With Honors (1994)

With Honors takes a familiar campus setup and gives it a jolt of humanity, thanks largely to Joe Pesci, who trades his usual menace for a scrappy, big-hearted volatility that’s impossible to ignore. The movie’s pleasure is in the push-and-pull between ambition and empathy: Brendan Fraser’s tightly wound Harvard striver thinks he’s negotiating for pages, but he’s really being negotiated into adulthood. Alek Keshishian keeps the vibe warm and witty without dodging the ache underneath, letting the laughs land while the emotional stakes quietly deepen. It can be a bit earnest and neatly structured in that mid-’90s crowd-pleaser way, but if you’re open to a comedy-drama that sneaks up on you with genuine feeling, this one earns its title.

With Honors wants to be a heartfelt odd-couple dramedy about a privileged overachiever getting a crash course in empathy from a homeless man, and you can feel the filmmakers reaching for something sincere. The problem is it often plays like a made-to-inspire lesson plan: the plot mechanics are contrived, the emotional turns are telegraphed, and the movie leans hard on sentiment when it should trust the audience. If you’re allergic to “life-changing mentor” stories that hit every predictable beat, this will likely feel manipulative rather than moving. That said, Joe Pesci brings real bite and warmth, and Brendan Fraser’s earnestness helps the film land enough human moments to work if you’re in the mood for a soft, 90s crowd-pleaser.