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Fresh

Play trailer Poster for Fresh R 1994 1h 52m Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
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88% Tomatometer 40 Reviews 91% Popcornmeter 5,000+ Ratings
Fresh (Sean Nelson) is a 12-year-old drug dealer who finds himself trapped in a web of poverty, corruption and racial tension in Brooklyn, New York. When his drug-addict sister Nichole (N'Bushe Wright) starts sleeping with local drug lord Esteban (Giancarlo Esposito), Fresh calls upon the skills he learned playing chess with his alcoholic father and speed-chess champion Sam (Samuel L. Jackson) and devises a complex strategy that will free both himself and his sister.
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Fresh

Fresh

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Critics Consensus

Well cast and sharply directed, Fresh serves as an attention-getting calling card for writer-director Boaz Yakin as well as a gripping urban drama.

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Critics Reviews

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David Ansen Newsweek Mar 4, 2019
Though well acted, and handsomely shot by veteran Adam Holender, Fresh sacrifices real emotion for thriller contrivances. It's a tourist's drive through inner-city hell. Go to Full Review Kenneth Turan Los Angeles Times Apr 21, 2015
Glibly shocking, it would like you to think it deals with the hard realities of urban life, but in fact it uses its patina of social consciousness as a come-on for the most conventional kind of violent commercial filmmaking. Go to Full Review Kim Newman Empire Magazine Apr 21, 2015
4/5
The strength of the piece is that it realises which aspects of its genre have been seen too many times, always coming back to Nelson's blank but expressive stare as he watches terrible things the director doesn't need to shove in our faces. Go to Full Review Mal Vincent The Virginian-Pilot Feb 25, 2022
3/4
Surely not for the squeamish, this film will send you away with scars of your own. Go to Full Review Deborah Hornblow Hartford Courant Sep 15, 2020
4/4
Screenwriter Boaz Yakin makes a stunning directorial debut with "Fresh," the gripping, finely acted tale of a 12- year-old's life on the mean streets of New York. Go to Full Review Stephen Hunter Baltimore Sun Apr 21, 2015
2.5/4
The movie's two instincts are at complete odds with each other. Go to Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Robert P @Superbad 23 hrs ago Fresh = a 4.5 star Movie! See more Max M @Househuntermax Jul 22, 2026 Compelling urban drama. No real great action scenes but the story keeps you in it. Recommend. See more AD 3 @RT11830953 Feb 20, 2026 The main issue is its phony. The chess itself is phony, its only the allure of chess or somebody mystified by the game as a complete amateur that would actually think his chess game enabled the kid to set everybody vs eachother. Amazingly they fall for it See more Dixie M. @DMDarne123 Jan 20, 2026 The story to me is amazing 8/10 See more Lloyd S @Lloyd93 Jan 16, 2026 Good watch, but slow. See more Stephen C @bob25009 May 20, 2025 1 hour and 52 minutes of drama!!!!!!!!!!!! Starring Samuel L. Jackson as Sam!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! The USA grossed over $7,700,000.00!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! See more Read all reviews
Fresh

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Cast & Crew

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Boaz Yakin

Director

Sean Nelson

Fresh

Giancarlo Esposito

Esteban

Samuel L. Jackson

Sam

N'Bushe Wright

Nichole

Ron Brice

Corky

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Fresh

Fresh (1994) Fresh (1994) View more photos

Movie Info

Synopsis Fresh (Sean Nelson) is a 12-year-old drug dealer who finds himself trapped in a web of poverty, corruption and racial tension in Brooklyn, New York. When his drug-addict sister Nichole (N'Bushe Wright) starts sleeping with local drug lord Esteban (Giancarlo Esposito), Fresh calls upon the skills he learned playing chess with his alcoholic father and speed-chess champion Sam (Samuel L. Jackson) and devises a complex strategy that will free both himself and his sister.
Director
Boaz Yakin
Producer
Lawrence Bender, Randy Ostrow
Screenwriter
Boaz Yakin
Production Co
Miramax
Rating
R
Genre
Drama
Original Language
English
Release Date (Streaming)
May 23, 2016
Box Office (Gross USA)
$7.7M
Runtime
1h 52m
Sound Mix
Surround, Stereo
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