Freebie and the Bean (1974)

Freebie and Bean, two San Francisco police detectives, have one goal in life: to bring down Red Meyers, a local hijacking boss. After many fruitless months they finally collect an important... See full summary »

Director:

Richard Rush

Writers:

Robert Kaufman (screenplay), Floyd Mutrux (story)

Stars:

Alan Arkin, James Caan, Loretta Swit

Nominated for 1 Golden Globe. Another 1 win & 1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Alan Arkin	...	Bean
James Caan	...	Freebie
Loretta Swit	...	Meyers' Wife
Jack Kruschen	...	Red Meyers
Mike Kellin	...	Lt. Rosen
Paul Koslo	...	Whitey
Linda Marsh	...	Freebie's Girl
John Garwood	...	Chauffeur
Alex Rocco	...	D.A.
Valerie Harper	...	Bean's Wife
Christopher Morley	...	Transvestite
Bruce Mackey	...	Floorwalker
Monty Stickles	...	Texas Brawler
Charles Bail	...	Cadillac Salesman (as Chuck Bail)
Eddy Donno	...	Bag Man (as Eddie Donno)

Storyline

Freebie and Bean, two San Francisco police detectives, have one goal in life: to bring down Red Meyers, a local hijacking boss. After many fruitless months they finally collect an important piece of evidence. However, before they can get an arrest warrant, they hear the news of the hitman being hired to kill Meyers.

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Plot Keywords:

police | main character shot | mexican american | stadium | karate | 

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Taglines:

Above all... It's a love story.

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Genres:

Action | Comedy | Crime | Drama

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

25 December 1974 (USA)

Also Known As:

Der Superschnüffler

Filming Locations:

Alco Plaza, San Francisco, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Warner Bros.

Technical Specs

Runtime:

113 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Goofs

When Freebie and the Bean lose the head-on collision battle with the van, their crumbling Ford then makes a right turn down a wrong way street, and collapses on the right-hand side of the street. In the next shot, the car is way on the left and even next to another car which wasn't there previously.

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Quotes

Freebie: Hi, Fred. We got a little accident. Could you send a tow truck, please, to 618 Elm Street? Hold it. It's the, uh, third floor, apartment 304.

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Connections

Followed by Freebie and the Bean (1980)

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Soundtracks

"When You Need Someone"
Music by Bobby Hart, Dominic Frontiere, Danny Janssen

User Reviews

A very clever buddy-buddy cop movie that focuses on the interaction between two individuals more than it does the actual story line.

A fairly atypical off the wall love-hate relationship between two cops as they try to bring down a tongue-in-cheek bad guy. The story centres around the wacky verbal and non-verbal relationship between Alan Arkin and James Caan more than it does the fairly week plot. This is the whole point of the movie - the story line is in fact incidental! The scene where Freebie steals Bean's gun is a classic example of this, as is the button ripping scene earlier in the film. To add to the drama Bean thinks his wife is having an affair and Freebie offers advice...terrific stuff. Perhaps those of you who gave it a poor review should find the time to watch it again - a little more closely - and savour the unique banter between these two excellent actors.