thinking; do I really belong here…but don’t give in, don’t give up. Arise fair Harvard, arise, you too can rule the world; you just have to crush everyone first (Keshishian).

Because the film is unable to balance the characters of  Monty and Simon, and the drama and comedy they represent. Subsequently, Simon comes across as an unrealistic and highly improbable character (Caryn). The story only alludes to the reasons behind Simon’s homelessness, but does not directly show those reasons. While the film highlights Simon’s relationship with Monty, Simon still seems to be unnecessary to the story. As a result, the film lacks a strong character development of Simon, which reflects negatively on Monty. By the end of the film, the resolution of the plot film seems contrived and forced. However, the film is enjoyable watching experience because of Michale Miller film editing, which highlights the potential of the director's vision.

Works Cited

James, Caryn. “With Honors (1994) Review/Film; Some Collegiate Help for a Homeless Zany.” The New York Times. nytimes.com, Inc. 29 April  1994. Web. 25 March 2014. http://www.nytimes.com/movie/review?res=9906e0d61430f93aa15757c0a962958260

The Internet Movie Database. IMDb.com, Inc, nd, Web. 13 March 2014. http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0371059/

Keshishian, Alek, Joe Pesci, Brendan Fraser, Moira Kelly, Patrick Dempsey, Josh Hamilton, and Michael R. Miller. With Honors. Burbank, CA: Distributed by Warner Home Video, 2009.

Raj, Sony. “Film Editing.” St. Thomas University. Miami Gardens, Flordia. 13 March 2014. Lecture.

Raj, Sony. “How to Analyze a Film.” St. Thomas University. Miami Gardens, Flordia. 16 January 2014. Lecture.
“With Honors”. The Internet Movie Database. IMDb.com, Inc, nd, Web. 13 March 2014. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0111732/

Zahos, Zachary. “Cutting to the Chase.” The Cornell Daily Sun. CornellSun.com/blog. 05 October 2012. Web. 25 March 2014. http://cornellsun.com/blog/2012/10/05/cutting-to-the-chase/