Funny

The Big Lebowski

“The Big Lebowski” is one of the funniest movies I have seen in a long time. Unlike a typical comedy, it is unconventional and unique. The humor is quite random, yet very crafty and symbolic. The Coen brothers have written a hilarious screen play with a great cast and at the same time, present a message that critics and cult fans praise continually even after ten years of its release (1998). The past movies we have seen in class (“Chinatown” and “Blade Runner”) present LA in ways that “The Big Lebowski” does as well, such as the detective work and corruptness. Yet, this film is unique in its artsy humor and its message about society.

What would Pauline Kael say about this movie? Is this movie trash or art? Well, it could be a little of both, but overall, should be considered an art. Arguably, aspects of this film may be trash, in that many scenes are random and have no meaning (although they deliberately did this to convey their message, which I’ll explain later). But when you put the whole movie together as a whole, it is very playful and creative, worthy of being called art. In few short parts in the film, we see very creative sequences with animation and choreographed dances. At 29:40, The Dude blacks out and dreams that he flies in the night sky. He sees a flying carpet and enters the point-of-view of a bowling ball rolling toward a set of pins (we see out of the holes of the ball as it rolls). This is not just entertainment, this is art, it is so unconventional and requires creativity and organization. We see about three or four of these sequences, all which are wonderfully made and well sequenced. Beyond the artsy animated sequences, the creative minute aspects of the film are also why this is a great piece of art and humor: conversations, violence, unimaginable story line, constant attack on the main character (he always get ‘Fuc*ed in the As$). Let me provide some examples, which are also my favorite scenes in the movie:

(43:10) The Dude enters a dark apartment to meet the big Lebowski’s daughter, Maude, and gets surprised as she flies on a harness across the room and flings some paint on a art board. At first it seems like a random, yet ridiculously funny scene, but later we realize that it’s most likely a satire at modern types of art that seem meaningless and strange.
(112:34) Walter, the wild Vietnam veteran, gets revenge against the student who allegedly stole The Dude’s car. He repeats, “You see what happens when you fuc* a stranger in the as@?!” about ten times as if he is finally doing something right and with purpose. Nope, again, a pointless attack on a stranger’s car that has nothing to do with the boy. Which in turn angers the car owner and makes him destroy The Dude’s car.
(149:30) One of the funniest scenes! Walter, as if he could not do any more wrong, ruins Donny’s spreading of ashes into the Pacific Ocean. He starts talking about Vietnam, which The Dude criticizes later, and when emptying the ashes, the wind blows it back into his and The Dude’s faces.

These scenes are only few examples of this movie’s unique style and creativity. Yet, as one may find this movie just a random collection of pointless humor, it is important to also analyze what this film is trying to tell us. Kael argues that some movies are ignorantly called “art” just because of the ability to capture an audience. This movie definitely captures the audience, but also sends a worthy message, a deeper meaning than just jokes. This movie presents how America in the 1980’s and 1990’s is meaningless. The use of a cowboy, who also subsequently finds no meaning as well, as the narrator illustrates how times have developed and sadly have reached an empty, meaningless era. An important scene (136:30) is where The Dude reaches a detective intuition at the pornographer’s (Jackie Treehorn) house. He tries to trace what Treehorn wrote down, to maybe figure out some clues to the kidnapping case, but only finds a picture of a man with a huge dick. Funny? Yes. Random? Oh yeah. But also really reveals the lack of meaning; the whole kidnapping case is not even a real one; Bunny has no idea she is “kidnapped.” The Coen brothers are telling us viewers that there is no meaning in anything anymore and that the only character who keeps to himself and doesn’t try to find extraordinary value in anything receives all the shit, The Dude. A huge aspect of this meaningless time could be the Iraqi campaign under George Bush Sr. And in current times, “The Big Lebowski”’s message can continue its relevance; we have experienced George W. Bush and a meaningless war campaign in Iraq again.

“The Big Lebowski” contains aspects that may conclude viewers that this movie is a pointless, random comedy. And it definitely succeeds as a comedy. But, once the greater message, how nothing has meaning anymore, is realized, the movie becomes a social, political, and historical critique of America in the 1980’s up till now; definitely art. Is there truly no meaning in anything anymore?