- Title: USA: JOEL AND ETHAN COEN COME BACK WITH THEIR LATEST FILM "THE BIG LEBOWSKI"
- Date: 6th May 1998
- Summary: NEW YORK CITY, UNITED STATES (RECENT) (RTV - ACCESS ALL) JULIANNE MOORE SAYING, (SOUNDBITE ENGLISH) "THEY ARE UNBELIEVABLY TALENTED WRITERS AND THEY ALSO HAVE A GREAT VISUAL STYLE. THEY'RE WELL EQUIPED ALL THE WAY AROUND AND SO WHEN THERE IS THAT KIND OF MATERIAL PRESENT AND THEY HAVE THAT SENSIBILITY, THAT'S HOW YOU GET THESE SORTS OF PERFORMANCES." JOEL COEN SAYING,
- Embargoed: 21st May 1998 13:00
- Keywords:
- Location: LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES
- Country: USA
- Topics: Entertainment
- Reuters ID: LVAE2SW6DA9EJ1SJX7MBLE9RA4RC
- Story Text: Two years after their Oscar-winning film "Fargo", Joel and Ethan Coen are back with their latest offering, "The Big Lebowski".
A comedy starring Jeff Bridges, John Goodman, Julianne Moore and "Fargo" co-star Steve Buscemi, the film opened in Britain last week.
It tells the story of Jeff Lebowski (played by Bridges) who becomes a victim of mistaken identity.
Two thugs break into his apartment in the errant belief that they are accosting Jeff Lebowski, the millionaire -- not the laid-back, permanently unemployed, "stuck in the 70's" Jeff Lebowski who calls himself "the Dude".
The Dude's first mistake is paying a visit to his wealthy namesake in the hopes of getting a replacement for his soiled carpet.
Instead of getting another carpet, the reluctant hero and his buddy Walter (played by Goodman) are swept up in a comedy/thriller of extortion, double-cross, deception, embezzlement, sex and dope.
It takes characters as simple as the Dude and Walter to make a story this complicated.
To their credit, they'd really rather be bowling with their simple-minded buddy Donny, played by Buscemi.
Rounding out the cast is "Boogie Nights" Oscar-nominee Julianne Moore, who plays the rich Lebowski's daughter, Maude, an attractive woman who takes a shine to the Dude.
Although the Coens shot the film all over the Los Angeles area, in many ways the heart of the film occurs inside the bowling alley where the Dude, Walter and Donny bond.
This gave the actors a new challenge -- having to learn to be passable bowlers.
The themes and comedic style of "The Big Lebowski" have appeared in many of the Coen brothers other films, including their first film, 1985's "Blood Simple," "Barton Fink," where they also worked with Goodman, "Raising Arizona," and "The Hudsucker Proxy." The Coen brothers see "The Big Lebowski" as their version of a 1990's Raymond Chandler story with a mystery/private eye plot.Chandler was the great detective writer whose novels served as the basis for several 1940's film noirs, including "The Big Sleep" and "Murder, My Sweet." "The Big Lebowski" opened in the United States in February and has earned a respectable 17 million dollars so far. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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