The Big Lebowski (1998)

The Big Lebowski () is a 1998 crime comedy film written, directed, produced and co-edited by Joel and Ethan Coen, and starring Jeff Bridges, John Goodman, Julianne Moore, Steve Buscemi, and John Turturro. It follows the life of Jeffrey "The Dude" Lebowski, a Los Angeles slacker and avid bowler who is assaulted as a result of mistaken identity, and becomes embroiled in a kidnapping and ransom scheme focused on a millionaire who shares his name.

The film is loosely inspired by the work of Raymond Chandler. Joel Coen said, "We wanted to do a Chandler kind of story—how it moves episodically and deals with the characters trying to unravel a mystery, as well as having a hopelessly complex plot that's ultimately unimportant." The score is by Carter Burwell, a longtime collaborator of the Coen brothers.

The Big Lebowski was produced by Working Title Films and distributed by Gramercy Pictures in the United States and Canada and by PolyGram Filmed Entertainment internationally. It received mixed reviews at the time of its release. Reviews have since become largely positive and the film, noted for its eccentric characters, comedic dream sequences, idiosyncratic dialogue, and eclectic soundtrack, has garnered a cult following. In 2014, the film was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as "culturally, historically or aesthetically significant."