It’s been called ‘arguably the funniest movie of the 90s’ and has since spawned what some describe as a cult, so beloved is the movie’s main character. As well as being a comedy, it is also a kidnap mystery (although nobody actually gets kidnapped).
The Big Lebowski was released in 1998 and directed by the legendary Coen brothers, who also directed Fargo, Miller’s Crossing and No Country For Old Men. The film gave us characters like Jeffrey ‘the Dude’ Lebowski (played by Jeff Bridges), Walter Sobchak (John Goodman), Donny Kerabatsos (Steve Buscemi) and Jesus Quintana (John Turturro).
The plot centres around a couple of hired thugs mistakenly attacking The Dude because they think he is a different Jeffrey Lebowski, a wealthier one whose wife owes them money. The Dude expects some sort of compensation from the “Big” Lebowski, especially because the thugs who rough him up also urinated on his favourite rug. He explains himself, saying: “Let me explain something to you. I am not Mr Lebowski. You’re Mr. Lebowski. I’m The Dude.”
From there, the film descends into chaos. Empire magazine ranked the film 45th in its list of the best films of all time, where it was the highest-ranked comedy film. Explaining its score, they said: “You’ve got to hand it to the Coen brothers. Not only did they make arguably the funniest movie of the 90s — which has since spawned a genuine film cult — they also managed to construct a kidnap mystery in which the detective isn’t a detective and nobody was actually kidnapped. With bowling, marmots and a urine-stained rug.”
However, Time Out listed the film 12th in its list of the 100 best comedy movies ever, saying Bridges put in “one of the truly iconic performances of all-time”. Films listed above it include Borat, Monty Python and the Holy Grail, Airplane and This Is Spinal Tap.
The Big Lebowski has a rating of 80% on Rotten Tomatoes and 8.1/10 on IMDB. USA Today called it “just one of the most original films ever made, perhaps the best world the Coens imagined and the one filled with its best characters”.
Adam Kempenaar, writing for Filmspotting, said: “25 years later, the movie where every detail matters and doesn’t matter at all, is as hilarious as ever – and more poignant, man.”
And Peter Travers, writing in Rolling Stone, said it was “hilarious”, adding: “The Big Lebowski is the best movie ever set mostly in a bowling alley.”
However, while the film has acquired an iconic status in the nearly-three decades since its release (fans literally show up to screenings and country-wide ‘Lebowski Fests’ wearing bathrobes and flip-flops in homage to The Dude), it was not a big success on its release. With a relatively small budget of $15 million, it grossed only $18 million at the box office in the USA and $46.7 million worldwide.
Explaining the possible reasons for its poor initial showing, Matthew Perino writes in MovieWeb that the film’s trailer was “all over the place” and “an incoherent mess that’s hard to follow and makes the movie look downright strange”. And he recalls how critics weren’t keen on the film when it came out.
One top critic called it “uninspired”, The Daily News criticised the story as “tired” and The Guardian called it “a bunch of ideas shoveled into a bag and allowed to spill out at random. The film is infuriating”.
However, it later acquired iconic status among film fans, who now argue over whether it is the Coen brothers’ best film. Although that’s not an easy debate to win given their films also include Fargo and No Country For Old Men, it shows how great The Big Lebowski really is.