Review – The Big Lebowski (1998)

Every now and then i hear about a movie from a friend. It’s usually a film i’ve not heard of, but one that they have watched many times, one they have an insane amount of love for, and one they want to heartily recommend to me, as something they think i’ll enjoy, and love as much as they do. I’ve seen quite a few of these, but rarely does they’re enthusiasm for the movie in question rub off on me. The Big Lebowski is not one of those movies.

The Coen Brothers movies have never really appealed to me. I can’t explain why, but i’ve never really been up for watching any of them. I got the feeling the humour just wouldn’t work for me. How wrong could i have been ???? The Big Lebowski was my very first foray into the Coen’s weird and wonderful world, and my only regret was not having dipped my toe in the water sooner.

It stars the brilliant Jeff Bridges as Jeff “The Dude” Lebowski. He’s a typical L.A slacker, he doesn’t work and spends his days drinking, getting high and bowling at the local alley. He’s an absolute picture of ambling aimlessness, but lovable with it. His friends, the increasingly volatile and argumentative Walter, played by John Goodman, and Theodore played by the always watchable Steve Buscemi, are the only real constants in his life, for better or worse.

We first meet “The Dude” having his appartment trashed by a couple of debt collectors, who are there to collect the money they think he owes to they’re boss. Turns out they have the wrong Lebowski, and they leave after having pissed all over his favourite rug. He then sets off to find the Lebowski he was mistaken for, to claim compensation for the soiled rug. The rest of the plot is way too detailed to go into, but suffice to say he inadvertently gets involved in a kidnap and ransom caper, which leads to allsorts of misadventures and complications.

To say i really enjoyed this movie would be an understatement. I loved it, and i think it’s safe to say this won’t be the last Coen Brothers movie i take in. I can absolutely see why this film has such a cult following. The performances are excellent, the leads have great support from Julianne Moore and Sam Elliott, who looks more grizzled and weather beaten every time i see him. The dialogue is snappy, and contains so many quoteable lines i eventually lost count of them. The movie also has an amazing soundtrack, an eclectic mix of tracks which spans many different genres. How can you not love a movie featuring the music of such diverse artists as Bob Dylan, Nina Simone and Henry Mancini.

The whole thing worked brilliantly for me and i’m sure it won’t be the last time i watch it. 10/10