*THE BIG LEBOWSKI* left me with so many questions!! | First Time Watching REACTION

Watching The Big Lebowski (1998) for the first time and suddenly i'm in the mood for white russians?? idk
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Source: Gramercy Pictures The Big Lebowski
Intro/ Outro music: Sunset by MusicByAden
/ sunset
0:00 Intro
1:05 Reaction
40:19 Outro/ Initial Thoughts

[@lethargogpeterson4083]

"Find someone who loves you the way this man loves his rug." Great quote, Shadowcat.

[@MotoNomad350]

To be fair, it really tied the room together.

[@3DJapan]

"shut the F up Donnie" was a reference to their previous film, Fargo, where Buscemi's character talked endlessly.

[@qwi2311]

The perfect example of fantastic script writing. The main character goes left every time you think he’s going to go right.

[@richardedgerton1852]

The "Greek Chorus" at the beginning was doing the song Tumbling Tumbleweeds and showed one being blown this way and that. That's the movie, that's the Dude.

[@kaylzshter6153]

Somebody best summed up this as a movie, trying to have a plot, but the main character just can't be bothered.

[@silverfischdotnet]

Why is the water milky? Because his half and half got spilled in it when he was shoved into the toilet.

[@jasonchirevas]

Just to reinforce a previous comment: Although its trappings are uniquely comic, THE BIG LEBOWSKI is absolutely a film noir at heart in terms of plotting and basic structure. Once one realizes that, the rhythms and story of TBL reveal themselves much more clearly. As for the Coen brothers, they are maybe the best American filmmakers of the last 35 years. FARGO is a masterpiece and should be on the watchlist of anyone who hasn’t seen it, but every Coen movie is worthy.

[@markpaprocki8315]

Shadowcat watching Big Lebowski, great way to start the day.

[@kaylzshter6153]

Really happy you agree that this one is worth multiple watches, it truly is! I never really thought about the rich using the poor commentary before, and I've seen this movie countless times. Thank you for some new insight on this classic, and great reaction!

[@stobe187]

Brandt's facial expressions are worth a rewatch in themselves.

[@ryanjacobson2508]

The directors and writers of this movie grew up in Minnesota around plain Midwestern folk. A lot the characters in this movie were inspired by all of the weird people they dealt with after they moved to LA to pursue a career in movies.

[@michaelkb8783]

I saw someone make this observation and i thought it was perfect, "it is a movie where everything matters but nothing matters." Great reaction.

[@MarkMcLT]

Sam Elliott's final monologue is my favorite part of the movie. The voice, the moustache, he's perfect.

[@LordVolkov]

They use him perfectly with the rule of 3 and as bookends.

[@jackasswhiskyandpintobeans9344]

If you want to witness great acting by Elliott, Watch him as General John Buford in "Gettysburg," 1993. He nailed the part. It's very poignant. Buford was a Calvary officer.

[@jaydisqus3353]

It's a league game!

[@0okamino]

Yeah! What do they think this is all about? Fun and games?

[@Philliben1991]

When Walter and The Dude hug after spreading Donnie's ashes, it really hits as one of the great depictions of true friendship in cinema. Cos let's face it friends are usually complete pains in the backside and the friendship stems from transcending that - forgiveness, loyalty, acceptance etc.

[@LordVolkov]

To understand Donnie's bizarre role, wandering in and out of scenes with no comprehension of what is going on and constantly being silenced by Walter, you must see Fargo, an earlier crime dark comedy from the Coen bros.

[@auntvesuvi3872]

Thanks, Shy! 🎳 The Coen Brothers have an impressive catalog of movies they've written/directed. My favorite from them is RAISING ARIZONA (1987); hilarious yet poignant enough to make me cry at the same point every time I rewatch it. #Shadowcat #JoelCoen #EthanCoen #TheBigLebowski

[@LordVolkov]

Raising Arizona has perhaps the funniest chase scene ever put to film. Once the yodeling starts, I can't stop laughing.

[@auntvesuvi3872]

@@LordVolkov I'm glad you appreciate it, too, Patrick! 🙂

[@SPAMDAGGER22]

@@LordVolkov the funniest fight scene too, in Hi's trailer home. When I think about it, I don't think there was any music during the fight scene. In my top 3 favourite movies ever.

[@LordVolkov]

@@SPAMDAGGER22 🤣🤣🤣 Cage and Goodman screaming relentlessly as they fight in a tiny space (I personally feel the trailer fight in Kill Bill 2 is an homage).

[@barrygross77]

Mighty fine cereal flakes miss McDonough…..✌🏼

[@pilgrimpaige6036]

James vs Cinema said in his review, "It feels like a movie is trying to form around the Dude, but he's just so nonchalant, that it's just not able to." One of his commenters offered the insight that the film title even refers to the rich Lebowski, *not* The Dude. He's basically the main character in a mystery story by accident, and too chill/hapless to spend the whole film directly engaging with the plot he's been brought into, so the plot has to come to him, like in the *Cut off your Johnson* scene.

[@LordVolkov]

I love that there's a whole other movie going on around The Dude and the plot keeps running him over.

[@debravega2453]

This movie makes a tad--a TAD--more sense when you know it's an unofficial adaptation of Raymond Chandler's 1940s detective fiction. Chandler's plots are so intricate he even admitted he lost track of them sometimes. And how interesting that you picked up on the social commentary, which also exists in Chandler's novels. They are often about how rich people are treated as being above the law. Really enjoyed your reaction! Yes, watch more Coen Bros! My recommendation would be Raising Arizona.

[@jackasswhiskyandpintobeans9344]

That is correct. It's "The Big Sleep." The Coen Brothers in likelihood made of a remake of the Howard Hawks film rather than the Raymond Chandler novel. Chandler did not write the screenplay for the film. Faulkner, Brackett and Furthman did. I like Faulkner and Leigh Brackett, but don't know much about Jules Furthman.

[@jackasswhiskyandpintobeans9344]

The White Russian is a take on Sternwood's drink of choice i.e., "Champaign as cold as Valley Forge and Cognac."

[@jamesgalimo1007]

This is definitely one of those movies that gets better with repeated viewings. If you want to watch another Coen Brothers movie that's as much fun as this one, check out, "O Brother, Where Are Thou?" Pretty much all of their movies are good, to varying degrees, but many of them can be a bit... grisly.

[@GlennFate-vd4np]

Another great Coen brothers film is 'O Brother Where Art Thou'. Also a great film the narrator is in would be 'Road House' with Patrick Swayze!!!

[@lewstone5430]

Pain don’t hurt.

[@codybrown3326]

This is my comfort movie. The Dude reminds me of my dad. He was a terrible father but a hell of a dude.

[@rodentnolastname6612]

The secret to Cohen Brothers films is that the plot is superfluous. It's only there to have hooks to hang interesting characters on and give them a reason to interact.

[@houdin654jeff]

A movie I come back to again and again, not just for its quotability, but for the performances of every single member of the cast. There is no weak link, there are no skippable scenes, it's fantastic. The premise of telling a hardboiled noir detective story with a human being at its center who just could not give less of a shit about the vast majority of the things happening to him, either by disposition or his persistent level of being stoned, is hilarious in itself. As he says, "The Dude just wanted his rug back."

[@Aggiebrettman]

This movie is an old friend: no matter how weird, you still love it. It only gets better with multiple viewings.

[@jefffinn1105]

The Coens are almost "can't miss" smart filmmakers. "Fargo" is arguably their best in terms of popularity & a great female lead. I like great, low-budget first movies - that is their remarkable "Blood Simple"... both feature Frances McDormand.

[@AW11-e4h]

Donnie,you’re out of your element 🤘🤘

[@sabalos]

There's a great story about Robert Mitchum being approached to do El Dorado; he asked (the director) Howard Hawks what the story was, and was told "No story, Bob, just characters." I think about that story a lot with various films, and The Big Lebowski is certainly one of them. Humbly requesting Barton Fink (1991) or A Serious Man (2009) for Next Coens. You mostly can't go wrong with them though

[@PaulWinkle]

Legally the Big Lebowski (BL) is right, he doesn't have to pay for the damage other people caused, even if there is a correlation but we need causality. The BL did not order to attack the Dude or the destruction of his appartment, it was Jackie Treehorn. The misinformed minions caused the damage directly. Those who directly caused the damage or the one who ordered the attack have to pay. The dude just went to BL cause he was within reach.

[@0okamino]

Yep, maybe there _ought_ to be some accountability, but the _ought_ and the _is_ quite often just do not connect.

[@kevinjoy7728]

He’s not wrong. He’s just an asshole

[@matthewdunham1689]

A favorite of mine I found late in life. ❤😂❤😂❤

[@jamesellis701]

Well, that's like just your opinion man

[@narotic6133]

Hey Shai, hope the week is going well, lol the dude, this is definitely a cult classic right here

[@barrymorrow9316]

Definitely watch again. I’ve seen it so many times. Every time I need a smile, I put it on.

[@beyonderbill3409]

Definitely watch it again. This is one of those rare movies that gets better with each view. I would consider "This Is Spinal Tap" one of those types of movies as well. Not quite sure about it at first, but upon repeat viewings they get better and better.

[@Spazzmatazzz]

Never seen your channel before, but I gotta tell you that this is one of the best reactions I've see. Now I gotta go look and see what else you have to offer!

[@dard4642]

The toilet water was milky because Dude had just purchased Half and Half and it was still in his hand when he was thrown against the toilet. 👍

[@goldenageofdinosaurs7192]

Thank you!

[@Majoofi]

Loved your interpretation. The true ancestors of this movie are The Long Goodby1973 , and The Big Sleep 1946.

[@michaelhoward142]

What a wonderful reaction. Thank you, lovely lady! Another Coen Brothers film I think you'd enjoy is "Fargo", which came out two years before Big Lebowski.

[@lewstone5430]

Shadowcat it was a joy watching you react to my favorite comedy! You have a great laugh and your smile is like sunshine! Some folks don’t get the comedy right away, but you easily got it. So happy you enjoyed it, and yes this movie is infinitely rewatchable.

[@shadowcatreacts]

Aww, thank you! That's such a lovely complement ☺️

[@lewstone5430]

@@shadowcatreacts 🙏

[@DJLawrence]

The plot was trying to happen, but The Dude refused to let it.

[@ricbarrett9424]

Love your reactions and please please dive into a few more Coen brothers movies as they are top tier and so much variety in their work. Fargo is a masterpiece though you could chose any and not be disappointed.

[@MarkMcLT]

Yep, definitely watch Fargo. O Brother Where Art Thou is also great. Different, but great.

[@mikemath9508]

love the nailing the board to hold the chair defense joke.

[@chrissiegle1065]

Great reaction. Thank you. 😊

[@darinswift490]

Hi ShadowCat, first time checking you out 😍loved your reaction. One of my Favorite movies….. “the Dude Abides”

[@shadowcatreacts]

Thank you!! I'm glad you enjoyed it 😄

[@JodyOwen-we6oo]

“You can imagine where it goes from here..” “He fixes the cable?” That will always be hilarious.

[@markdeegan4113]

fav film

[@wheelmanstan]

I've seen this film so many times and every time I plan to figure out the story..but I always miss it because I'm distracted by everything else happening and enjoy.

[@jfryk]

Thanks for the extended post film commentary!

[@chriskehoe1394]

Yep, watch it again...and again etc. One of my all time faves!

[@chriskehoe1394]

The Coen'sare geniuses BTW!!

[@alexandervladimirov3939]

One of the cutest review❤ The Best I saw so far❤

[@dudermcdudeface3674]

Where the bowling alley used to be, the city built a school. Fair trade.

[@modulator7861]

Shadowcat, you seem like a very sweet, likable person. Great reaction!

[@shadowcatreacts]

That's very kind, thank you!!

[@brianhildreth9099]

My favorite movie!. Loved watching it with you. Great content and thank you! 😍

[@bhowardist]

One of my favorites. Glad you had fun watching! The Dude abides!

[@amiedeecomedy]

You have the most genius responses to this movie I have seen. awesome. )

[@robmaher42]

The plot is culled from 3 or 4 different Philip Marlowe novels. The guy in the the VW Beete, for instance, is from The Big Sleep, but his serching for the missing daughter is from The Little Sister. It doesn't make lot of sense, but neither do a lot of those old detctive stories. Withnil & I would be a good one to watch. If Lebowski is stoned Philip Marlowe, Withnail & I are drunk Holmes and Watson.

[@davescurry69]

Lovely reaction. It's honestly one of those films that you can watch again and again and again. It never gets old. The Coen brothers at their finest.

[@transfiguredearth]

A true classic! Great review.... its certainly stylistic, and i think the morals and the narrative analasis is left up to the viewers assesment of how the characters behave... but at the end of the day, the dude abides

[@jackasswhiskyandpintobeans9344]

18:13 My favorite line in the Movie, "He fixes the cable?"

[@williamwilburn7924]

It's always enjoyable watching you react to movies. You're very insightful and give an intelligent and thorough synopsis of your thoughts after watching each movie. Two of my favorite Coen Brothers movies are Fargo and O' Brother, Where Art Thou. Both are incredible stories with an excellent plot, great dialog, and of course humor. I'm very sure that you'll absolutely love both of them. Please put them on your list.

[@HowardDaniels-uw8tj]

It's hilarious that you kept trying to figure out the plot 😂

[@maggieellis2303]

Excellent, genuine reaction. I so appreciate your honest thoughts about it. What I came away with is the idea that it’s important to not take too seriously really any aspect of it. Also on a side note, Dude never gave me the impression that he was down on his luck. It’s absolutely true that he was 100% used by basically every main character (sans Donnie, perhaps?), but it said a lot about how his demeanor kind of attracted people from all walks of life. Regardless of anything, I sincerely enjoyed this! Thank you for sharing. I’m off to check out other movie reactions you’ve posted! Cheers

[@Yngvarfo]

I kinda think The Dude never left Jeff Bridges after this. He played pretty much the same character in Crazy Heart and The Men Who Stare At Goats. Even though he supposedly played the same guy in Tron: Legacy (2010) as in the original Tron (1982), The Dude had kinda entered him in between the two movies. 😊

[@hackapump]

I think the Coen brothers based a lot of the Dude on Jeff Bridges’ private self. At least Jeff has said as much in interviews, while feigning offence. So it’s probably more like he’s letting himself shine through in his latter day roles. I’m also very fond of his Jack Lucas, in The Fisher King, where he is allegedly channeling director Terry Gilliam’s body language and way of speaking. At least according to Gilliam. :)

[@radwolf76]

My spouse is an ordained Dudist Priest in the Church of the Latter Day Dude, and a huge Tron fan, and they would totally agree that Flynn had been Dude-touched for the second film.

[@sem1conscious]

Love this movie :) Same vibes as Community.

[@fredkrissman6527]

TheDude abides! RaisingArizona, Fargo, & BrotherWhereArtThou are just a few great CoenBros movies...

[@RadicalTrivia]

Also, to my knowledge, all of the Dude's clothes are Jeff Bridges' actual clothes from home. ❤

[@amiedeecomedy]

My favorite movie of all time. Even better on rewatches. Most quotable film of all time.

[@brandonflorida1092]

I love this movie. Fun reaction! You're actually very entertaining to watch when you're just being you. Another good Coen Brothers film is "Raising Arizona." See you next time.

[@vahaneloyan]

Your laughter and smile is the best part of this reaction.

[@henryviper9091]

Had to sub for this reaction alone!! I think this is my fav comedy! The less you know going in, the better because you don't really come out of it knowing anything more haha. Other than my fav word I learned from this movie, "strumpet" lol. Will be checking out more reactions, thanks for sharing your experience! EDIT: Your reaction to Jesus' tounge on the bowing ball - very good instincts haha. Hilarious character but man not a good dude or someone to emulate.

[@mgordon1100]

"I don't know what to make out of that interaction." That was a reverse fourth wall break. The story teller broke into the movie to meet his character.

[@marksullivan7766]

10:21 'this is so uncanny' love it 🤠

[@krisfrederick5001]

This movie is essentially a quotefest interrupted occasionally by bowling...Absolutely hilarious. And ironically didn't do well at the box office. "You're outta your element Donnie!" 😂🎳🎳

[@krisfrederick5001]

The toilet water is milky because he shoved the dude into with his milk in his hand 👀

[@vicegrips188]

Great reaction, I love this movie. If you haven’t watched them is the “Fargo” anthology series and the other series Noah Hawley created “Legion”

[@Gort-Marvin0Martian]

How much do I like this film; I have a tee shirt with the Dude's face on it and it says, "The Dude Abides". I probably paid to watch this film 10 times when it was in the theater. Yet another Coen brother's film. Try their first big release, "Blood Simple". It shows what the future was going to hold for their films. Great reaction / review as always lady. As we say in Texas; y'all be safe.

[@Dunybrook]

Great reaction. There's all kinds of weird theories about this movie like that Donny didn't even exist and was just a figment of Walter's imagination but I think he was just a good friend that tragically died.

[@seamusobrian9050]

Another fantastic Stoner Noire film is Under the silver lake which is a commentary on sexism in Hollywood where you can't tell what is fully reap and what isn't

[@jasonm8017]

It has nothing to do with bowling, and everything. 😂 you’re sweet😊

[@brianforrester9670]

Buscemi's character goes back to a previous Coen brothers movie, Fargo, where he talked constantly. They thought it would be funny to constantly silence him in this film.

[@seamusobrian9050]

Honestly most Coen Brother movies are fantastic their characters are so complex with so many contradictions like Walter calling out Dude for his use of slurs then continues to use it himself

[@clutchpedalreturnsprg7710]

Hello shadowcat, your right. This film needs repeat viewings. I'm happy that you picked up that the first casualty of the incidents was the Dude's car. No Matter, Clint Eastwood made a movie about the car called " Gran Torino ". It has a different vibe though.

[@Hereticked]

"You can't do that! That's an extreme response..." It's a league game, Shadow.

[@positivelynegative9149]

👍

[@mattx449]

Raising Arizona should be next 👍

[@chuckcelemin6789]

And proud we are of all of them

[@danielskinner5346]

His carton of half and half burst in the toilet, that's why the water is milky.

[@ericmanbeck6099]

this is one of those movies that is so quotable i belong to groups where we just insult each other back and forth with movie lines, i also belong to a group called walter lol

[@tappapb]

one of my favorites, tnanks for sharing. One thing I know for shure - I will drink a white russian again soon :)

[@patm5594]

Liked your insight. The next Coen Brothers movie should be Fargo.

[@harryrabbit2870]

The Coen Brothers are my favorite modern moviemakers. So many of their films are about extraordinary things happening to ordinary people and about the nature of evil. In this case, it's comedy. But if you haven't already, please check out some of their other movies like "Fargo" or "No Country For Old Men." The Coens are always thought-provoking, making you think carefully about what you've seen. Good reaction.

[@trevorwilliams6362]

The dude is of the Tao! The perfect Buddha

[@0okamino]

The Abiding Buddha

[@flarrfan]

Looking thru your videos, looks like this was your intro to the Coen Bros. This is far from my favorite of theirs, though it seems to be the popular favorite. I recommend Fargo, Raising Arizona and No Country for Old Men as three better films. My personal favorite, though maybe not for everyone, is a delightful film with George Clooney called O Brother Where Art Thou.

[@JWar-]

There is a moral to the story. Sometimes you eat the bear and sometimes he eats you. You win some, lose some so take it easy, even in the face of death. Remember the intro, sometimes there's the man for his time and place. The dude's attitude is what society needs right now. Remember, at one point he lost a million dollars but in the limo he was like "oh well, it's only money". Who would feel like that in our society? The dude abides.

[@ericschmidt5510]

If you haven't seen the Cohen brothers masterpiece Fargo that is a must-see!

[@jackasswhiskyandpintobeans9344]

29:04 "North by Northwest," reference.

[@jackasswhiskyandpintobeans9344]

This is a remake of 'The Big Sleep." 1946 Dir Howard Hawkes. Lauren Bacall and Humphrey Bogart. Based on a novel by Raymond Chandler. The Production Code was still in effect in 1946, but the undercurrents of the film are pretty racy. It's a detective film with Chandlers protagonist Phillip Marlowe.

[@rare_grooves_shack_1983]

try *Harold and Maude*! it's even more outrageous with the FUNNIEST 4th wall break ever as far as I'm concerned.

[@Icypenguigo]

Shadowcat, you look exceptionally beautiful today! I hope that's not inappropriate to say! :P This movie is a total comedy classic. The Coen brothers have made a ton of movies, but this is still one of the most iconic. It's a mystery/thriller with basically no point. Everything goes nowhere, and the Dude simply abides.

[@shadowcatreacts]

Aw thank so much! 🤗 I think I might've been a bit too focused on trying to figure out what the plot was haha. So this'll be an interesting one to revisit now that I know what to expect. A lot of folks here are saying it gets better with repeat viewings and I totally believe it!

[@Icypenguigo]

@@shadowcatreacts Yeah, I think that was kind of the intention! It twists your mind up trying to figure out what's going on but it's all ultimately pointless! I guess you could say that this movie is trolling you! The point is the characters and seeing how they react to this ridiculous shit! :P

[@Ason19]

Brilliant, why don't you do a revisit of this? I'd love to see a video of your expanded thoughts

[@maurer3d]

2:38 it's milky cause the milk cartoon he was carrying hit the toilet first.

[@saamegan2985]

The toilet water is milky because he had the half and half in his hands when he was attacked

[@HalfassDIY]

Possibly the greatest movie of all time. 😂