Cinematography:
Roger DeakinsComposer:
Carter BurwellCast:
Jeff Bridges, John Goodman, Julianne Moore, Steve Buscemi, David Huddleston, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Tara Reid, Mark Pellegrino, Peter Stormare, Flea (more)VOD (2)
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A laid-back Los Angeles bowler named Jeff Lebowski, nicknamed "The Dude", is beaten up by thugs who let him know that his wife owes money to Jackie Treehorn. One problem remains; The Dude has never been married and has never heard of Jackie Treehorn. Realizing the situation is a case of mistaken identity, The Dude discovers another Jeff Lebowski living in LA. This second Lebowski is a millionaire who throws The Dude out of his house, but not before he gets a glimpse of Lebowski's wife Bunny. The next day, The Dude gets a call from Lebowski saying Bunny's been kidnapped for a $1 million ransom. Lebowski offers The Dude 20 grand to act as the courier for the money. The Dude agrees, taking along his bowling buddy Walter who suggests they blow off the kidnapping and steal the money for themselves. The Dude disagrees but when Walter hands the kidnappers a bag of laundry, they are in deep. Things only get worse when The Dude's car is stolen with the $1 million inside. (official distributor synopsis)
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Reviews (15)
The story is crafted to perfection; it perfectly combines a wet carpet, a kidnapping, blackmail, and vaginal art; there are well-written and well-cast characters, with one supporting role actually becoming a cult figure – yes, it’s Jesus Quintana. The Coen brothers (who are still brothers, even though it's no longer trendy) almost made me want to throw on a bathrobe, mix a White Russian, put on my headphones, and listen to the sounds of a bowling tournament or whales singing.
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The acting is great, humor is fine, but overall, this is just a big question mark. Everyone is scruffy, lisping, and just bizarre, and I somehow can't enjoy the story and sometimes even the lines amidst all of it. From a film, with the reputation of a Joel and Ethan Coen masterpiece, I would expect more than just amusing weirdness, however well-paced it is.
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The absurdity across the board applied directly and only to Dude Lebowski himself keeps me quite grounded for once instead of cheering. It's not that Jeff Bridges isn't cool, or that I don't want to go bowling or taste White Russian, but this time I didn't have as much fun as I expected, even though it is filmed in the way in which only the Coen brothers can do it. And maybe that's the problem... my problem.
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It took me quite a while to realise what a creative and clever style of humour The Big Lebowski has. The script seems to be nothing but a showcase for all those amazing actors to display the bizarreness and exaggeration of their creations, but lacking substance. Yet the plot is packed to bursting with so many excellent gags, subtly hinted at or potential twists and a unique parody of many established narrative techniques, all while perfectly retaining its own distinctive face and, most importantly, never ceasing to surprise – rarely have I felt such a palpable joy in a film's sheer narrative, in the creation of witty retorts or one-liners, or in the direction of the actors themselves, whose performances really beg for their own lengthy commentary. Jeff "The Dude" Bridges clearly moves up to one of my favourite movie characters, John Goodman complements him brilliantly, and at times Philip Seymour Hoffman, who has this funniest role in his life, also speaks out vehemently. There is no need to talk about the amazingly inventive cinematography or the wicked soundtrack, they are par for the course with the Coens... 90%
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Brilliant! Brilliant! Brilliant! That the Coen brothers can create lovely characters is something I’ve known for a long time, but they have really outdone themselves here. Big Lebowski is something that Czech filmmakers should watch to realise that there is another kind of easygoing comedy than the good-old “about ordinary people”. Yeah, and if I had to choose between the Dudeists and the Fargoists, I would join the former.
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