The Life and Times of Judge Roy Bean (1972)

A no account outlaw establishes his own particular brand of law and order and builds a town on the edges of civilization in this farcical western. With the aid of an old law text and ... See full summary »

Director:

John Huston

Writers:

John Milius (original screenplay), C.L. Sonnichsen (book)

Stars:

Paul Newman, Roy Jenson, Gary Combs

Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Paul Newman	...	Judge Roy Bean
Roy Jenson	...	Outlaw
Gary Combs	...	Outlaw
Fred Brookfield	...	Outlaw
Bennie E. Dobbins	...	Outlaw (as Ben Dobbins)
Richard Farnsworth	...	Outlaw (as Dick Farnsworth)
Leroy Johnson	...	Outlaw (as LeRoy Johnson)
Fred Krone	...	Outlaw
Terry Leonard	...	Outlaw
Dean Smith	...	Outlaw
Margo Epper	...	Whore
Jeannie Epper	...	Whore
Stephanie Epper	...	Whore
Victoria Principal	...	Maria Elena
Barbara J. Longo	...	Fat Lady

Storyline

A no account outlaw establishes his own particular brand of law and order and builds a town on the edges of civilization in this farcical western. With the aid of an old law text and unpredictable notions Roy Bean distinguishes between lawbreakers and lawgivers by way of his pistols.

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Plot Keywords:

law | law and order | pistol | brothel | judge | 

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Taglines:

Maybe This Isn't The Way It Was - It's The Way It Should Have Been!

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Genres:

Comedy | Romance | Western

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Certificate:

PG

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

18 December 1972 (USA)

Also Known As:

El juez del patíbulo

Filming Locations:

Arizona, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

First Artists

Technical Specs

Runtime:

120 min 105 min (cut)

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Steve Kanaly's film debut.

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Goofs

When Judge Roy Bean speaks to Grizzly Adams, he holds his gun over his leg and in front of his chest, in turns with the changes of the camera angle.

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Quotes

Someone in crowd: Who are you?
Judge Roy Bean: Justice, you sons of bitches!

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Connections

Edited into La classe américaine (1993)

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Soundtracks

"Marmalade, Molasses and Honey"
Lyrics by Marilyn Bergman and Alan Bergman
Music by Maurice Jarre
Sung by Andy Williams

User Reviews

offbeat, quirky, enthralling

Truly an unusual film which defies categorization as myth, comedy, western, satire, or morality tale. Perhaps it's a synthesis of all of these. It should be pointed out that Roy Bean was an actual historical personage, but I have no idea how much of this story is rooted in the facts (somehow I suspect, not very much). Newman's portrayal of this thoroughly eccentric and morally confusing bandit-cum-lawman is thoroughly engrossing. The musical numbers by - of all people - Maurice Jarre are painfully superfluous, and Jacqueline Bissett is miscast as Bean's daughter (I mean, the accent - puhleeeez!). Also the business with the bear is a bit tedious, whether based in fact or not. Still, there is great work from Huston, Ned Beatty, Tony Perkins, and Roddy McDowell (Ava Gardner just doesn't have enough to do to make much of an impression). This colorfully offbeat effort from John Huston, who could never make a completely bad movie, is a personal favorite and is well worth watching.