Cult of "The Big Lebowski"
May 21, 2008 10:51 am comedy
The Dude Abides: “Big Lebowski” tonight
It’s kinda like a cult. Or a pyramid scheme.
First one friend watches it, then another. Before you know it, your best friend from high school is pinning you to the couch with a feverish gleam in his/her eyes and saying, “Dude, you gotta watch ‘The Big Lebowski.’”
So you pop it in, and you watch it, and you laugh a few times. You put “Lebowski” back on the shelf. A few days, weeks, years later, you pick it up again, watch it. And you rewind it and watch it. And you watch it again.
Finally you realize: “The Big Lebowski” is brilliant.
It’s a private eye caper with a White Russian-drinking, pot-smoking bathrobe-wearing slacker as its reluctant hero. A case of mistaken identities and missing toes. It’s got ‘Nam vets. Nihilists. Porn. Paraplegics.
And bowling. Lots of bowling.
You’re converted.
Before you know it, you’re telling college roommates, co-workers, random people on street corners. You’re reading blogs and buying books with titles like “I’m a Lebowski, You’re a Lebowski.” You’re attending a convention at a bowling alley, dressed up like Maude or Walter or “the Jesus.” Chatting with all of your fellow freaks.
The cult of Lebowski? It’s your cult now.
And you’ve never felt so right.
***
For a movie that’s smart, funny and oh-so-Coen Brothers, catch “The Big Lebowski” tonight at the Palm Theatre, 817 Palm St. in San Luis Obispo.
Showtimes are 7 p.m. and 9:15 p.m. Tickets are $7.50.
* Photo courtesy of MovieWeb.
The Man from Moqui :
Date: May 21, 2008 @ 11:35 am
It’s funny all right. But one question … what happened to the rug? It really tied that Dude’s apartment together.
Pat :
Date: May 21, 2008 @ 11:45 am
“I don’t know about you, but I take
comfort in that. It’s good knowin’ he’s out there. The Dude — takin’ her easy for all us sinners.”
Sorry — a little quote from the Stranger there.
And let’s not forget Walter’s nod to SLO County: “Donny was a good bowler, and a good man. He was one of us. He was a man who loved the outdoors — and bowling.And as a surfer he explored the beaches of Southern California, from La Jolla to Leo Carrillo and up to Pismo.”
I remember seeing this movie with my wife twice when it first came out. And when the negative reviews came, I was like, “For real? This is a GREAT movie. Why would anyone pan it?”
Yet, as the years passed, Lebowski lovers came out of the woodwork, and the film’s popularity swelled, thanks in part to Lebowski Fest. And even Jeff Bridges — the Dude himself — says it’s his favorite movie.