The Big Lebowski (Joel Coen, 1998): USA / UK
Reviewed by Byron Potau. Viewed on DVD.
The Big Lebowski, from Coen brothers Joel and Ethan, has picked up something of a cult following since its release. Upon my first viewing of the film I did not like it and shrugged it off as one of the Coen brother’s missteps, like The Hudsucker Proxy. However, the film’s reputation has built up and I decided to give it a second chance. Though I was a little easier on the film the second time around, the film is still not a good one, though I do think I may partially understand the film’s appeal. When telling a friend of my continued dislike of the film, he explained to me that it is not as funny to me because I do not smoke weed. As Woody Allen says in Annie Hall, “If I get laughs from a person who is high it doesn’t count because they’re always laughing.”
Jeff Lebowski, known as The Dude (played by Jeff Bridges) lives an uncomplicated life in which he goes bowling, drinks white Russians, and shops in his bathrobe and slippers. He becomes entangled in a kidnapping scheme when some men urinate on his rug by mistake, taking him for the wealthy Lebowski. Things get further complicated by a number of quirky characters including his gung ho Vietnam vet friend and bowling partner, Walter (played by John Goodman). The Dude continues to get himself in deeper as everyone keeps hiring him to do the same thing, find the kidnapped girl and the money.
The film starts off great with funny dialogue from characters too stupid to realize how stupid they are. However, while we do get wonderful lines like “you’re out of your element,” the film becomes filled with oddball characters, like Peter Stormare’s German nihilist porn star or Julianne Moore’s vaginally influenced artist, that seem like they stepped out of an SNL skit and suck the comedy right out of the film. John Goodman’s character is an excellent barometer of how the film goes as sometimes he can be funny, but at other times he becomes incredibly annoying. The highlight of the film is a superbly designed and choreographed musical dream straight out of Busby Berkeley. The only fault with this sequence is that it is not long enough. The film has its charms, but is ultimately a mediocre piece of work from great filmmakers who can do much better. With cult films they are usually not great films, but for various reasons have a certain appeal to some people. You may find something about it that appeals to you, but I would hope you do not need to smoke a joint to find it. Otherwise, I would have to say, it doesn’t count.
14 Comments
Jump to comment form | comments rss [?] | trackback uri [?]