Ladies and gentlemen, please let me introduce you to a simple man. He is the laziest, most easygoing man you could imagine. He thrives in the art of doing nothing. Most of his time is spent in boxers getting baked while listening to music. The rest of the time you can find him in the bowling alley alongside friends Walter and Donny. Although a court of law may know him as Jeffrey Lebowski, he is known to the rest of the world as "The Dude". But you also may call him his Dudeness, Duder or even El Duderino. As the star of the The Big Lebowski, The Dude has elicited abundant laughter from countless audiences. If you have yet to make his acquaintance, I urge you to meet him as soon as you can.
In 1998, the Coen brothers' The Big Lebowski was released to little critical acclaim and much disappointment after their award-winning 1996 film, Fargo. Since then, however, Lebowski has achieved cult status and become a comedic favorite for many, and The Dude, played by Oscar-winner Jeff Bridges, stands among the greatest movie characters of all time.
Joel and Ethan Coen drew from multiple inspirations in creating Lebowski. The entire film is based loosely on Raymond Chandler's book, The Big Sleep. In addition, The Dude and bumbling bowling buddy Walter Sobchak are based on real people, and a few scenes in the film are adaptations of true stories. Through skilled direction, the Coen brothers weave together all these influential sources into one of the most original comedies in American history.
Unconventional plots and characters are typical of the Coen brothers' unorthodox style and have led them to success in Hollywood for several decades. Lebowski's ludicrous plot and zany characters are no exception. Between German nihilists and nymphomaniac wives are references to Iraq and Mike Tyson. Lebowski contains countless comical characters such as Sobchak (John Goodman), a Vietnam Vet with an intense passion for warfare and idiotic plans. A number of other skilled actors fill the film's minor roles perfectly, including Steve Buscemi as third-wheel Donny, Julianne Moore as a scheming painter who enjoys working from a swing in her birthday suit, and John Turturro as the pederast amateur bowler, Jesus Quintana.
One of The Big Lebowski's strongest components is its soundtrack. Each eccentric character has an individually designated music style. The German nihilists, for example, are accompanied by techno-pop. From Bob Dylan to Henry Mancini, the soundtrack contains a broad array of music well suited to a movie filled with outlandish hallucinations and a quirky plot.
Although the chances of seeing The Dude grace the cinema screen again are slim, audiences recently have been given the next best thing: A Jeff Bridges/Coen brothers reunion. In the Oscar-nominated film True Grit, the Coen brothers direct Jeff Bridges in an excellent remake of a classic Western. After The Big Lebowski and True Grit, audiences should be anxiously awaiting another exceptional film from the trio.
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