Freebie and the Bean (1974)

San Francisco police detectives Freebie and Bean are determined to bust local crime boss Red Meyers at any cost, even if this means destroying the whole city in the process.

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	...	Mildred - Red Meyers' Wife
Jack Kruschen	...	Red Meyers
Mike Kellin	...	Lt. Rosen
Paul Koslo	...	Whitey
Linda Marsh	...	Barbara - Freebie's Girl
John Garwood	...	Chauffeur
Alex Rocco	...	D.A.
Valerie Harper	...	Consuelo - 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:

best friend | black comedy | machismo | gangster | police | 

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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 Spanish

Release Date:

25 December 1974 (USA)

Also Known As:

Dos contra todos

Filming Locations:

Embarcadero Center, 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?

Trivia

The original 1972 draft by Floyd Mutrux was very different from the actual film. The screenplay was set in Cleveland, Ohio, instead of San Francisco, California.

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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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Crazy Credits

During opening credits, as people walk in front of the camera, the older names are erased and the newer names appear.

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Connections

Featured in Vito (2011)

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Soundtracks

title theme: You and Me
Vocals by Bobby Hart
Music and lyrics by Dominic Frontiere, Bobby Hart, Danny Janssen

User Reviews

A Lost 1970's classic. What a belter.

The Daddy of 'em all. The original & still the best. Arkin & Caan are on top form as (you saw it here first) mis-matched, loose-cannon cops, who leave a trail of destruction (oh, beautiful destruction!) in their wake. With it being the 70's, the language is somewhat 'colourful', which just adds to Caan's character. Foul-mouthed 70's cops, don't you just love 'em? The stunts are top-notch and spectacular, not to mention highly original and almost comic book (The car pile-up scene & 'that' scene where they crash the car)

Rush's direction is excellent as well. He only made this because he couldn't get 'The Stunt Man' off the ground! (which is another corker) Altogether an very, VERY enjoyable romp (COP-romp, that is) The film was virtually remade as Lethal weapon 4 (not to mention 1, 2 & 3!)

My favourite scene is the ludicrous fight in the restaurant kitchen, where Rush must've just said 'try to destroy everything you can in this scene, boys'. Which they did. Brilliant.