In Jeff ‘The Dude’ Lebowski, the Coen Brothers have created their most gratifying character to date, the quintessial slacker ‘The Dude’. Not only is this classic Coen Brothers, it’s exemplary Jeff Bridges.
The plot is about as skewed as The Dude’s mind. A case of mistaken identity leads a couple of thugs to The Dude’s Venice Beach home where they relieve themselves on his prized carpet. Seeking compensation from their intended victim, The Dude’s namesake and antithesis, he becomes entangled in a complex kidnapping drama involving sinister German nihilists, the Art World (represented by a Wagnerian Julianne Moore), and the porn industry.
Apart from psychedelic dream sequences with a bowling twist, it’s the wealth of great characters and their insane dialogue that make this a memorable film. John Goodman’s Vietnam Vet, The Dude’s bowling buddy, is in part responsible for the mayhem, but he also gives colour to The Dude’s everyday life, as does a mawkish Steve Buscemi and John Turturro’s absurd Latino child-molester, Jesus Quintana. There are others, too many to mention, not least those populating the world a million miles from The Dude’s leisured life and his ruined rug.
– Nick Hilditch, BBC Films
