Film

The Freshman

Name: The Freshman
Genre: Comedy, Crime
Released: 1990
Cast: Marlon Brando, Matthew Broderick, Bruno Kirby, Penelope Ann Miller, Frank Whaley

Other titles called The Freshman: the 1925 film.

Parody

A film student arriving in New York gets mugged, befriends a mysterious older man, and accidentally becomes entangled in an elaborate crime scheme. It's a clever, affectionate comedy that plays with Brando's own legend and mob movie tropes, mixing slapstick with surprisingly smart satirical observations. Perfect for anyone who loves films about cinema itself.

TMDb rating

3.2

Should you watch it?

Watch it if you enjoy gentle, character-based comedies about film lovers, where the joke is an affectionate send-up of movie mythology and a star playing with his own legend.

Skip it if you need fast, joke-a-minute farce, since this is a loose, easygoing caper that often relaxes into wandering scenes and lets its gags land softly.

What it asks of you: Settle in for a leisurely hour and forty-two minutes, happy to drift with a shaggy plot and long stretches of easy chatter between bits of mischief.

Not sure? Find tonight's pick in a minute.

If you liked this

Ocean's Eleven2001

A heist film built on charm, ensemble chemistry, and the joy of watching smart people pull off something audacious. It moves fast, looks great, and never takes itself seriously enough to stop being fun.

But If you want genuine stakes or surprising plot turns, the actual scheme is secondary to the movie's vibe. Rewatchability matters more than suspense.

Coming to America1988

Eddie Murphy in peak form, playing with movie mythology and genre tropes with the same affectionate irreverence. It's a romance, a comedy, and a celebration of the absurd, all at once.

But The humour is broad and occasionally dated. Some gags land with thuds. It's very much a product of its moment.

Trading Places1983

Acommedy caper that's genuinely clever, mixing social satire with physical comedy and genuine twists. Eddie Murphy and Dan Aykroyd together are unstoppable, and the film earns its increasingly ridiculous finale.

But Cold start—the first twenty minutes are a bit listless before the premise kicks in. You're trusting the punchline for a while.

Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from The Freshman

The wildcard

Something you would not have found on your own.

Eating Raoul1982

Both films find comedy in crime schemes driven by ordinary people caught in absurd circumstances, and both use genre parody to satirize American greed and desperation.

A deeply weird comedy where a prudish couple becomes accidentally involved in a scheme to make money. It's transgressive and darkly hilarious, with real affection for its bizarre premise and moral questions about desperation and survival.

But It's intentionally gross and morally ambiguous. The humour comes from discomfort, and it never quite winks at the audience reassuringly.

Midnight Run1988

Robert De Niro as a bounty hunter chasing Charles Grodin across America. Endlessly quotable, genuinely funny, with a buddy-film heart and action sequences that still hold up. Grodin is a comedic genius.

But It's episodic and rambling by design. If you want tight plotting and escalating stakes, this meanders.

After Hours1985

Scorsese made a comedy. It's a nightmare fever dream where a young man's night in SoHo spirals into increasingly surreal chaos. Darkly hilarious, wildly inventive, utterly unique.

But It's grim and claustrophobic—the comedy is built on discomfort and things getting steadily worse. Not a feel-good film.

Ghostbusters II1989

The same cast, five years later, reunited for another romp through supernatural New York. It's warmer and sillier than the first, with genuine affection for its ensemble and their familiar rhythms together.

But It's knowingly just a riff on the original. If you want something new rather than a victory lap, it won't deliver.

The Pink Panther1963

Peter Sellers as Inspector Clouseau, a bumbling detective who's hilariously confident in his incompetence. Directed by Blake Edwards, it's precisely constructed slapstick that rewards close attention.

But The comedy is wordless and physical—if that style doesn't click for you, there's nothing else holding it together.

Troop Beverly Hills1989

Shelley Long as a wealthy divorcée leading a Girl Scout troop in LA. It's genuinely warm, surprisingly clever about gender and class, and funnier than it has any right to be.

But It's a studio comedy from 1989, so some jokes land softer than they did. The sentimentality creeps up on you.

The Witches of Eastwick1987

Three women dealing with boredom and desire in a small town when a mysterious man arrives. It's sexy, funny, genuinely unsettling, and features Jack Nicholson at maximum scenery-chewing madness.

But The tone zigzags wildly between comedy and genuine threat. Some viewers find that jarring rather than delightful.

Sullivan's Travels1941

Both are love letters to cinema itself, using a protagonist who learns about filmmaking and the gap between cinematic fantasy and real human need as the engine for their comedy.

Preston Sturges's masterpiece about a successful comedy director who wants to make 'serious art' and learns what actually matters. It's endlessly inventive, deeply funny, and genuinely moving without ever losing its edge.

But It's a 1941 film—black and white, paced differently, and the final turn is emotionally serious rather than comedic. It requires patience with a different era of filmmaking.