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Category:    Home > Reviews > Comedy > Satire > The Big Lebowski: 10th Anniversary Edition (Universal DVD)

The Big Lebowski: 10th Anniversary Edition (Universal DVD)

 

Picture: B     Sound: B-     Extras: C+     Film: A-

 

 

There are some men who need no introduction.  One of them is The Dude.  Everyone knows The Big Lebowski and the most of us who love it know it by heart.  This film, by the unparalleled Coen Brothers, is one of the great cult classics of all time.  It is the detective story for the modern man in this modern era.  Now, ten years after its unheralded theatrical release, the movie is being celebrated the way it should, with a two-discs and plenty of special features.

 

This release has obviously had restoration work done on it because the picture and sound are fantastic.  I never knew a DVD could produce that kind of picture quality.  The first disc containing the film and the first few special features is presented in 1.85:1 anamorphic widescreen, while the second disc with the rest of the extras is in the older 1.33:1 full screen format.  The audio is a testament to what Dolby Digital 5.1 can accomplish.

 

The extras are numerous and range from very good to almost entirely useless.  Most of the featurettes are fairly self explanatory including The Dude’s Life, The Dude Abides: The Big Lebowski Ten Years Later, Flying Carpets and Bowling Pin Dreams: The Dream Sequences of The Dude, and Making of The Big Lebowski.  There is also a tongue-in-cheek faux introduction and an interactive map of the locations around LA where many of the key scenes were filmed.  There is also a mini-documentary about the enormous fan culture that has grown around this film and chronicles the development of the Lebowski Fest.  Then there is one of those unexpected treats that you find on a disc every once in a while, Jeff Bridges talks us through a book he made of his photos from the production, revealing his surprising talent as a photographer.  What’s puzzling though, is why they then felt they needed to include a photo gallery that is just a slideshow of the same photos that Jeff Bridges shows us in his photo book.

 

In the end, I’m not going to convince you whether or not you will like The Big Lebowski, because you most likely made up your mind on that a long time ago.  What I will tell you though, is that since you most likely part of the 90% of the population that does like the movie, this is the DVD you should buy to watch it over and over again.  Unless you’re waiting for the retailer to bundle the DVD with a bottle of Kahlua, you’re not going to find a better release than this.

 

 

This new edition is also available in gift bowling ball casing.  For more on this film, check out our previous reviews:

 

HD-DVD

http://www.fulvuedrive-in.com/review/5624/The+Big+Lebowski+(HD-DVD)

 

DVD Collector’s Edition

http://www.fulvuedrive-in.com/review/3027/The+Big+Lebowski+-+Collector

 

 

-   Matthew Carrick


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