He was on his way to the Dean's List, but he wound up on the hit list.
After a film student gets his belongings stolen, he meets a mobster bearing a startling resemblance to a certain cinematic godfather. Soon, he finds himself caught up in a caper involving endangered species and fine dining.
The Freshman (1990) is a comedy and crime film directed by Andrew Bergman, released on July 20, 1990 with a runtime of 1h 42m. It stars Marlon Brando, Matthew Broderick, Bruno Kirby and Penelope Ann Miller. Viewers rate it 6.3 out of 10 across 317 ratings.
Watch the official trailer for The Freshman before you stream it.
Marlon Brando
as Carmine Sabatini, aka Jimmy The Toucan
Matthew Broderick
as Clark Kellogg
Bruno Kirby
as Victor Ray
Penelope Ann Miller
as Tina Sabatini
Frank Whaley
as Steve Bushak
Jon Polito
as Chuck Greenwald
Kenneth Welsh
as Dwight Armstrong
Richard Gant
as Lloyd Simpson
Jefferson Mappin
as Hunter
Maximilian Schell
as Larry London
Paul Benedict
as Arthur Fleeber
BD Wong
as Edward
Directed by Andrew Bergman, written by Andrew Bergman, produced by Mike Lobell.
Average viewer score of 6.3/10 from 317 ratings.
Fresh or Ripe? The Freshman is a sort of comedy drama sprinkled with self aware barbs at film analysis. It’s a great opportunity to see Marlon Brando relaxed and fully playing up the self-parody angle. Plot finds Matthew Broderick as Clark Kellog, a film student arriving in New York who through unfortunate circumstances ends up working for a man who is not too dissimilar from Don Corleone! Writer and director…
Reviewed on November 16, 2014
"The Freshman" is a very entertaining and satisfying film on every level when it could have been nothing more than a one joke, one dimensional novelity based upon the very appetising prospect not of a Komondo dragon banquet, but of watching Marlon Brando successfully reprising his Academy Award winning triumph as Don Vito Corleone purely for laughs this time around. Of course, this limited idea would have been…
Reviewed on February 20, 2026
1978
2008
1977
2009
2012
2007
1992
2007
1988
2017
1976
2002
2003
1941
1998
2016
1924
1997
2018
2022
1971
2002
2008
2019
2003
2006
1976
1973
2009
2000
1991
1994
1993
2022
1977
2002
1970
2004
2001
2017
The Freshman (1990) is available to stream on Amazon Prime Video, Amazon Prime Video with Ads and Howdy Amazon Channel, and to rent or buy from Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube and Fandango At Home. Streaming availability is checked against JustWatch data and can change by region.
The main cast of The Freshman (1990) includes Marlon Brando, Matthew Broderick, Bruno Kirby, Penelope Ann Miller and Frank Whaley. The film was directed by Andrew Bergman. You can see the full cast and crew list, with character names, further up this page.
The Freshman was released on July 20, 1990 and runs for 1h 42m.
The Freshman (1990) holds an average rating of 6.3 out of 10 from 317 viewer votes, and is a good pick if you enjoy comedy and crime films. Read the viewer reviews on this page to decide for yourself.
Yes. The official The Freshman trailer is embedded in the trailer section of this page and plays instantly, no download or sign-up required.
