Editing technique · used in 6 films
Squeezing a long period of training under a teacher into a short sequence of quick clips. You watch failed attempts turn into small wins, which makes the student's growth believable.
Examples
John G. Avildsen · 1976
Rocky's first early run ends with him gasping at the top of the steps. Once Mickey takes him on, the 'Gonna Fly Now' montage squeezes weeks of work into a few minutes. You watch him get faster and stronger. The second time up the steps, he sprints.
Where to see it: The 'Gonna Fly Now' montage. Rocky does one-armed push-ups, works the heavy bag and runs through the city, then raises his arms at the top of the museum steps.
Irvin Kershner · 1980
Luke's training with Yoda is shown as a series of exercises that he gets better and better at. Each failure and small success builds toward the Force lift. The montage lets the film show Luke developing without dramatizing every lesson. It trusts the build-up of moments to get his growth across.
Where to see it: Luke's Dagobah training sequences. They lead to the Force vision cave.
John G. Avildsen · 1984
Miyagi has Daniel wash and wax cars, sand a floor and paint a fence. Quick clips of repeated motion make days pass in a minute. Then Miyagi throws a punch, and Daniel blocks it with the same arm movements he used for the chores.
Where to see it: The chores. Daniel works on Miyagi's cars, floor and fence with the famous wax on, wax off motions, then finds he can block Miyagi's strikes.
Ridley Scott · 1997
Weeks of training under Master Chief Urgayle are squeezed into quick scenes of drills: obstacle courses, dunes, rafts. You watch her struggle, then slowly keep up. The film uses these short bursts to show her earning her place without making you sit through every day of it.
Where to see it: The obstacle course: O'Neil is offered a 30-second allowance for being a woman. She refuses it and asks to be held to the same standard as the men.
Richard Linklater · 2003
Dewey overhears the kids in music class and decides to turn them into a band. He plays Zack riffs like "Iron Man" and "Smoke on the Water" and gives every other kid a job, from backup singer to roadie. The film moves through the practice quickly, so each kid's growth feels earned.
Where to see it: Dewey teaching Zack the riffs: Dewey plays Zack famous guitar riffs, and the lessons turn a kid with a disapproving father into the band's lead guitarist.
Clint Eastwood · 2004
Eastwood's training montages are there to build character. They show the specific, gruff tenderness of Frankie's methods and Maggie's ferocious will. You watch a relationship form through physical discipline.
Where to see it: The early training sequences in the Hit Pit gym. Frankie's reluctant corrections turn into a kind of devotion he refuses to name.
Questions