With Honors

1994
PG-13
1h 41m

IMDb RATING

6.7/10

16K

YOUR RATING

Brendan Fraser, Joe Pesci, Patrick Dempsey, Josh Hamilton, and Moira Kelly in With Honors (1994)

Theatrical Trailer from Warner Bros. Pictures

Play trailer2:04

1 Video

42 Photos

Comedy Drama

Convinced his thesis will have him graduate with honors from Harvard University, a stuffy student finds himself at the mercy of a homeless man's demands when he holds the papers hostage.Convinced his thesis will have him graduate with honors from Harvard University, a stuffy student finds himself at the mercy of a homeless man's demands when he holds the papers hostage.Convinced his thesis will have him graduate with honors from Harvard University, a stuffy student finds himself at the mercy of a homeless man's demands when he holds the papers hostage.

See production info at IMDbPro

IMDb RATING

6.7/10

16K

YOUR RATING

See production info at IMDbPro

Awards
- 4 nominations

Trivia
Claudia Haro, who plays Marty (the girl who asks Simon to dance at the party), was married to Joe Pesci at the time.

Goofs
In the courtroom, Simon says he was not trespassing because Harvard is a Land-Grant School. Harvard is a private institution. The state's land-grant college is the University of Massachusetts at Amherst.

Quotes
Simon Wilder: You asked the question, sir, now let me answer it. The beauty of the Constitution is that it can always be changed. The beauty of the Constitution is that it makes no set law other than faith in the wisdom of ordinary people to govern themselves.
Proffesor Pitkannan: Faith in the wisdom of the people is exactly what makes the Constitution incomplete and crude.
Simon Wilder: Crude? No, sir. Our "founding parents" were pompous, white, middle-aged farmers, but they were also great men. Because they knew one thing that all great men should know: that they didn't know everything. Sure, they'd make mistakes, but they made sure to leave a way to correct them. The president is not an "elected king," no matter how many bombs he can drop. Because the "crude" Constitution doesn't trust him. He's just a bum, okay Mr. Pitkannan? He's just a bum.

Alternate versions
The Warner Bros. Pictures logo is plastered in the digital releases with the 2003 logo.

Connections
Featured in Madonna: I'll Remember (1994)

Soundtracks
She Sells Sanctuary
Written by Ian Astbury (as Ian Robert Astbury) and Billy Duffy (as William Henry Duffy)
Performed by The Cult
Courtesy of Sire Records/Beggars Banquet
By Arrangement with Warner Special Products

User reviews87

Review

Featured review

10/10

Terrific, moving film.

"With Honors" and the French-Canadian film "Jesus of Montreal" are my two favorite films, period. "With Honors" means so much to me...it takes on an issue - homelessness - that most film studios won't touch with a ten-foot pole. Then, it manages to make a funny, warm, touching film that's also fairly mainstream in its appeal. It's amazing that someone could make a film largely about a homeless man into a commercially acceptable film without sugar-coating the issue, but they did it.

Stellar performances abound here, including Joe Pesci, Brendan Fraser, Josh Hamilton, and the spectacular Moira Kelly. With a great performance by the priceless Gore Vidal - who's also in another of my favorite films, "Bob Roberts."

There are also some nice shots of the Harvard University campus, and the film accurately re-creates the turmoil, joy, and passion and the hundred other emotions that come with college life.