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July 16, 2004

The Big Lebowski

I love love loved Fargo when it came out. Then the next Coen brothers movie came out, and for one reason or another I never got around to seeing it. Don't know why.

Then about a year ago, I finally grew tired of the incredulous looks and the trash-talking (90% of which from my friend Jeanne - so I'll return the favor and bestow upon her the first annual BunkoSquad "Person Who Most Acutely Needs A Web Presence" Award) and rented The Big Lebowski. I liked it - not as much as Fargo, but well enough.

But in the last month or so, Lebowski has taken hold of my mind in strange and powerful ways. I've been quoting it obsessively, the songs in it run around and around in my head (in fact, I'm currently listening to "Run Through The Jungle" by Creedence), and I'm developing a crush on Julianne Moore to the point where I might watch all four hours of Short Cuts again.

I casually mentioned at work the other day that Lebowski might be making a serious run at my once-thought-inviolate Top Five Favorite Movies list (which consists of The Godfather, The Shawshank Redemption, Pulp Fiction, Fargo and Dogma). None of the top three are going anywhere, so that leaves Fargo and Dogma as the candidates to fall out of the Top Five. I'm not taking Kevin Smith off the list, so I've got to choose the best Coen movie. Not an easy task.

After a lot of thought (it's humid and hard to get to sleep), I'm giving Lebowski the nod. Here's why:

Acting. William H. Macy and Frances McDormand give the performances of their wonderful careers in Fargo. But you throw back John Goodman, in one of the best characters in film history, Jeff Bridges, perfect as the Dude, fabulous minor roles by Moore, John Turturro and Philip Seymour Hoffman (Buscemi's a tossup), and Lebowski's hard to beat.

Dialogue. Fargo's is awesome. But Lebowski may be the most quotable movie of all time:

  • "You're out of your element, Donny!"
  • "Your war is over, Mr. Lebowski. My condolences! The bums lost!"
  • "We believe in nothing!"
  • "Also, Dude, Chinaman is not the preferred nomenclature..."
  • "Do you see what happens, Larry?"
  • "Her life is in your hands!"

and so on.

Music. Fargo's soundtrack is unmemorable; Lebowski has lots of Creedence, Bob Dylan, Santana and Kenny Rogers (I had no idea that was Kenny Rogers singing "I Just Dropped In" until I looked it up). Just awesome.

So the inviolate Top Five has been broached. Sometimes there's a man...sometimes, there's a man.

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Comments

Excellent choice. When I first saw this movie, I tormented everyone I knew by saying "the Dude abides" every chance I got.

And Jeff Daniels is actually Jeff Bridges. Not that I'm being picky or anything ;)

Posted by: lisa | July 17, 2004 09:36 PM

Oops. I fixed it. And just after I'd finally figured out which one was Bill Pullman and which was Bill Paxton. Thanks.

Posted by: michael | July 17, 2004 10:03 PM

Finally watched it--Now I know, "You don't know what the *$#* you're talking about". But, man, the Dude abides.

Thanks for putting me onto it!

Posted by: greeniegirl | August 24, 2004 10:56 AM