Fresh (1994)

I have very little criticism for the movie Fresh. There just isn't really anything there TO criticize. This movie is one of the few that is close to cinematic perfection...yes, it's THAT good.

Young Michael (or Fresh) witnesses the horrors of street life every day. His mother is gone, his father is a virtual bum, he loses his friends to violence, his sister is a prostitute, and he is a runner for the drug lords of his neighborhood. Not surprisingly, Fresh isn't content with his lifestyle and is determined to make life better not only for him, but for his sister as well.

The movie sounds like a standard cliche film, but this is far from the truth. Fresh is a breath of fresh air in the realm of movie redundancy and predictability. There is no overacting, use of gratuitous violence or sex, or unbelievable plots to spoil this little gem. Young Sean Nelson is as gifted as any veteran actor and carries this movie on his small shoulders. Yes, he is simply *that* good. Fortunately, he is supported by a fabulous cast in Samuel Jackson as his father, N'Bushe Wright as his prostitue sister, and Giancarlo Esposito as the local drug dealer.

There are no big budget shootouts, no computer enhanced scenes, or ridiculously cliche special effects. No, Fresh relies on the very basics of moviemaking: acting, plot, setting, and direction. And it succeeds where so many others have failed.

All of this is woven into an intelligent and entertaining movie that is as close to perfection as Pulp Fiction. Undoubtedly, it is that good.

Fresh earns a 10 out of 10 stars rating and I highly recommend this movie to anyone who enjoys seeing what movies SHOULD be.

Fmovies: Perfect accident because as director Yakin explains, while casting, he almost overloooked Sean Nelson for the part of Fresh and then there would have been no Fresh.

Perfect accident because, tired of Hollywood, Yakin had almost given up on ever making something he felt he could identify with, till friend and producer Lawrence Bender hit the jackpot with Reservoir Dogs and made space for Fresh to be born.

Perfect accident because former The Police-drummer Stewart Copeland writes a beautiful non-rap score that frees Fresh from becoming just another political statement about inner-city living conditions, yet highlights the sparkle and charm of the characters.

Perfect accident because the mastery of Samuel Jackson and Giancarlo Esposito blend to perfection with the innocence of such a young cast.

Perfect accident because Boaz Yakin - away from the constraints of major league production (THANKS AGAIN MIRAMAX and French producers Lumière!!) was able to smash this trash some call Political Correctness to pieces and tell a great story, the way he felt it, not caring where he trod, unafraid of those susceptible-many who confuse storytelling with an accusatory poke in the ribs.

I honestly don't see how such thrilling honest and human films will ever be made while US citizens keep sending signals to Hollywood that all they want is something brainless to go along with their soda and popcorn. Take drugs! They're far more effective and leave cinema to those who want to use their imagination.

Fresh was a very unique movie, the opening montage was great and the dialogue was so realistic to the point where li'l kids in the ghetto are talkin' about bein' rich and Scarsdale, NY which really impressed me 'cause Scarsdale is a rich neighborhood. Sean Nelson in a great role as Fresh the young drug dealer who's livin' in a home with 10-11 other relatives and has to move crack in order to survive. N'Bushe Wright shows up in her most depressing role as Fresh's under-confident sister - you really feel sorry for her in this as well as a few others. Giancarlo Esposito is cool to watch as Esteban, A drug dealer that looks out for Fresh and the other top-tier performance comes in the form of Ron Brice as Corky the other drug dealer who is ruthless and demands that you do what you have to while he's looking and not behind his back. We already know Samuel L. Jackson would give a good performance that's no surprise at all.

Good story about the ghetto life and the drug game from the eyes of those around it. The ending in this epitomizes the saying "every man for himself"

another gunshot in the air for the ghetto genre 10/10

Fresh fmovies. "Fresh" (Nelson), the title character and a black kid in his early teens, is a runner for low level drug distributors in the mean streets of NYC with a plan to get out of the ghetto. He plays speed chess with his estranged father and stashes money in a tin can but his plan goes well beyond just saving for a bus ticket. "Fresh" offers good production value, par performances, somewhat stereotypical characters, and lots of grit. However, what sets this critically lauded flick apart from its peers is a human drama with a clever storyline which transcend the usual stuck-in-the-ghetto flicks full of sensational crime stuff. An engaging watch for those into drug/ghetto/crime flicks. (B)

I watched 'Fresh' again recently, with several other examples of

its genre (urban crime drama, or words to that effect). It

stands out head and shoulders above the rest as an engaging and

intelligent film. Part of 'Fresh's strength is that it belies

many of the genre's expected conventions. Rap music is vaguely

incidental, giving way to a poignant soundtrack by Stewart

Copeland. For once, gang life, alcoholism, and drug addiction

are never glamourized as they are simultaneously condemned...

the fault of so many films which purport to be morally aware of

the destructive nature of these things (but seem to say,

backhandedly, "isn't T-Bone a badd mutha, though?") And as

another reviewer noted, the central character as an intellectual

prodigy is neither a joke nor a gimmick, his mind is the means

of his survival and eventually his triumph over the forces

around him. The cast is excellent, the standouts being an

extraordinary debut by Sean Nelson as the Fresh and the reliable

Samuel L. Jackson as his alcoholic speed-chess-master father.

The final scene is one of the most devastating and memorable

scenes in the last decade of films. The sincerity and unpredictability of 'Fresh' are unparalleled in films of its

type.

Many comments confirm the strength of this movie in simple manipulation of an camera eye. Well, that's true. You will not find any fancy FXs here. But, does it make the picture less spectacular? Of course not. Script is brilliant. Whole plot resembles well played chess game telling the story about violence and losing innocence. This is not only a game in an explicit chess meaning. Main characters , wonderfully played by S. L. Jackson and Sean Nelson, are playing chess with themselves, struggling with their lives. There is another aspect of chess game that accompanies the plot till the end. Throughout duration of the movie chess puzzle gets clear. We can finally see where 'Fresh' is heading to and what he wants to achieve through his plan. Anyway, Boaz Yakin made one of the best movies of 94' , really worth seeing.

Mariusz Pelka