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495 of 574 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars
I'm rating the bowling ball special edition DVD, NOT the movie!, September 10, 2008
The Big Lebowski is on my top ten list of all time best films. I've seen A LOT of films by the way. I don't need to explain to anyone why this movie is so brilliant, and why it continues to be a cultural phenomenon. I mention these things first because I don't want people to feel like I'm giving the film one star. If I could I would give the movie 100 stars. What I'm giving such a poor review for is my distaste for movie studios pumping out special editon dvd's every few years because they know a film has a huge following. This new "bowling ball" edition of Lebowski is further proof that Universal has nothing but contempt for the fans of Big Lebowski. They wrap it up in a nice big package and make it look slick, but that's as far as the creativity goes into supplying anything new in terms of extras. Does anyone remember the terrible repackage they gave it a few years ago with a towel and coasters? No actual extras existed, but they still put it out as a revamped "deluxe edition". Well, don't expect much more here.
The only new extras to this edition are four very brief featurettes. They feature new interviews with all of the major players (with the exception of the Coen brothers, of course), but they mostly just sit around and say stuff like, "It's a great film! It's hilarious! Coen Brothers are geniuses!". Err, yeah, we know all of that. It also has a featurette that centers around the Lebowski Fest which is vaguely interesting for a few minutes until it turns into the same old "Lebowski is great!" territory. The featurettes are a snooze fest to say the least.
What really annoyed me with this DVD, though, is that they included the SAME "Making of Big Lebowski" documentary that has been on every release of this film! Not only that, it looks as if it was recorded from an old VHS tape and plastered onto a full screen format. It looks horrible, and what's more, we've all seen it before! How many times is Universal going to pump out the same damn extras to the same audience?? It's an insult to be charged more and more money for the same mediocre extras that were never that good to begin with. Luckily I was able to rent this and didn't actually buy it! "The Big Lebowski" will NEVER have proper extras until the people who created it (the Coen Brothers) are involved. We want a commentary, a full length documentary with in-depth interviews, and deleted scenes (and plenty of them!).
DON'T BUY THIS EDITION. It's junk! Simply keep the edition you already have (the very first edition) safely knowing that you are not missing anything with any other edition!
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156 of 188 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars
Do not buy this if you already own the previous DVD release, October 18, 2005
Picture and sound quality is a bit improved, but other than that you are spending money on the exact same DVD. Usually, when a "Collector's Edition" is released, especially after a movie gains such a huge cult following like Lebowski has, people actually go through the effort of including cast commentaries, more bonus features, and...well, more than just repackaging the old DVD with a new name, a new cover, and a higher retail price.
Shame on Universal and Focus Features.
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130 of 165 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Lotta strands in the Duders head......, November 2, 2002
The Dude abides, my friends, and aren't you glad he's out there?
What a mystery today would look like if Raymond Chandler was writing on Orange Sunshine. Following on their acclaimed hit, Fargo, the Coens, known for strange and offbeat films, on this outing went totally surreally weird. I confess I overlooked this film initially, despite being a Coen fan, but now I absolutely love it in all its idiosyncratic nuttiness. Worthy of multiple viewings just to savor the throwaway lines and the marvelously bizarre cameos by the Coen's repertory company (Buscemi, Turturro, Polito, Stormare etc.) and the drop-ins (Huddleston, Tara Reid, Gazzara, Moore & a wonderful Sam Elliott).
The plot, if you think one is necessary, has to do with The Dude (Jeff Bridges), an unreconstructed 60's throwback named Jeff Lebowski, being mistaken for a different, much richer Lebowski, and after being assaulted, his rug micturated upon and stolen (it ties the rooms together, man), begins a labyrinthine pursuit of the kidnapped wife of the Big Lebowski. Which of course, has nothing to do with the pleasures of this picture, which are the sidetrips and the characters, the asides, and the stuff thrown in just because its funny!
Jeff Bridges is perfect as The Dude. He knows this guy and he is this guy. The perfect foil to The Dude is John Goodman's Walter, a Viet Nam vet who's a seething mix of outward calm combined with an explosive temper and a penchant for wrong assumptions. These guys are great together.
Anyway, delineation and explanation is just plain silly for this movie. Just hop on and enjoy the ride and revel in the fact that the kitchen sink will come flying through at any moment. There is a complete logic to this kaleidescope, but who cares? Stay out of Malibu, Dude! And don't forget to go find a cash machine!
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