tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8795280.post5698811889974866067..comments2024-03-24T13:26:57.317-07:00Comments on Sergio Leone and the Infield Fly Rule: CRASH AND BANG: FREEBIE AND THE BEANDennis Cozzaliohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01954848938471883431noreply@blogger.comBlogger19125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8795280.post-70726565490243651952016-04-30T06:10:14.128-07:002016-04-30T06:10:14.128-07:00Also hicky and boggs kinda set the standard of bud...Also hicky and boggs kinda set the standard of buddy cop genre as we came to know it...but yea i just saw freddie and the bean randomly today and it was awesome. I find caan movies underrated: killer elite, the gambler, thief especially. And now this one. Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11832682292886204385noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8795280.post-18465790522184080702009-10-24T23:46:00.628-07:002009-10-24T23:46:00.628-07:00Funny story, Dennis... Roughly 34 years or so ago ...Funny story, Dennis... Roughly 34 years or so ago my extremely pregnant mother went into labor with me in a movie theater, during the big car-chase sequence of FREEBIE AND THE BEAN.<br /><br />The long-running family joke became that I had arrived three weeks ahead of schedule, just because I wanted to see how the movie ended.<br /><br />Two years ago, when FREEBIE screened as part of a Kovacs tribute at Cambridge's invauluable Brattle Theatre, a couple of friends were begging me not to attend, crying: "Everything's gonna come full circle and you'll die in there!"<br /><br />Obviously I survived, and I still think the movie is hilarious. Nice write-up.Sean Burnshttp://www.rottentomatoes.com/author/author-3462/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8795280.post-31084408339622179272009-10-20T15:18:20.674-07:002009-10-20T15:18:20.674-07:00Wow, it's been at least 20 years since I last ...Wow, it's been at least 20 years since I last saw Freebie & the Bean. I'd forgotten how much I enjoyed it. Thanks for the reminder.Corey Wildehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05566740230330395590noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8795280.post-30071598714202088952009-10-20T12:25:02.161-07:002009-10-20T12:25:02.161-07:00I can't think of a better evening than FREEBIE...I can't think of a better evening than FREEBIE and MIDNIGHT RUN together.Toby Roanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12212946735151827115noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8795280.post-56126853382566256782009-10-15T08:40:06.239-07:002009-10-15T08:40:06.239-07:00Oh, yeah! I'd definitely be up for that. You&#...Oh, yeah! I'd definitely be up for that. You'd at least have the peek at San Francisco circa 1974 going for ya if you didn't like the movie itself! That will be among MANY we can earmark for next month!Dennis Cozzaliohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01954848938471883431noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8795280.post-13748609895680393542009-10-14T22:58:36.309-07:002009-10-14T22:58:36.309-07:00Y'know, I've never seen FREEBIE AND THE BE...Y'know, I've never seen FREEBIE AND THE BEAN! Now I think I'd like to. Want to watch it when I come down for a visit next month?!blaaaghnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8795280.post-55810438307894045712009-10-13T16:55:31.605-07:002009-10-13T16:55:31.605-07:00I seem to recall on the extras for Anchor Bay'...I seem to recall on the extras for Anchor Bay's DVD release of THE STUNT MAN that Peter O'Toole's casting in that film owed directly to his admiration over FREEBIE. <br /><br />My memory may be hazy on this, but it's something along the lines of O'Toole's then-wife introducing him to Rush at a party -- declaring that O'Toole's unruly behavior at the time wasn't entirely unlike either Freebie or The Bean.Aaron W. Grahamhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11988034390125865431noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8795280.post-53364695387484309702009-10-13T14:15:21.802-07:002009-10-13T14:15:21.802-07:00Chris: If you have DirecTV, Raw Meat is going to s...Chris: If you have DirecTV, <i>Raw Meat</i> is going to screen on the MGM HD channel either October 31 or November 1 as part of their Halloween horror weekend. More to come on that!Dennis Cozzaliohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01954848938471883431noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8795280.post-49078990979475083822009-10-13T14:14:11.691-07:002009-10-13T14:14:11.691-07:00J.D.: You're probably right, but my feeling ab...J.D.: You're probably right, but my feeling about <i>The Blues Brothers</i> is that Landis grabbed onto the scale of the destruction in Rush's movie, but very little of the finesse that makes <i>Freebie</i> so funny. My aversion to <i>The Blues Brothers</i> is well known around these parts, so I'm glad there was someone left to surprise regarding my indifference to it!Dennis Cozzaliohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01954848938471883431noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8795280.post-69925868028683482592009-10-13T14:11:34.226-07:002009-10-13T14:11:34.226-07:00Good one, J.D. Besides the spectacular vehicular m...Good one, J.D. Besides the spectacular vehicular mayhem in <i>The Blues Brothers</i>, I personally love the scene where the brothers come to see <i>The Penguin</i> (I so miss Kathleen Freeman). Thanks for injecting TBB into the thread.le0pard13https://www.blogger.com/profile/09421175808461787862noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8795280.post-91065719316727923182009-10-13T13:44:08.375-07:002009-10-13T13:44:08.375-07:00"Of all the movies that have come in its 35-y..."Of all the movies that have come in its 35-year wake (35 years?!), only Michael Bay’s underrated Bad Boys II comes close to capturing its unique mix of wanton (yet spectacularly choreographed) destruction and the rat-a-tat byplay of its lead characters."<br /><br />?! I dunno 'bout BAD BOYS II but I would vote for THE BLUES BROTHERS as having some of the most glorious chaotic destructive car chases since FREEBIE.<br /><br />I finally got around to seeing FREEBIE and have to think that Landis was thinking of that film when he staged some of the car chases in his own.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08164105442273577128noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8795280.post-67858931553150423672009-10-13T11:17:16.053-07:002009-10-13T11:17:16.053-07:00Great piece on one of my favorite cop movies. I f...Great piece on one of my favorite cop movies. I first saw it at an outdoor showing in College Station, Texas, free for students and their families.<br /><br />I never thought that the way the tranny was treated was anything terrible, or any more terrible than you'd find in any other film of the time. Though it's been awhile, I remember it going like this: When a co-worker raises his eyebrows after seeing him on the stretcher, Caan says "fag," but not with any particular venom. As you say, he's an obstacle to get around, and there's no more apparent hatred in it than there would be if the guy was a baker or a subway attendant.Rick Olsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04846018585978997261noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8795280.post-56954704456082592092009-10-13T11:04:40.939-07:002009-10-13T11:04:40.939-07:00Thanks for this. I don't necessarily disagree ...Thanks for this. I don't necessarily disagree with anything you said -- I mean, you're right on -- but I have to say I was kind of underwhelmed when it screened earlier this year in New York. The car chases are indeed spectacular and hilarious, but a lot of the scenes increasingly muffle Caan and Arkin in favor of uncontrolled anarchy. In which respect your comparison w/"Bad Boys II" (at least the half-hour I've seen) is actually super acute; amusement becomes exhaustion.Vadimhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16748591562916338637noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8795280.post-35288533697818736492009-10-13T10:42:35.511-07:002009-10-13T10:42:35.511-07:00It's just a shame that Warners couldn't ha...It's just a shame that Warners couldn't have ported a Richard Rush commentary for the DVD. This movie really deserved a loaded disc release. I bet it woulda sold just fine, especially considering what a huge box-office hit it was in 1974.christianhttp://christiandivine.wordpress.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8795280.post-68379758095356364612009-10-13T10:36:06.466-07:002009-10-13T10:36:06.466-07:00Dennis - thanks for the great review. I've be...Dennis - thanks for the great review. I've been hearing about FREEBIE AND THE BEAN for years and was never able to catch it, so the pick up from the Warner Archive is a no-brainer.<br /><br />Also, thanks for the recommendation of RAW MEAT; it now holds a place in my heart as my favorite Donald Pleasence performance ever!Chrishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13600990166210022027noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8795280.post-75227574428169699232009-10-13T10:13:45.993-07:002009-10-13T10:13:45.993-07:00I used to have a hard-bound book entitled The New ...I used to have a hard-bound book entitled <i>The</i> New York Times<i> Goes to the Movies</i>, a cheaply produced affair that was basically just clippings-- literal clippings-- from the paper of the reviews by Canby, Bosley Crowther, and a few others, maybe as late as Janet Maslin, and that's probably where I saw whatever of Canby I saw. And the local theater owner in my hometown subscribed to the <i>NYT</i> and would toss me the old Arts & Leisure section occasionally, so I'd see some of his stuff there too. I don't remember ever being too inspired by what he wrote, and he did have a bit of a reactionary streak, but was in no way in Crowther's league there. Before I really knew who Sarris was, though, I always thought of Canby and Kael as the two giants, probably because he got blurbed in the ads more than anyone else I noticed at the time.Dennis Cozzaliohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01954848938471883431noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8795280.post-37768175193525758762009-10-13T10:07:25.187-07:002009-10-13T10:07:25.187-07:00Vincent Canby. Nobody really talks about him anymo...Vincent Canby. Nobody really talks about him anymore, do they? Back in college, you could still find copies of his novels on the shelves. I appreciated his support of Woody Allen, but I can't recall much of his critical insights at all. There's something about that NYT mold. Only Darghis seems to be able to slip its confines now and then...WelcometoLAhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05490618592042119755noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8795280.post-44533481090906952022009-10-13T09:43:48.084-07:002009-10-13T09:43:48.084-07:00Oh, shit! Thanks for reminding me about that TRAIL...Oh, shit! Thanks for reminding me about that TRAILERS FROM HELL feature! I meant to embed that!<br /><br />I'll be there, L13! I hope you will too!Dennis Cozzaliohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01954848938471883431noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8795280.post-69901752229959033812009-10-13T09:39:10.618-07:002009-10-13T09:39:10.618-07:00First off, thanks for an absolutely wonderful revi...First off, thanks for an absolutely wonderful review of this unrated action/buddy film. And your analysis of its un-PC segments are spot on, Dennis. And in case some haven't seen it, the <a href="http://www.trailersfromhell.com/trailers/459" rel="nofollow">Trailers From Hell web site showcased it</a>, with Josh Olson commenting:<br /><br />"<i>The greatest 80's buddy/cop film ever made, and it was made in 1973.</i>"<br /><br />I'm sorry to have missed this on Sunday with Director Rush making an appearance to talk about the film. My only consolation is that I did pick up the disc from <a href="http://www.wbshop.com/on/demandware.store/Sites-WB-Site/default/Search-Show?q=freebie+and+the+bean" rel="nofollow">Warner Archive</a>, expensive as that is. If I can swing avoiding the math tutor and ill teen, I may just make it tonight. We'll see... Thanks, Dennis.<br /><br />p.s., and that is a hell of the double feature. <i>Midnight Run</i> is another of my all-time fav buddy pictures!le0pard13https://www.blogger.com/profile/09421175808461787862noreply@blogger.com