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Is The Big Lebowski a Masterpiece?
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Released
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September 24, 2013
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Running Time
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10:52
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Link
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(The shortened opening)
(NC is sitting at his computer, looking up the "That Guy With the Glasses" website; he is looking up "Renegade Cut - The Layers of Lebowski"; looking rather puzzled, he pushes play on the video)
Video narrator: The Big Lebowski is a 1998 comedy written and directed by the Coen Brothers. (NC sits there, looking thoughtful) But there are more layers to peel back, and much of their work is meant to be a greater commentary on other things beyond bowling and bad porno movies. The Big Lebowski is also a film about both literal and figurative castration. (NC's eyes widen in surprise) When one says, "figurative castration", it means the idea of a man feeling as if he is losing the qualities that he believes makes him a man. Walter [Sobchak] sees himself as manly, toting around firearms and talking about war service, but he is still a complete servant to his ex-wife– (NC pauses the video, then looks toward the camera)
NC: Is– Is The Big Lebowski a masterpiece?
(Cut to footage of the film)
NC (vo): After premiering in 1998, this Coen Brothers comedy has gone from underground art house film to cult classic status. Growing a big following over the years, particularly with college students, The Big Lebowski has sparked...
(Cut to a shot of Walter Sobchak with the phrase "Am I the only one around here who knows how to change the toilet paper roll?")
NC (vo): ...memes...
(Cut to an image of the cover of Adam Bertocci's book "Two Gentlemen of Lebowski")
NC (vo): ...books...
(Cut to filmed footage of a convention where people cosplay as Lebowski characters and put on various sketches based on the film)
NC (vo): ...hell, even conventions based on the bizarre circumstances surrounding Jeffrey Lebowski.
The Dude: The Dude.
(Footage of the film resumes)
NC (vo): This hasn't shocked me that much, as I found the film entertaining from day one. It was always kinda that weird but cool flick you'd introduce to new friends for a surreal laugh. But since it's grown in popularity, people have been reading a lot more into it.
(Images of various books on the analysis of the film pop up, such as "Lebowski 101", "The Big Lebowski and Philosophy", and "I'm a Lebowski, You're a Lebowski: Life, The Big Lebowski, and What Have You")
NC (vo): There's literature analyzing its philosophies and meanings.
(Cut to an image about Lebowski Studies)
NC (vo): I had a professor whose lineup of films, along with (shot of...) Citizen Kane and (shot of...) Apocalypse Now, was (shot of...) Big Lebowski.
(Cut to footage of the Renegade Cut of the movie)
NC (vo): And yes, even some of our video series like Renegade Cut put their own unique interpretation about what the film means.
NC: Which, of course, begs the question, does it mean anything? And is it even worth spending the time to figure out if it means anything?
NC (vo): The story about a lazy, unemployed bowler who gets mixed up in a kidnapping plot sounds like it has a lot going on. He has a psychotic Vietnam vet for a friend; a crazy competitor named Jesus; an artist who is randomly selected him to be the sperm daddy of her child; (the Dude does a spit take in reaction) her father, who's a millionaire with the same name, who wants him to go after his kidnapped wife who's half his age; the German nihilists who kidnapped her; the head of a pornographic industry; a whole bunch of crazy-ass characters! And what does this all add up to? Pretty much nothing. Yeah, most people either have a lesson, a moral, a story arc, something that the character goes through to show some kind of change. But here, stuff just kinda happens and... then it just kinda stops. But, to the film's credit, that's where a lot of the surreal comedy comes in. Oh, don't get me wrong; there's other funny things in the movie, like the dream sequences, the blowups, conversations that seem more focused on wasting time rather than furthering anything. But what makes this movie stand out from other movies is that, you're waiting to see what it's all adding up to, and it's never really revealed. We've seen other films that been declared a giant waste of time, but why is it everyone says this one is so good? What did this film do different that those films couldn't?