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Freebie and the Bean

Play trailer Poster for Freebie and the Bean R 1974 1h 52m Action Play Trailer Watchlist
Watchlist Tomatometer Popcornmeter
23% Tomatometer 26 Reviews 67% Popcornmeter 1,000+ Ratings
Two wisecracking plain-clothes San Francisco policemen discover that there is a contract on the life of the suspect they have been tailing. The pair decide to act as bodyguards until they can get a warrant to pick him up, but plans for a clean arrest go spectacularly wrong, and the two cops manage to bring the city to a virtual standstill.
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Freebie and the Bean

Freebie and the Bean

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Critics Consensus

A sour blend of misguided comedy and all-out action, Freebie and the Bean is a buddy cop picture that's far less than arresting entertainment.

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Critics Reviews

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Joe Pollack St. Louis Post-Dispatch May 5, 2021
Robert Kaufman wrote the screenplay from a story by Floyd Mutrux, who is credited as the executive producer, and both men should be forced to spend the next few decades watching what they have wrought. Go to Full Review Charles Champlin Los Angeles Times May 5, 2021
The most schizoid film recipe of current memory. It is as if several different cooks had tried to poison the broth. Go to Full Review Elston Brooks Fort Worth Star-Telegram/DFW.com May 5, 2021
Too often, producer-director Richard Rush startles us with injected scenes of violence that quickly turn comedic happenings into scenes of dismaying grimness. Go to Full Review Eddie Harrison film-authority.com Jul 2, 2023
5/5
…a tough guy comedy classic, fearlessly reflecting the racial and sexual issues of 1974 within a buddy cop narrative, with Arkin and Caan showing great charisma as the cops involved… Go to Full Review Gay Community News Staff Gay Community News (Boston) Sep 21, 2022
A cold, heartless, and deadening picture. Go to Full Review Drag Staff Drag May 12, 2022
The film can be confusing at times since it seems to go in too many directions but Morley's portrayal is bewitching. Go to Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Scott M @RT75128960 Sep 30, 2026 This is 90% improvisation by Caan and Arkin. Which I didn't enjoy at all. Improv works for maybe 5-6 lines in a movie. But this film is ridiculous. I turned it off after an hour. Boring. See more Allan H @RT89558755 Jan 19, 2026 To understand the film, you have to juxtapose it the counterculture which hadn't quite disappeared by 1974 and watch another Richard Rush movie. And the actors are terrific. The critics who did not like it probably voted for you-know-wh0. See more mark g @Mark_Alan_G. Jan 17, 2026 A cop buddy film shot in San Francisco during the early 1970s with Caan and Arkin!? What's not to like? Worth a watch for nostalgia purposes alone. See more Stephen C @bob25009 Aug 5, 2025 Success in 1 hour and 52 minutes!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Dubbed and subtitled in worldwide studios!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! See more Thomas B @Scubavich Jul 11, 2025 Weirdly enough I’m not a Kubrick fan & you can’t believe everything you read (especially on line) but supposedly he thought Freebee & The Bean was one of the best pictures he’d seen. Maybe I just like the nostalgia of it all &’how non modern PC it is but I’d guess Kubrick knows more about film than most critics & particularly I !!! See more Vik D @vikdamone Mar 25, 2025 good action and comedy blend in this movie See more Read all reviews
Freebie and the Bean

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Cast & Crew

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Richard Rush

Director

Alan Arkin

Bean

James Caan

Freebie

Loretta Swit

Meyers' Wife

Jack Kruschen

Red Meyers

Mike Kellin

Lt. Rosen

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Freebie and the Bean

Freebie and the Bean (1974) Freebie and the Bean (1974) View more photos

Movie Info

Synopsis Two wisecracking plain-clothes San Francisco policemen discover that there is a contract on the life of the suspect they have been tailing. The pair decide to act as bodyguards until they can get a warrant to pick him up, but plans for a clean arrest go spectacularly wrong, and the two cops manage to bring the city to a virtual standstill.
Director
Richard Rush
Producer
Richard Rush
Production Co
Warner Brothers/Seven Arts
Rating
R
Genre
Action
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Dec 25, 1974, Original
Release Date (Streaming)
Aug 4, 2009
Runtime
1h 52m
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