The Freshman (1990) * * * 1/2

Directed by:  Andrew Bergman

Starring:  Marlon Brando, Matthew Broderick, Bruno Kirby, Penelope Ann Miller, Jon Polito, Paul Benedict, Richard Gant, Frank Whaley, Maximilian Schell

I watched The Freshman with a consistent grin.   No wonder.   Marlon Brando essentially reprises and tweaks his own Don Vito Corleone.   How great is it to see the Don one more time?    Granted, Brando's character is named Carmine Sabatini, but he is The Godfather.    One character says, "The movie based The Godfather on him."   How can you not watch The Freshman and cherish it just for this fact alone?     There is more to like about The Freshman, however, than just Brando.     It is goofy, intelligent fun and light as a feather, with a giant Komodo Dragon thrown in for good measure.    

Broderick stars as Vermont-born NYU film school freshman Clark Kellogg, whose belongings are stolen by street thief Victor (Kirby) the moment the train stops in Manhattan.      Fortunately, or unfortunately, he tracks down Victor who introduces him to Sabatini.     Desperate for money, Clark agrees to pick up a package for Carmine at the airport and deliver it to shadowy Larry London (Schell) in New Jersey.    The package is the aforementioned lizard, who wreaks more havoc than you would expect.    He comes with more instructions than the Gremlins.      What plans do Carmine and Larry have for the large lizard?   

Clark also meets Carmine's daughter Tina (Miller) at the family home.    Clark sees the Mona Lisa hanging on the wall and admires how well it was copied.    Tina corrects him, because the painting in Carmine's home is the real thing, while the one on display in the L'oeuvre is the fake.   "My dad thought it was such a shame it was behind all that glass," she tells a stunned Clark.   Clark's relationship with Tina also ventures into odd territory.

The Freshman is full of funny touches like that.     Brando could just as easily behaved just like The Godfather and that would have been enough.     But, he actually creates a sweet character underneath.    Broderick is a good foil.     He seems ill-equipped to deal with this lunacy, but he finds he is up to the challenge when the chips are down.      Another standout is Paul Benedict as Professor Fleeber, Clark's self-important film school professor who can recite The Godfather films line by line.    

Part of the joy of watching The Freshman is seeing where it leads.    You think you know where it is going, but then pulls the rug out from under you more than once.   We are delighted to see Don Vito Corleone once again, even if his name is, ahem, Carmine Sabatini.