Paradigms in The Big Lebowski The Big Lebowski According to Robert B. Ray’s “The Thematic Paradigm,” classical Hollywood develops “character(s that) magically embody diametrically opposite traits (299).” This method is used to appeal to “a collective American imagination steeped in myths of inclusiveness (299).” In other words, characters that portray a wide variety of traits, in many cases opposite traits, appeal to the American audience by embodying a portion of each viewer in the character
The Big Lebowski tells the story of Jeff Lebowski, who has people call him “the Dude”, a Los Angeles slacker who is mistaken for a millionaire of the same name whose wife owes money to the wrong people. The movie begins with two men waiting in the Dude’s apartment for him thinking he is the millionaire Lebowski. They ruin his rug by having one of the men urinate on it. When the Dude goes to Lebowski to try to get compensation for the ruined rug he is rejected, however, he ends up stealing one of
The Big Lebowski was a screenplay written by Joel and Ethan Coen. It is a comedy that is screen written and a movie that shows how life can be so unexpected. Lebowski known as “The Dude” has had his life terrorized and even his belongings being terrorized which first started off with his rug then went on to other belongings in his house being broken into and being destroyed and along with his car. All The Dude wanted was his rug back "it brought everything together" as he would say within the movie
“the Dude” Lebowski is not much of a hero himself, but his story certainly falls in line with the hero’s journey. The Big Lebowski is a parody of Raymond Chandler style hardboiled detective stories about men swept up into mysteries and conspiracies much larger than they initially appear. Jeffery “the Dude” Lebowski (hereafter referred to only as the Dude) is a slacker mistaken for the millionaire Jeffery Lebowski (the titular Big Lebowski) by pornographer Jacky Treehorn’s thugs. The Big Lebowski’s
Eighteen years after its release, the cult classic dark comedy, The Big Lebowski is getting a spin-off, featuring one of its most beloved side characters in the leading role. A recent announcement revealed that there is a film currently shooting under the title, Going Places. This dramatic comedy is inspired by the 1974 French picture, Les Valseuses. It will star John Turturro, Bobby Cannavale, Audrey Tautou, and Susan Sarandon. The most notable thing about this movie, however, is that aside from
Throughout The Big Lebowski, the Dude’s laid-back, pleasure-loving lifestyle is entertaining and endearing to both male and female viewers, and his personality and progressive values are at odds with the patriarchal, sexist society in which he abides. One the film’s great appeals is due, in considerable part, to his easy-going personality and progressive principles. Female roles in this work and the Dude’s pro-feminist ideals work together to push a storyline of progressive feminism. It is important
want to be in this perfect mind-set before you released the ball.” Jeff Bridges describes bowling to be black or white; one pin can not both be up and down. However, the character whom Jeff Bridges portrays in the classic bowling noir film The Big Lebowski, the Dude, is far from black and white. Once he was an ex-social justice warrior protesting the Vietnam war, now he is hanging out with a disgruntled Vietnam vet. With a joint in his mouth and a White Russian in his hand, the Dude goes through
The Big Lebowski Raises a Glass to Classic Film Noir On the surface, The Big Lebowski might look like a simple stoner comedy, but with closer inspection the film possess sharp undertones of film noir. The Coen Brothers were inspired by film noir when making their movie, The Big Lebowski. Their main inspiration came from Raymond Chandler’s, The Big Sleep, with mix-match patches of other classic film noirs. The Big Lebowski is a playful, modernized, and loose form of noir film. With that said, The
and in control, especially in control of women, like a father who loves his daughter dearly but will be damned if she’s going to go out dressed like that. The list could go on and on with the stereotypes. But the Coen Brothers’ cult-classic film, The Big Lebowsk (1998), with its hero “The Dude,” contradicts these notions of masculinity. The Coen brothers offer several familiar stereotypes of masculinity (the Vietnam vet, the successful capitalist, an oversexed bowler, some aggressive German nihilists)
With its phallic musical dream sequences, belligerent characters, and Gulf War backdrop, The Big Lebowski is saturated with masculinity overtones. In stark contrast to this theme of masculinity, the Dude is one of the least manly characters in the film. His aversion to violence, partiality for feminine cocktails, and lack of job and ambitions all go against what most of us would consider characteristic of a man. Despite all of his failures at traditional manhood, the Stranger, the iconic man of western
An examination of Existentialism, and its Role in The Big Lebowski In the subject of Philosophy there seems to be a common goal to take ordinary entities within the world, and essentially take a deeper look at all aspects of whatever may be in question. With that said, one theory in particular within this realm follows those same guidelines of dissection, as the simple idea of individualism is broken down and evaluated to the core. The term existentialist is key when referring to the value of being
Chapter 4: The Icon When he played The Dude, a laid-back slacker who gets involved in a kidnapping plot, in Joel and Ethan Coen's comedy The Big Lebowski (1998), he became an icon in the late 1990s. The film also featured John Goodman, Julianne Moore, Steve Buscemi, and John Turturro. Bridges was dissatisfied with the movie's reception because it was a commercial and critical failure. However, the film became a cult classic, spawning a loyal fan base, an annual festival, and a religion known as Dudeism
The Big Lebowski is a story that explores the spectrum of morality, however it is different from the traditional storylines that are meant to emerge a clear sense of right and wrong. The sections of the spectrum blur as there is no easy distinction between villain and hero. As the pervading narrator (Sam Elliott) says at the very beginning of the film “Sometimes there’s a man, I won’t say a hero, ‘cause what’s a hero? But sometimes there’s a man...And I’m talkin’ about the Dude here...well, he’s
to which all Film Noir pictures follow. The most famous of these films is The Big Sleep (1946) directed by Howard Hawks. This film is the go to when it comes to all the genre’s clichés. This formula for film is so well known and deeply understood that it is often a target for satire. This is what the Coen brothers did with 1998’s The Big Lebowski. This film follows to the T what Film Noir stands for. The Big Lebowski is a stoner comedy about a middle-aged hippie who likes to go bowling. The main
“The Dude” and His Rug The Big Lebowski is actually two separate movies united by a rug. The two separate stories taking place within this film are; a film about a lazy hippie and a trilling mystery. The Dude is a lazy, unemployed, and apathetic bowler. He spends his days drinking white Russians in his bathrobe and competing in a local bowling league. His general sloppy outer appearance coupled with his mangy long hair and the fact that he is constantly wearing sunglasses disconnects him from the
the Dude stands for in the movie. Take, for example, the scene where the Dude meets the wealthy capitalist of the film Jeffrey Lebowski (the other Lebowski) after two guys broke into the Dude’s house and "micturated" on The Dude's
towels than it is to be the one who leaves garbage all over the place. * In hindsight didn't y2k offer us a nice economic boost before the bubble burst? * Related: Are distractions the only difference between feudalism and capitalism? * In the Big Lebowski, the Dude puts on his sunglasses after he has been judged by
and directed by the Coen Brothers, and Pulp Fiction, written and directed by Quentin Tarantino, exemplify this. The Coen Brothers are notorious for directing films that are more character driven as opposed to films that are conflict driven. The Big Lebowski, Fargo, and O, Brother Where Art Thou, are just a few examples of movies that have been successful even without having an actual conflict. In O, Brother Where Art Thou Everett McGill, Pete Hogwallop, and Delmar O’Donnell are three convicts that
In the film, The Big Lebowski, Joel and Ethan Coen use their resources to add to the film aesthetically. The Coen brothers are known for their art with films like Fargo and True Grit. The Big Lebowski is no different. Although the genres may differ, the amount of details in each of these films is well thought out and placed carefully. With “the Dude” as the protagonist, the story takes wild turns that are enhanced by the camera and the script. Techniques using the camera add an additional layer
"genre-bending", having covered many genres, including comedy, crime, the Western, horror, thriller, gangster, drama, romance, adventure and features of neo-noir. Their films include Blood Simple, Raising Arizona, Miller's Crossing, Barton Fink, Fargo, The Big Lebowski, O Brother, Where Art Thou?, No Country for Old Men, Burn After Reading, A Serious Man, True Grit, and Inside Llewyn Davis . The brothers write, direct, and produce their films jointly, although until The Ladykillers, Joel received sole credit