The Big Lebowski (Joel and Ethan Coen, 1998) - Does it even matter?

[A. Bengel]

In “The Big Lebowski”, the Coen brothers effectively satirize many aspects of the American way of life. The film opens on a tumbleweed rolling through an endless desert, which serves to both represent the Lebowski character and, combined with deep-voiced narration, to imitate the old John Wayne westerns of the 1940’s and 50’s, which for a time created the typical American stereotype for the rest of the world, the cowboy.

When we the audience first meet Lebowski, he is wandering down an endless aisle of consumer goods. While he typically is seen to be rebelling, as a sort of hippie stoner, against the overbearing American society, in truth he is as much a slave to it as anybody else. Lebowski defines his life by his rug. There is nothing particularly special about the rug, but it “really ties the room together.” After he has secured another rug for himself by somewhat deceptive means, he is seen lying on the rug listening to music and smoking a joint. He is relaxed and happy. When he is knocked unconscious and wakes up to find the rug having been taken out from underneath him, suddenly he is uncomfortable. Now the rug didn’t look that cushy. It’s not just that he’s now lying on a hardwood floor. It’s as if a piece of his sould were missing. This practice of defining ourselves by what we own, which America has become really good at, is pointed out and made fun of in this film. In this way, “The Big Lebowski” argues against this part of our culture.

More than anything else, he and his friends enjoy bowling. It is the only constant in their lives. Bowling itself has become a cornerstone of American life. It is something guys do to unwind. Even back in the 50’s, television comedies like “I Love Lucy” would have punch lines about how the women never understand the men’s primitive urge to compete at bowling., When these guys bowl, they take the game as seriously as any other aspect of their daily routine. The only way Lebowski can get his friend Walter to give him a ride on Shabbat is to threaten not to bowl in the upcoming tournament round.

Walter, a Vietnam veteran with a short temper and a “no worries” disposition toward life exemplifies another American stereotype which is partially based on truth. He’s the guy who brings up the war on every possible occasion, using it to raise his status and to justify a number of otherwise irrational actions of his throughout: “I didn’t fight for my country so that…” Clearly screwed up during his service, Walter resorts to violence to solve any issue, using a variety of weapons, from a gun to a bowling ball. At the same time he rails about how the world has gone to hell.

The title of the film refers not to Jeff Bridges’ hero, but to a rich man who defines his existence by the fact that he represents the American dream of rags to riches through hard work. He has nothing but contempt for the Little Lebowski, constantly calling him a lazy bum. He also served in a war, and came out messed up like Walter, only physically, having lost the use of his legs. Even though this man is stealing money from a children’s fund, he continues to state that he is a successful man because he managed to become rich without the use of his legs. Of course, we later find out that all that was because his wife was rich. The film doesn’t admire this man like he wants to be admired, and is using him to show the hypocrisy behind the American dream.

A main motif in this movie is the use of the simple phrase “F**k it”. Characters can throw all they have into a particular plan of action only to have it fail, or they can do something really stupid that harms someone else, and all they can say is “F**k it”? The little Lebowski and his friend Walter repeat this mantra all the time, until it is perfectly clear that the writers (the Coen brothers) want to draw attention to it. Could they be endorsing this attitude towards life? Could be. At the end of the movie, the characters have learned nothing from their actions. They have lost a good friend but they continue to bowl as if nothing’s happened. Lebowski and Walter don’t grow. So maybe the audience isn’t supposed to either. Maybe after all of the misfortune that’s occurred, after all the sleazy people we’ve met, after all of the aspects of our daily lives we’ve been forced to reflect upon, all we’re supposed to say is “F**k it.”

[klandis]

I like several of the points you made about The Big Lebowski satirizing different aspects of the American lifestyle. Your idea about the film criticizing the “defining of ourselves by what we own” is further emphasized when Walter smashes the red Corvette, who he believes belongs to fifteen-year-old Larry. In a frenzied rage, Walter attacks the car, believing that harming the inanimate object will be the most detrimental to Larry. The car acts as an extension of the human in this case. Walter is obviously proven wrong when he realizes the car he destroyed does not even belong to Larry.

I do have to disagree with your statement that the Dude and Walter do not transform at all as a result of the events of the film in addition to Donny’s death. They definitely do not change their habits or beliefs, but they both are able to recognize that life is short. I think a large part of the “F**k it” attitude is about enjoying life while you can. Because of Donny’s death, they continue bowling, smoking, and having a good time because it’s what they find pleasure in.

[ADeMeo]

I understand that this movie speaks to a lot of different people, but it seems like some of these threads are taking The Big Lebowski far too seriously. This film was definitely at least partially satire, simply because of how over-the-top everyone acts.

The most believable characters in this film were definitely the trio of bowling buddies. Walter and the Dude may have overreacted over the subject of the rug (repetition of dialogue was a major theme, which added to the realism), but the realistic dialogue between the Dude, Walter and Donny was one of the things I liked about the characters. I thought they were "nuanced in their simplicity" if that makes any sense at all.

The most unrealistic character was The Big Lebowski himself. It was easy to tell he was a fraud from the beginning because of how contrived his schtick was. The scene with him in his wheelchair, staring at the fireplace as he fights back tears and says: "strong men also cry..." as dramatic music swells in the background was hilarious in it's over-the-topness.

I think that the reason Walter and the Dude were shown as not having changed much character-wise at the end was because, though they were far from perfect, they were probably the closest thing this movie had to "good guys", (Well, except for Donny, who dies...of course) which isn't saying much. The scene on the cliff with Donny's ashes was great, because, as this is a comedy, we are allowed to find humor in the situation. Walter faltering with his speech, trying to dig around for good things to say about Donny ("he loved the outdoors...and bowling") and of course falling back on Vietnam, while the Dude just stands there, all stoic and "dude-like". The hug at the end made the scene: "Let's see...we have two guys who would never hug under any circumstances except for their somewhat annoying friends death...how do you think they would hug? Oh, yeah...like that...very sarcastic and half-assed"

[D.Yergeau]

I completely agree with the fact that this film satirizes basic elements of the American culture. I especially agree with the point about the American cowboy, another instance not mentioned in the thread is the cameo appearance by the Marlboro man who sits with the dude at the bowling alley bar. I especially agree with the point about the hypocrisy of the American dream, and how the old Jeff Lebowski really is quite delusional about his fortune and how he views himself, due to the fact that he claims to have made “his fortune” and without being able to use his legs. Actually we find out later that he got his fortune from his late wife. This is very ironic because in his first encounter with the dude, he calls him a bum , and states that the bums will always lose, but in fact he is nothing but a bum himself.

[ehiggins]

Does it even matter? This is a good question. The story does end with the characters learning nothing, but as the cowboy at the end of the story states, he heard there’s a little Lebowski on the way. I think this is just a big statement about how life goes. What we do in this world doesn’t amount to a hill of beans. We live, we get our rugs stolen, we go on great adventures, we learn nothing, we create another individual who can go through the same meaningless existence, and we die. Is this what it all boils down to in life?

Since this movie is supposed to be saying something about the second coming of Jesus, what is it that we are supposed to learn? That our world is so pointless anymore that even the second coming can’t do anything? So we are all just little specs that don’t matter in the larger grand scale of the universe. Then where is God in that? It seems to me that if there’s nothing else to life than bowling and attempting to be happy with the rug you loose, then what does God even matter?

[ecraft]

You hit on an very interesting aspect of the film. Fuck it, is an interesting term, but in the way I got it from the movie is also the I don't care aspect and the characters giving up. Like you said they are free lazy individuals who you can tell don't want to deal with daily life. Once the shit went down in "the little" Lebowski's life, it started giving meaning to his little life. But you can tell, he doesn't really want to deal with it, until something of his was taken from him. But still at times he doesn't want to deal with it, that's why you see "the little" Lebowski leave during intense conversations. What I also notice, he never seems to get anywhere with the problem he's dealing with. I also think that's why he easily gives up, the situation is not being layed out for him like he wants it to. I think the Coen Brothers are also getting at, life deals you weird shit maybe just saying Fuck it, is just the best way to deal with it. Giving up is never the best in these situations but being in his place just led to his friend's death. Maybe the idea of his carpet being stolen led to the idea he needed to move on, and he just didn't know how to. Which leads back to the idea of just "Fuck it."

[Jtan]

Reading the film from the religious context, the repeated mantra of "Fuck it." as spoken by Walter relates directly to the Dude's abidance throughout the film. We hear this theme repeated several times; Walter ignoring the problem at hand and instead going bowling, the Dude abiding, and the narrator suggesting that sometimes you bite the bar and sometimes the bar bites you. The film is suggesting a sort of "go-with-it" attitude which I think speaks volumes to the religious undertones of the film. We see in the very opening a lone tumbleweed, tumbling in the wind, very alien to its surrounding atmosphere. The Dude himself just kind of tumbles along with the way things go, abiding and not taking very much action. If anything, it's when the Dude does take action that his world starts to collapse in on him. If he would have ignored Woo peeing on his rug and never contacted the Big Lebowski, he would have never gotten involved in Bunny's kidnapping or any of money schemes. The pitfalls of taking action in the film is not only represented by the Dude's plight, but also by his car slowly being destroyed and ultimately burned and "killed".

Given the Dude's past, as a social activist, to where he is now, a "bum", we can interpolate that the Dude has tried to take action before and not seen results. So too in the present situation does the Dude not see any results or gains from his call to action; the film ends where it began, bowling and drinking beer. The only thing lost was his car and Donnie, but no positive gains were seen. I think this film is saying that we should just go with things and not take to action because when we do, our lives become more stressful and chaotic. This ties back to a key element of religion, faith, where the idea is to blindly believe, or go with it, without taking action against it.