As you may well have picked up by now, here at Penta we’ve been known to be fans of the occasional cult classic. So, with a certain favourite film of ours celebrating its 25th anniversary this year, we knew that we would have to pay homage in some way, shape or form.
Ladies and Gentlemen, it’s time for us to show some love for the surreal, madcap comic masterpiece from the Coen Brothers, that is The Big Lebowski.
Now we could go fully into describing the plot, but those that have already seen the film will know that given the way it twists and turns we’d probably need a lot more time and space than our usual Good Vibes section. If you haven’t seen it, we won’t spoil it for you, but you should really watch it. Here’s a brief overview of what you are letting yourself in for…
Legendary actor Jeff Bridges plays Jeff Lebowski, more commonly and appropriately known as The Dude, who after a case of mistaken identity, pays a visit to another Jeffrey Lebowski (this time the titular Big Lebowski) to seek compensation for a damaged rug. It’s an important rug, “it really tied the room together”. What follows is a chaotic tale of kidnap, blackmail, and plenty of bowling.
Just a side note here, we’ve already got pool tables and dart machines in most of our Pentalounges, but this movie made us think of how cool, if slightly overambitious, it would be to have a bowling alley in a Pentalounge. Yay or nay? Let us know on our Instagram!
Back to the movie, and it’s probably best described by a quote from director Joel Coen: “the characters trying to unravel a mystery. As well as having a hopelessly complex plot that’s ultimately unimportant.” But don’t let that put you off. It’s the journey and its many quirky and comic moments that make this movie so enjoyable.
As with all our favourite movies we have to give a nod to the music and soundtrack. You’ll hear great songs by Bob Dylan, Nina Simone and Creedence Clearwater Revival all popping up, not to mention this Spanish cover of Hotel California by Gipsy Kings. Another side note, if you are someone that’s a big fan of covers, then you need to check out this month’s Penta Sounds, this one isn’t in there, but there are some other amazing ones to check out.
If The Dude is one of the most chilled-out and coolest lead roles in a movie we’ve seen, then he is perfectly offset by the hot-headed Walter, played by John Goodman and dopey fall guy Donny played by Steve Buscemi. The trio are further complimented by a great supporting cast including Julianne Moore, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Tara Reid, and John Turturro. Coincidentally it also features and is narrated by Sam Elliot, who appeared in our last movie review – Road House.
All in all, these blog posts are written for us to welcome you into the world of Penta, and so that we can all share the same good vibes, and that is exactly what The Big Lebowski brings. We love The Dude as a character, and we can’t help but feel that if he was looking for a place to stay in the UK or Europe, Penta would be a pretty good place for him.
We’re not experts or critics, but we are movie, music and pop-culture lovers and we say, if you have a couple of spare hours then you could do a lot worse than spend them watching this film.
Still credits: “The Best of The Big Lebowski”, uploaded to YouTube by Michael Hess
