Bean (film)

Bean
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Mel Smith
Written by	Richard Curtis Robin Driscoll
Based on	Mr. Bean by Richard Curtis and Rowan Atkinson
Produced by	Peter Bennett-Jones Tim Bevan Eric Fellner Richard Curtis
Starring	Rowan Atkinson Peter MacNicol Pamela Reed Harris Yulin Sandra Oh Burt Reynolds
Cinematography	Francis Kenny
Edited by	Christopher Blunden
Music by	Howard Goodall
Production companies	Working Title Films Tiger Aspect Films
Distributed by	PolyGram Filmed Entertainment (United Kingdom) Gramercy Pictures (United States)
Release date	2 August 1997 (1997-08-02) (UK) 7 November 1997 (1997-11-07) (US)
Running time	90 minutes
Countries	United Kingdom United States
Language	English
Budget	$18 million
Box office	$251.2 million[1]

Bean (also known as Bean: The Ultimate Disaster Movie or Bean: The Movie) is a 1997 comedy film based on the British television series Mr. Bean. Directed by Mel Smith and written by Robin Driscoll and Richard Curtis (both writers for the TV series), the film stars Rowan Atkinson as Mr. Bean, Peter MacNicol, Pamela Reed, Harris Yulin, Sandra Oh and Burt Reynolds.

Produced by Working Title Films and Tiger Aspect Films and distributed by PolyGram Filmed Entertainment and Gramercy Pictures, Bean was released in the United Kingdom on 2 August 1997 and in the United States on 7 November 1997 to mixed reviews from critics but was a box-office success, grossing $250 million worldwide against an $18 million budget.^[1] A standalone sequel titled Mr. Bean's Holiday was released a decade later.

Plot[]

Mr. Bean is a well-meaning yet clumsy and destructive security guard working at the National Gallery in London. The gallery's board of directors, who despise Bean for sleeping on the job, wish to fire him but are thwarted by their chairman. They instead select Bean as their representative for the transfer of James McNeill Whistler's 1871 portrait Arrangement in Grey and Black No.1 (also called Whistler's Mother) to the Grierson Art Gallery in Los Angeles once purchased by philanthropist General Newton for $50 million.

Grierson's curator David Langley, impressed with the false profile of "Dr. Bean," offers to accommodate Bean in his home for two months despite his family's objections. After Bean encounters mishaps with the airport police and accidentally breaks a family heirloom, Langley's wife Alison leaves for her mother's house with their children, Kevin and Jennifer.

David begins to question Bean's status as an art expert following a visit to Pacific Park, where Bean is arrested after rigging the control panel of a simulator ride to make it more exciting. After Bean ruins a dinner party with the gallery's owner and his wife, David questions him and discovers that Bean knows nothing about art.

After accidentally sneezing on the Whistler's Mother painting at the gallery, Bean stains it with an ink-soaked handkerchief while trying to wipe away his sneeze droplets. He removes the ink with paint thinner, but this also removes the paint from the woman's face. He tries to re-draw the face with a pen, and David is aghast when he sees the result.

Fearing he will lose his job and possibly face criminal charges, David becomes despondent and gets drunk with Bean, though his family returns out of pity. At night, Bean goes to the gallery, distracts the guard, and replaces the defaced painting with a reprinted poster coated in egg white to make it look authentic, and the deception fools everyone at the opening. Forced to make a speech, Bean's bumbling words somehow win the crowd's approval.

David rushes to the hospital after learning that Jennifer has been in a motorcycle accident. Bean wanders around the hospital and is mistaken for a surgeon. Forced into a surgery room, Bean removes a bullet from the police officer who had interrogated him at the airport, saving his life. David then begs Bean, whom he does not recognize because Bean is wearing a surgical mask, to help his daughter. After an accident with a defibrillator sends Bean flying and landing on Jennifer, she awakens from her unconscious state. Grateful for having their daughter back, David and Alison were surprised when Bean reveals his true nature. At Bean's suggestion, they repay him by allowing him to stay with them for another week, during which he learns the middle finger from a motorcyclist but mistakes it for a greeting, using it everywhere he goes inappropriately.

Bean returns to London, where his bedroom is now decorated with photographs of himself and the Langleys, as well as the original Whistler painting that he smuggled back with him.

Cast[]

• Rowan Atkinson as Mr. Bean
• Peter MacNicol as David Langley
• John Mills as Chairman
• Pamela Reed as Alison Langley
• Harris Yulin as George Grierson
• Burt Reynolds as General Newton
• Richard Gant as Lieutenant Brutus
• Larry Drake as Elmer
• Sandra Oh as Bernice Schimmel
• Danny Goldring as Security Buck
• Johnny Galecki as Stingo Wheelie
• Chris Ellis as Detective Butler
• Andrew Lawrence as Kevin Langley
• Peter Egan as Lord Walton
• Peter Capaldi as Gareth
• June Brown as Delilah
• Peter James as Doctor Rosenblum
• Tricia Vessey as Jennifer Langley
• Tom McGowan as Walter Huntley

Production[]

Deleted and alternate scenes[]

The North American release differs from the international release, as it includes an additional scene in which David suggests that Bean stuff the turkey while he distracts the Griersons during the dinner party. After losing his watch in the turkey, Bean gets his head stuck inside of it (a recycled gag from "Merry Christmas Mr. Bean") and stumbles blindly around the kitchen and the dining room.^[2][3]

The international release includes two alternate scenes on either side of the deleted turkey scene to explain its absence. When searching the refrigerator, Bean first finds two frankfurters and then the onion that he offers as an appetizer. He then finds the turkey and David asks him if he has cooked a turkey before, to which he replies, "Oh yes." David points out that cooking a turkey would take about five hours, to which Bean replies, "Not necessarily." As they shove the turkey into the microwave oven, Bean, instead of David, suggests running it for 20 minutes.^[4]

According to Atkinson in the documentary Bean Scenes Unseen, the differing scenes were the result of very different reactions from the American and European audiences in test screenings.^[2]

Music[]

The film's score is composed and conducted by Howard Goodall, who also wrote the music for the television series. The original Mr. Bean theme was not used. Cover versions on the soundtrack album include the Beatles' "Yesterday" (sung by Wet Wet Wet), the OMC cover of "I Love L.A." (though Randy Newman's original version is the one heard in the film), and Alice Cooper's "Elected", performed by Iron Maiden lead singer Bruce Dickinson. "Elected" features sound dubs of Mr. Bean making campaign promises and was previously used in Comic Relief in 1992.^{[citation needed]}

Boyzone released a single from the film titled "Picture of You".

Reception[]

Box office[]

Bean initially received a limited release on 17 October 1997 in 242 theaters and grossed $2,255,233 with a $9,319 per-theater average and ranking #10 at the box office. Upon its wide release on 7 November 1997, the film earned $12,733,827 in its opening weekend while playing in 1,948 theaters, with a $6,536 per-theater average and ranking #2. By the end its theatrical run, the film grossed $45,319,423 domestically and $205,893,247 overseas for a worldwide total of $251,212,670. Against an $18 million budget, the film has become a financial success.^[1]

Critical response[]

On Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 44% based on 34 reviews with an average rating of 5.32/10. The site's critical consensus reads: "Bean boasts a terrifically talented physical comedian in the title role, but his constant mugging and silly slapstick quickly wear thin."^[5] On Metacritic the film holds a score of 52 out of 100 based on 20 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews."^[6]

Roger Ebert thought the film had "many moments . . . that [were] very funny," but felt the film ran too long: "At an hour, Bean would have been nonstop laughs. Then they added 30 minutes of stops."^[7]

References[]

External links[]

Wikiquote has quotations related to: Bean (1997 film)

• Bean at IMDb
• Bean at AllMovie
• Bean at Rotten Tomatoes
• Bean at Metacritic
• Bean at Box Office Mojo