# The Big Lebowski: What's the big deal? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [September 23, 2008, 1:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-lebowski-whats-the-big-deal/464778 "2008-09-23T01:51:08Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![outlierrn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/outlierrn/32/3005_2.png) [@outlierrn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/outlierrn)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2008, 4:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-lebowski-whats-the-big-deal/464778/61 "2008-09-24T04:12:37Z")
They’re out of they’re element ---
**Author:** ![UTejas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/977dab/32.png) [@UTejas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UTejas)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2008, 4:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-lebowski-whats-the-big-deal/464778/62 "2008-09-24T04:58:09Z")
I think the entire movie was building up to the following: Ule: It’s not fair! Walter: FAIR?!?! Who’s the fucking nihilists around here?! TBL is my favorite movie ---
**Author:** ![Eutychus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a3d4f5/32.png) [@Eutychus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eutychus)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2008, 11:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-lebowski-whats-the-big-deal/464778/63 "2008-09-24T11:53:17Z")
It occurs to me that maybe the Coen Brothers were attempting a bit of Mark Twain “anyone trying to find meaning will be shot” kind of thing. Just throw everything into the plot from bowlers to wandering cowboys to nihilists to modern artists and see what happens. But in the middle you have this dude in the center “that really holds the (movie) room together” and it plays well. For me, at least. And in the end, the dude abides. I don’t know about you, but I take comfort in that. ---
**Author:** ![BMalion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e274bd/32.png) [@BMalion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BMalion)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2008, 12:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-lebowski-whats-the-big-deal/464778/64 "2008-09-24T12:06:05Z")
> [@GuanoLad](#): > > I think it’s one of the dumbest stupidest wastes of time on celluloid. See, that’s what I mean, So you have no frame of reference here, **GuanoLad**. You’re like a child who wanders into the middle of a movie and wants to know… Fuck it, let’s bowl. ---
**Author:** ![Larry\_Mudd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f14d63/32.png) [@Larry\_Mudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Larry_Mudd)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2008, 1:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-lebowski-whats-the-big-deal/464778/65 "2008-09-24T13:52:34Z")
> [@TNWPsycho](#): > > I didn’t really like the plot of the movie, seems to me like its been done many times. Almost as though it referenced to the point of parody the formulas used by Raymond Chandler and his imitators since the 1930s? 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Jophiel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jophiel/32/66_2.png) [@Jophiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jophiel)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2008, 3:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-lebowski-whats-the-big-deal/464778/66 "2008-09-24T15:04:19Z")
> [@JohnM](#): > > Yep, and do you know who nihilist girl was? Singer-songwriter Aimee Mann. AKA the nine-toed girlfriend 😃 I didn’t see the movie until years after it came out when someone gave it to me with a box of other videos. Loved it the first time I saw it. Obligatory quote, this one the Dude’s response to Walter’s ransom recovery plan (then we shoot 'em): > [@](#): > > That’s a great plan, Walter. That’s ingenious if I understand it correctly. It’s a fucking Swiss watch. ---
**Author:** ![Skylark](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e274bd/32.png) [@Skylark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skylark)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2008, 1:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-lebowski-whats-the-big-deal/464778/67 "2008-09-25T01:11:03Z")
I didn’t get the movie the first time. I mean, I was high and everything, and it was trippy, but I didn’t get it. But man, that second and third viewings, man, even when I wasn’t stoned, it became my favorite movie pretty quick. You just got to say fuckit to the plot and enjoy the ride. Beyond the characters there’s so many great elemental flourishes the Coen brothers add to every scene, like the choice of bowling over softball, the bowling alley decor, The Dude’s Nixon poster, his choice of drink, all that add much more depth to the thing. I read an article recently arguing _The Big Lebowski_ is an extremely prescient movie, predicting the rise of the neocons (as Walter) by several years. ---
**Author:** ![bump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7c8e57/32.png) [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2008, 1:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-lebowski-whats-the-big-deal/464778/68 "2008-09-25T01:58:16Z")
I must be some kind of Coen Bros. outlier… I love “Raising Arizona”, closely followed by “O Brother”. “Big Lebowski” is a distant third, but still WAAAY out in front of “Hudsucker Proxy”, and the rest are somewhere down lower, with “Fargo” toward the bottom. I like the Coen Brothers’ quirky humor, but never did get Fargo. I will admit that the first time I saw “Big Lebowski” I came in 5-10 minutes late, and was confused. Once I watched it from the very beginning, I liked it, and it does grow on you over time. ---
**Author:** ![Apocalypso](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@Apocalypso](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Apocalypso)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2008, 2:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-lebowski-whats-the-big-deal/464778/69 "2008-09-25T02:05:55Z")
> [@Marley23](#): > > That movie turned my opinion on John Goodman around 180 degrees. I’d never liked him before I saw The Big Lebowski. Granted, I don’t think anything he’s done since then is THIS good, but he’s terrific as Walter. Agree 100% on this. The interaction between Walter and The Dude was just pure gold. Donnie (Steve Buscemi) had a smaller role, but he made the most of it, playing the befuddled third wheel who’s just trying to figure out what’s going on. His facial expressions, especially his reaction to Jesus, are hilarious. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2008, 2:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-lebowski-whats-the-big-deal/464778/70 "2008-09-25T02:15:40Z")
> [@Larry\_Mudd](#): > > Almost as though it referenced to the point of parody the formulas used by Raymond Chandler and his imitators since the 1930s? 😃 This is what really made the movie for me. I wasn’t clear where they were going for the first half hour or so, but once I realized that they were doing a Philip Marlowe movie with The Dude as the detective I loved it. ---
**Author:** ![ExTank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/35a633/32.png) [@ExTank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ExTank)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2008, 5:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-lebowski-whats-the-big-deal/464778/71 "2008-09-25T05:27:45Z")
> [@Salmo\_Trutta](#): > > Sign me up for the “it’s one of my favorites” camp. Some of it is that I’ve got buddies that love it too. A line or fifty is quoted in most every conversation we have. Damn near every line in the movie is quotable. There’s almost no wasted dialogue. This is a rare feat. Same here. This is a movie that just gets better every time I see it. I love to see “instant karma” moments just to trot out, “This is what happens when you fuck someone is the ass.” ---
**Author:** ![vivalostwages](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/d07c76/32.png) [@vivalostwages](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/vivalostwages)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2008, 5:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-lebowski-whats-the-big-deal/464778/72 "2008-09-25T05:46:55Z")
> [@ExTank](#): > > Same here. This is a movie that just gets better every time I see it. > > I love to see “instant karma” moments just to trot out, “This is what happens when you fuck someone is the ass.” Years ago, I saw it and thought it was okay. Recently, I saw it again and thought it was much better than okay. I’ll probably end up buying a copy. Funny how the years can do that to a person. ---
**Author:** ![BMalion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e274bd/32.png) [@BMalion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BMalion)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2008, 11:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-lebowski-whats-the-big-deal/464778/73 "2008-09-25T11:36:19Z")
> [@ExTank](#): > > Same here. This is a movie that just gets better every time I see it. > > I love to see “instant karma” moments just to trot out, “This is what happens when you fuck someone is the ass.” I agree, but just one question. Do you have to use so many cuss-words? ---
**Author:** ![teela\_brown](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/d9b06d/32.png) [@teela\_brown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/teela_brown)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2008, 12:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-lebowski-whats-the-big-deal/464778/74 "2008-09-25T12:48:57Z")
I’ve seen it many times, and I adore it. I like to search each scene for elements that the Dude’ll pick up and recycle later, either in his speech or in his dream. Saw a new one the last time I watched it: among the many avant garde works of “art” that Maude Lebowski has in her loft is the painting of a huge pair of red-handled scissors. One of the devil-nihilists in the Dude’s dream is sporting those very scissors as he chases the Dude for his Johnson-ectomy. ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2008, 2:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-lebowski-whats-the-big-deal/464778/75 "2008-09-25T14:07:34Z")
> [@BMalion](#): > > I agree, but just one question. > > Do you have to use so many cuss-words? What the fuck you talking about? ---
**Author:** ![Grossbottom](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/ba8739/32.png) [@Grossbottom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grossbottom)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2008, 2:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-lebowski-whats-the-big-deal/464778/76 "2008-09-25T14:21:03Z")
To truly appreciate Goodman’s performance, watch the interviews on the special edition DVD of Red Dawn. Walter Sobchak is a perfect send up of/homage to John Milius, right down to the clothing. ---
**Author:** ![pepperlandgirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f17d59/32.png) [@pepperlandgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pepperlandgirl)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2008, 3:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-lebowski-whats-the-big-deal/464778/77 "2008-09-25T15:42:55Z")
> [@Apocalypso](#): > > Agree 100% on this. The interaction between Walter and The Dude was just pure gold. Donnie (Steve Buscemi) had a smaller role, but he made the most of it, playing the befuddled third wheel who’s just trying to figure out what’s going on. His facial expressions, especially his reaction to Jesus, are hilarious. I am the walrus? Actually, the first time I saw the movie, I only caught maybe the last 45 mins or so. It was on television. I laughed and laughed, and immediately searched the menu for when it would be on again. I watched it from close to the beginning, and laughed and laughed. So I did something I never do–I bought the DVD. My DVD collection is very, very small because I’m not big on re-watching movies. But I rewatch this one! As for the other Coen movies, I adore Raising Arizona. I liked O Brother when I saw it, but it’s not a movie I ever think to rewatch. I’ll catch it if it’s on, but if I never see it again, it won’t be a big deal. I liked Fargo well enough, but if you want to talk about pointless movies…to me **The Big Lebowski** makes a lot more sense. ---
**Author:** ![BMalion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e274bd/32.png) [@BMalion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BMalion)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2008, 4:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-lebowski-whats-the-big-deal/464778/78 "2008-09-25T16:32:25Z")
> [@Alessan](#): > > What the fuck you talking about? Have it your way. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Other\_Jeffrey\_Lebowski](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_other_jeffrey_lebowski/32/215_2.png) [@The\_Other\_Jeffrey\_Lebowski](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Other_Jeffrey_Lebowski)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2008, 6:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-lebowski-whats-the-big-deal/464778/79 "2008-09-25T18:16:24Z")
One of my favorite things about Walter is that he is quick tempered and prone to yelling, unless he is being yelled at, in which case he’s perfectly calm. ---
**Author:** ![neutron\_star](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/51bf81/32.png) [@neutron\_star](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/neutron_star)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2008, 2:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-lebowski-whats-the-big-deal/464778/80 "2008-09-26T14:34:29Z")
This thread convinced me to revisit _The Big Lebowski_ again. I’d seen it twice before and thought it mildly amusing, but entirely overrated. This time, however, I found myself laughing more than both of the previous viewings put together! :eek: I can’t remember that ever happening with any movie for me before, so that was pretty cool. Ve believe in nossing, Lebowski! [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-lebowski-whats-the-big-deal/464778.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-lebowski-whats-the-big-deal/464778.md?page=5)