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
