Movie of the Week

Click to see The Big Lebowski on IMDB

This is the story of the quintessential modern slacker who is caught in a complicated scenario involving crime, sex and greed.

Jeff Bridges stars as Jeff Lebowski, known simply as "The Dude".  The Dude's life consists mainly of drinking White Russians, smoking dope and bowling.  He happily coasts through life until one day he is the victim of mistaken identity. 

The wife of a wealthy businessman also named Jeff Lebowski becomes in debt to a known pornographer who sends his goons to collect from "The Big Lebowski". Instead the goons happen on The Dude by mistake. Before they find out they've got the wrong guy, they take a leak on his rug. Well, The Dude just can't stand for this.

The Dude decides to ask The Big Lebowski to replace his rug.  This leads The Dude into complicated series of events as The Big Lebowski's wife is kidnapped and The Big Lebowski wants The Dude to carry the money to the kidnappers.  But no less than 3 different people are looking to get the loot.

Of course, right off the bat The Dude screws up the handoff and eventually loses the ransom money. So The Dude has the kidnappers, The Big Lebowski and everyone that is owed money from Mrs Big Lebowski after him.  To top it off, nobody really thinks she's been kidnapped.

Jeff Bridges is absolutely perfect as The Dude.  Just imagine Jeff Spiccoli from Fast Times at Ridgemont High as a 43 year old burnout. His bowling partners are played by John Goodman, as a Vietnam vet with a short fuse, and Steve Buscemi, playing one of the saddest characters ever portrayed in film. Julianne Moore plays the "artistic" step-daughter and John Turturro plays a small but hilarious role as a rival bowler named Jesus.

This movie was a creation of the Coen Brothers.  Somehow, this one went unnoticed by the public . It came in between Fargo and O' Brother Where Art Thou and as a result never got the credit it deserved. But in my mind this movie is just as good as Fargo and almost as funny as Raising Arizona. But like other Coen Brother movies, its completely different from anything they've ever done.

CDWH