The Life and Times of Judge Roy Bean

1972 120 min ★ 6.5 Western, Comedy

Outlaw and self-appointed lawmaker Judge Roy Bean rules over an empty stretch of the West that gradually grows, under his iron fist, into a thriving town, while dispensing his his own quirky brand of frontier justice upon strangers passing by.

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Cast

Paul Newman

Judge Roy Bean

Victoria Principal

Maria Elena

Ned Beatty

Tector Crites

Matt Clark

Nick the Grub

Roddy McDowall

Frank Gass

Jacqueline Bisset

Rose Bean

Bill McKinney

Fermel Parlee

Anthony Perkins

Reverend LaSalle

Tab Hunter

Sam Dodd

Stacy Keach

Bad Bob

Details

Director

John Huston

Tagline

"If this story ain't true... it shoulda been!"

Status

Released

Original Language

EN

Production

First Artists, National General Pictures

Reviews

J

John Chard

August 30, 2019

★ 5/10

Beanisms! The Life and Times of Judge Roy Bean is directed by John Huston and written by John Milius. It stars Paul Newman, Jacqueline Bisset, Anthony Perkins, Ned Beatty, Roddy McDowall, Tab Hunter, Victoria Principal and Ava Gardner. Music is by Maurice Jarre and cinematography by Richard Moore. In Vinegaroon, Texas, former outlaw Roy Bean becomes the self appointed judge for the region an...

C

CinemaSerf

June 27, 2025

★ 7/10

It was always going to be difficult for anyone to beat Walter Brennan’s feisty effort as this character from 1940, but Paul Newman and John Huston come close with this slightly contradictory portrayal of the 19th lawman. We start as he, himself, only narrowly escapes a vigilante squad who didn’t much like the cut of his gib and then returns to exact his own vengeance. A chance encounter with “LaSa...