BIG LEBOWSKI, THE

(March 1998, U.S.)

Jeff Bridges is Jeff Lebowski. Lebowski is "The Dude". Who is The Dude? "The Dude" is the laziest excuse for a California slacker you ever did meet who spends his days dressed in his favorite robe, smoking marijuana, drinking White Russians and bowling with his pals. His sole purpose in life is to seek compensation for his favorite rug that was pissed on by two thugs who mistook him for a different and significantly wealthier Jeff Lebowski. The Dude makes Kramer from "Seinfeld" seem productive. Seriously, what's not to love about the guy??

Now let's talk about John Goodman as Walter Sobchak, The Dude's best friend. This nutcase places the rules of bowling second in reverence only to the rules of his adopted religion, Judaism, as evidenced by his strict stance against "rolling" on Shabbos. He has a violent temper, and is given to pulling out a handgun (or crowbar in another case) in order to settle disputes and constantly (and pointlessly) mentions Vietnam in his conversations. Hey, what can you possibly expect from a guy that had to act against Rosanne Barr for so many years?? I'd probably be a total whackjob, too!

Joel and Ethan Coen are two of the most gifted filmmakers of the last 25 years who have shown us the dark macabre of their work in films like BLOOD SIMPLE (1984), FARGO (1996) and NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN (2007) and the outrageous comedy in films like RAISING ARIZONA (1987), THE HUDSUCKER PROXY (1994) and this film discussed now. To watch a film by the Cohen brothers is not knowing what to expect next and then deciding whether to be shocked by what you've just seen or to laugh with hysteria. An odd combination, indeed. The gifted ones are usually the oddest ones, too, aren't they?

At it's heart, THE BIG LEBOWSKI (aside from the great comedy) can easily be compared to the classic structure of thrillers by Alfred Hitchcock and the film noir era where the innocent man is a victim of mistaken identity and must experience a personal journey to exonerate himself and seek justice for whatever has been taken from him, even if it's a pissed-on rug that "tied the room together". The film's structure has actually been compared to Raymond Chandler's novel, "The Big Sleep". I didn't read it, but I saw the Humphrey Boagrt film and it's coming real soon to this blog!

Favorite line or dialogue:

The Big Lebowski: " What makes a man, Mr. Lebowski?"
The Dude: "Dude."
Lebowski: "Huh?"
Dude: "Uhh... I don't know sir."
Lebowski: "Is it being prepared to do the right thing, whatever the cost? Isn't that what makes a man?"
Dude: "Hmmm... Sure, that and a pair of testicles."