Spoiler Warning: This discussion contains some spoilers. It could be an entire gag from a comedy or in-depth conversation concerning events in the second act.
"Nihilists; fuck me. I mean say what you want about the tenets of national socialism, Dude. At least it's an ethos."
The Big Lebowski is one of the greatest films ever made. It’s, by some distance, the Coen’s best film and easily some of the performers’ best work too. Insanely hilarious from start to finish with a polished visual style that makes this an even easier watch.
It’s pointless for me to go over every joke, but I could do it with ease. I’ve seen this countless times, and it gets funnier and funnier with every rewatch. It’s primarily because a lot of the comedy is character and dialogue-based rather than narrative-based or gag-like. It’s a testament to the writing really, and the performers for managing to pull that off.
The soundtrack is superb, any use of The Man in Me is more than welcome, and this uses it a couple of times. The fantasy sequences are amongst some of my favourites in the film, allowing the Coens to get really playful with huge sets, trippy visuals, cool images and extravagant sets. I always forget how oddly sad the ending of the film is, and just how much it decides to tie up none of its loose ends. In a lot of films, that would feel lazy, but it is exactly what The Dude would do.
From the constant swearing, the hilarious characters and the ridiculous fun that this film encapsulates, I don’t think I’ll ever get tired of it. From the costume to the rug, it’s iconic from top to bottom. This has gone beyond a cult film, in my opinion, but it certainly still has that vibe to it.
Connor Clarke Film 