THE BlG LEBOWSKl (1998)

wrluen by LLhan & !oel Coen

dlrecLed by !oel Coen
runnlng ume: 112 mlnuLes
BASlC SCREENPLAY ANALYSlS
!"#$%&#'()$: !erey 1he uude" Lebowskl, aglng poLhead and avld-bowler.
*+%"%*$,"(-%$(#'./%(' /()1,+%2(#": unemployed, lazy.
,3$,"'%4 &#%4: 1o be compensaLed for hls solled rug / 1o acL as Lhe ransom courler and ldenufy 8unny
Lebowskl's kldnappers / 1o solve Lhe mysLery of 8unny's kldnapplng before 1he 8lg Lebowskl kllls hlm or 1he
nlhlllsLs cuL o hls !ohnson
('$,"'%4 &#%4: 1o Lake'r easy for all us slnners ouL Lhere.
/%(' 5"%/%$(* *#'64(*$: 1he 8lg Lebowskl, 1he nlhlllsLs, WalLer
$+,/,: Llfe ls a serles of sLrlkes and guuerballs.
*,'$"%4 5"%/%$(* 78,)$(#': Wlll 1he uude solve Lhe mysLery of 8unny's kldnapplng before 1he 8lg
Lebowskl kllls hlm or 1he nlhlllsLs cuL o hls !ohnson?
,'5('&: 1he uude defeaLs Lhe nlhlllsLs.
STORY ENGlNES
%*$ (
ln a case of mlsLaken ldenuLy, 1he uude's favorlLe rug ls mlcLuraLed upon. When hls auacker's orlglnal LargeL,
Lhe wealLhy 8lg Lebowskl, refuses Lo compensaLe hlm for hls solled rug, 1he uude sLeals a rug from hlm.
LaLer, 1he uude ls hlred by 1he 8lg Lebowskl Lo acL as a ransom courler when hls wlfe ls kldnapped.
%*$ ((9%
1he uude, along wlLh hls besL frlend WalLer, mess up Lhe ransom drop and Lhe kldnappers do noL geL Lhe
money. 8efore 1he uude can reLurn Lhe money, hls car ls sLolen wlLh Lhe money lnslde Lhe Lrunk. 1he 8lg
Lebowskl laLer confronLs 1he uude wlLh a severed Loe, presumably belonglng Lo hls wlfe. Pe Lells 1he uude
he has lnsLrucLed Lhe kldnappers Lo do whaLever Lhey need Lo recover Lhe mlsslng money from hlm.
%*$ ((91
Aer pollce locaLe hls mlsslng car, 1he uude dlscovers a clue from Lhe car Lhlef LhaL doesn'L go anywhere. Pe
sleeps wlLh 1he 8lg Lebowskl's daughLer, Maude Lebowskl. When she lnforms hlm LhaL her faLher doesn'L
have any money of hls own, lL glves 1he uude 18L's poLenual mouve for keeplng Lhe ransom money.
%*$ (((
1he uude confronLs 1he 8lg Lebowskl abouL Lhe money and dlscovers 8unny ls allve and well aL hls house.
LaLer, 1he uude faces o agalnsL Lhe kldnappers and ls lucky enough Lo have hls buddy WalLer defeaL Lhem.
,!(4#&8,
1he uude and WalLer spread uonny's ashes ln Lhe aclc and geL back Lo whaL Lhey love Lhe besL: bowllng.
1he 8lg Lebowskl Screenplay Analysls
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age 1
FULL SCREENPLAY ANALYSlS
ACT l
: 9 #!,'('& (/%&,): A Lumbleweed makes lLs way Lhrough Lhrough Lhe deserL Lo Los Angeles,
all Lhe way Lo Lhe aclc Ccean.
We are oating up a steep scrubby slope. We hear male voices gently singing "Tumbling
Tumbleweeds" and a deep, affable, Western-accented voice--Sam Elliot's, perhaps:
THE STRANGER
A way out west there was a fella, fella I want
to tell you about, fella by the name of Jeff
Lebowski. At least, that was the handle his lovin'
parents gave him, but he never had much use for
it himself. This Lebowski, he called himself the Dude.
Now, Dude, that's a name no one would self-apply
where I come from. But then, there was a lot about
the Dude that didn't make a whole lot of sense to
me. And a lot about where he lived, like- wise. But
then again, maybe that's why I found the place
s'durned innarestin'.
4 - Wearlng a robe and sunglasses, $+, 585, -- a.k.a. !erey Lebowskl -- buys half and half aL
8alphs. Pe wrlLes a check for slxLy-nlne cenLs.
; 9 ('*($('& ('*(5,'$: Arrlvlng aL hls aparLmenL, 1he uude ls auacked by men looklng for hls
wlfe, 8unny Lebowskl. Cne of Lhe auackers, an Aslan-Amerlcan, pees on hls rug. Sadly, lL's [usL a
slmple case of mlsLaken ldenuLy -- 1he uude ls noL marrled.
10 - AL Lhe bowllng alley, <%4$,", 1he uude's besL frlend, lnslsLs "Lhe oLher !erey Lebowskl"
compensaLe hlm for hls solled rug.
WALTER
Jeff Lebowski. Come on. This other Jeffrey Lebowski.
The millionaire. He's gonna be easier to nd anyway than
these two, uh. these two...And he has the wealth, uh, the
resources obviously, and there reason, no FUCKING reason,
why wife should go out and owe money and they pee on
your rug. Am I wrong?
13 - 1he uude arrlves aL Lhe manslon of $+, 1(& 4,1#<)=( and asks hlm Lo replace Lhe rug. 1he
8lg Lebowskl becomes furlous. 1he uude says fuck lL" and leaves.
1he 8lg Lebowskl Screenplay Analysls
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age 2
:> 9 )$"#'& /#2,/,'$ 6#"<%"5: 1he uude lles Lo 1he 8lg Lebowskl's asslsLanL, 1"%'5$,
saylng 1he 8lg Lebowskl Lold hlm he could have any rug he wanLed.
17 - CuLslde, 1he uude nds 18''? 4,1#<)=( lounglng by Lhe pool. She oers Lo suck hls cock
for a Lhousand dollars.
22 - 1he uude's laLe on hls renL. Pe llsLens Lo volce-malls from 8randL, lnslsung Lhey are noL
concerned abouL Lhe rug and Lo call back lmmedlaLely.
@A 9 ,'5 #6 %*$ $8"': 1he uude meeLs wlLh 1he 8lg Lebowskl agaln Lo dlscover hls wlfe 8unny
has been kldnapped for a hey ransom. 8randL lls hlm ln on Lhe deLalls...
BRANDT
Mr. Lebowski is prepared to make a generous offer to
you to act as courier once we get instructions for the
money.
DUDE
Why me, man?
BRANDT
He suspects that the culprits might be the very people
who, uh, soiled your rug, and you're in a unique position
to conrm or, uh, disconrm that suspicion.
DUDE
So he thinks it's the carpet-pissers, huh?
BRANDT
Well Dude, we just don't know.
!"#$% #'$ ($)*+*", *+ +'"-, ". )/0$1/2 3'$ 45($ /))$6#+ 3'$ 789 :$;"-+<*=+ ".$12 4*/>"95$
>/#$1 1$?$/>+ 3'$ 7*9 :$;"-+<* ".$1$( 3'$ 45($ #-$,#@ #'"5+/,( (">>/1+ A"1 '*+ +$1?*)$2
1he 8lg Lebowskl Screenplay Analysls
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age 3
ACT ll-A
30 - 8esung on hls rug, 1he uude looks up Lo nd Lwo men and a woman sLandlng above hlm.
Cne of Lhe men knocks hlm ouL. A dream sequence beglns Lo 8ob uylan's 1he Man ln Me."
32 - 1he uude wakes and dlscovers hls new rug gone.
32 9 8randL glves 1he uude 8unny Lebowskl's one mllllon dollars ln ransom. 8randL repeaLedly
Lells 1he uude "her llfe ls ln your hands."
33 - 1he uude plcks up WalLer Lo help wlLh Lhe ransom drop o, even Lhough Lhe kldnappers
lnsLrucLed only one person's lnvolvemenL.
BC 9 6(")$ $"(%4 . 6(")$ *%)8%4$?: WalLer Lhrows a rlnger over a brldge and chaos ensues. 1he
kldnappers escape wlLhouL Lhe ransom money or anyone seelng Lhem.
AD 9 *#/1%$: 1he uude's car, wlLh one mllllon dollars ln Lhe Lrunk, ls sLolen.
43 - 1he uude recelves a call from Maude Lebowskl, clalmlng she sLole hls rug.
48 - /%85, 4,1#<)=(, 1he 8lg Lebowskl's daughLer, belleves 8unny kldnapped herself. She
hlres 1he uude Lo recover Lhe losL money for a fee of Len percenL.
33 - /(5!#('$: CuLslde hls aparLmenL, 1he uude ls manhandled lnLo a walung llmouslne.
lnslde, 1he 8lg Lebowskl accuses 1he uude of sLeallng Lhe ransom money .
The Dude, frowning, untucks its ap, takes out some cotton wadding and unrolls it.
LEBOWSKI
Since you have failed to achieve, even in the modest
task that was your charge, since you have stolen my
money, and since you have unrepentantly betrayed
my trust.
The wadding, undone, reveals a smaller wad of gauze taped up inside. The Dude undoes
the tape with his ngernails and starts to unroll the inner package.
LEBOWSKI
I have no choice but to tell these bums that they should
do whatever is necessary to recover their money from
you, Jeffrey Lebowski. And with Brandt as my witness,
tell you this: Any further harm visited upon Bunny,
shall be visited tenfold upon your head.
Between thumb and forenger the Dude holds up the contents of the package--a little toe,
with emerald green nail polish.
LEBOWSKI
...By God sir. I will not abide another toe.
1he 8lg Lebowskl Screenplay Analysls
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age 4
ACT ll-B
34 - 1he uude meeLs WalLer for coee. WalLer lnslsLs Lhe Loe wasn'L 8unny's and LhaL 8unny
kldnapped herself.
37 - 1he nlhlllsLs -- presumably 8unny's kldnappers -- break lnLo 1he uude's aparLmenL,
demandlng Lhe ransom money wlLhln LwenLy-four hours or Lhey wlll cuL o hls !ohnson."
38 - 1he uude's car ls found by Lhe pollce, buL Lhe money ls sull mlsslng.
63 - 1he uude meeLs wlLh Maude agaln. She lnslsLs he see a docLor regardlng Lhe brulse he
susLalned when she Look Lhe rug from hlm.
66 - 1he uude vlslLs Maude's docLor.
>C 9 %))8/!$(#' #6 !#<,": Aer dropplng a [olnL ln hls lap, 1he uude wrecks hls car.
Auempung Lo geL ouL of Lhe car, he dlscovers evldence from Lhe car Lhlef: a hlgh school essay
on 1he Loulslana urchase.
69 - WalLer and 1he uude locaLe Lhe auLhor of Lhe essay, 4($$4, 4%""? ),44,"), and quesuon
hlm aL hls home.
71 - Larry won'L Lalk and WalLer becomes furlous. CuLslde...
74 - Assumlng Llule Larry Lhe owner of new Corveue, WalLer beaLs up Lhe car wlLh a ure lron.
1he car's owner appears ouL of nowhere an emouonal wreck and yanks Lhe ure lron from
WalLer. 8ellevlng 1he uude's car belongs Lo WalLer, he beaLs Lhe hell ouL of lL ln a L of rage.
78 - 1he uude ls summoned Lo E%*=(, $",,+#"'FG manslon. 8unny Lebowskl owes !ackle a
slzable debL and !ackle wanLs hls cuL from Lhe ransom money 1he uude collecLed from 1he 8lg
Lebowskl.
79 - 1he uude glves up Llule Larry Sellers as Lhe Lhlef of Lhe one mllllon dollars, buL !ackle
doesn'L belleve hlm.
80 - 1he uude passes ouL momenLs before he reallzes !ackle drugged hls drlnk.
81 - uream sequence Lo kenny 8ogers' "!usL uropped ln (1o See WhaL Condluon My Condluon
Was ln)."
86 - 1he uude's arresLed ouLslde !ackle's parLy. 1he Mallbu pollce chlef roughs up 1he uude and
demands he"sLay ouL of Mallbu!"
88 - 8unny Lebowskl ls allve and well.wlLh all Len Loes.
1he 8lg Lebowskl Screenplay Analysls
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age 3
89 - 1he uude comes home Lo nd Maude Lebowskl ln hls aparLmenL. She drops her robe and
says "love me, !erey."
H: 9 ,'5 #6 %*$ $<# $8"': ln bed wlLh 1he uude, Maude reveals her faLher doesn'L have any
money of hls own. 1he money belonged Lo her moLher. Maude glves hlm "a reasonable
allowance" Lo llve.
DUDE
It's a complicated case, Maude. Lotta ins, lotta outs.
Fortunately I've been adhering to a pretty strict, uh,
drug regimen to keep my mind, you know, limber. I'm
real fucking close to your father's money, real fucking
close. It's just--
MAUDE
I keep telling you, it's the Foundation's money. Father
doesn't have any.
DUDE
Huh? He's fucking loaded.
MAUDE
No no, the wealth was all Mother's.
DUDE
But your father--he runs stuff, he--
MAUDE
We did let Father run one of the companies, briey, but
he didn't do very well at it.
DUDE
But he's--
MAUDE
He helps administer the charities now, and I give him
a reasonable allowance. He has no money of his own. I
know how he likes to present himself; Father's weakness
is vanity. Hence the slut.
!"#$% (*+)"?$1*,9 3'$ 7*9 :$;"-+<* '/+ ," 0",$@ 9*?$+ 3'$ 45($ / 6"#$,B/> 0"B?$ A"1 3'$ 7*9
:$;"-+<* #" 6")<$# #'$ 1/,+"0 0",$@ A"1 '*0+$>A2
92 - Maude lnforms 1he uude she wanLs Lo have hls chlld, buL doesn'L wanL hlm acuve ln Lhe
chlld's llfe. 1he uude ls ne wlLh LhaL.
HB 9 5,*()(#': 1he uude calls WalLer Lo drlve hlm Lo 1he 8lg Lebowskl's manslon.
1he 8lg Lebowskl Screenplay Analysls
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age 6
ACT lll
93 - 1he nlhlllsLs dlne on pancakes. Cne of Lhelr glrlfrlends ls mlsslng a Loe.
96 - 1he uude Lells WalLer 1he 8lg Lebowskl never puL Lhe ransom money ln Lhe brlefcase and
kepL Lhe money for hlmself.
97 - 1he uude and WalLer arrlve aL 1he 8lg Lebowskl's manslon and nd 8unny runnlng around,
compleLely naked and compleLely unharmed.
HH 9 !#('$ #6 '# ",$8"': 1he uude and WalLer confronL 1he 8lg Lebowskl abouL Lhe mlsslng
money.
DUDE
We know the briefcase was empty, man. We know you
kept the million bucks yourself.
LEBOWSKI
Well, you have your story, I have mine. I say I entrusted
the money to you, and you stole it.
WALTER
AS IF WE WOULD EVER DREAM OF TAKING YOUR
BULLSHIT MONEY!
DUDE
You thought Bunny'd been kidnapped and you could use
it as a pretext to make some money disappear. All you
needed was a sap to pin it on, and you'd just met me.
You thought, hey, a deadbeat, a loser, someone the
square community won't give a shit about.
LEBOWSKI
Well? Aren't you?
DUDE
Well. . . yeah.
1he 8lg Lebowskl Screenplay Analysls
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age 7
102 - CuLslde Lhe bowllng alley, 1he nlhlllsLs have Lorched 1he uude's car. 1hey demand Lhe
ransom money.
WALTER
There's no ransom if you don't have a fucking hostage.
That's what ransom is. Those are the fucking rules.
DIETER
Zere ARE no ROOLZ!
WALTER
NO RULES! YOU CABBAGE-EATING SONS-OF-BITCHES--
KIEFFER
His girlfriend gafe up her toe! She sought we'd be
getting million dollars! Iss not fair!
WALTER
Fair! WHO'S THE FUCKING NIHILIST HERE! WHAT
ARE YOU, A BUNCH OF FUCKING CRYBABIES?!
:DA 9 *4(/%3: 1he nlhlllsLs auack and WalLer klcks all of Lhelr asses.
!"#$% *#=+ A5,,@ #'/# 3'$ 45($ ("$+ /;+">5#$>@ ,"#'*,9 '$1$2 C>",9 -*#' 4",,@D 3'$ 45($=+ E5+#
#1@*,9 #" 9*?$ 3'$ !*'*>*+#+ />> '*+ )/+' /,( 61/@ #'$@ 9" /;"5# #'$*1 ;5+*,$++2 8#=+ F/>#$1 #'/#
($A$/#+ #'$ ;/( 95@+ *, #'$ $,(2
103 - uonnle suers a hearL auack durlng Lhe nlhlllsL auack and dles.
1he 8lg Lebowskl Screenplay Analysls
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age 8
EPlLOGUE
109 - WalLer spreads uonnle's ashes over Lhe aclc, buL Lhanks Lo a sLrong gusL of wlnd, mosL
of lL ends up on 1he uude.
110 - 1he uude becomes furlous wlLh WalLer, buL Lhey make up when WalLer hugs hlm.
112 - 8ack aL Lhe bowllng alley, 1he uude Lalks Lo 1he SLranger. Pe leaves and 1he SLranger Lalks
Lo us, closlng Lhe lm.
Gazing after him, The Stranger drawls, savoring the words:
THE STRANGER
The Dude abides.
He gives his head a shake of appreciation, then looks into the camera.
THE STRANGER
I don't know about you, but I take comfort in that. It's
good knowin' he's out there, the Dude, takin' her easy
for all us sinners. Shoosh. I sure hope he makes The nals.
Welp, that about does her, wraps her all up. Things seem
to've worked out pretty good for the Duden Walter, and it
was a purt good story, dontcha think? Made me laugh to
beat the band. Parts, anyway. Course--I didnt like seein
Donny go. But then, hapen to know that theres a little
Lebowski on the way. I guess that's the way the whole
durned human comedy keeps perpetuatin' it-self, down
through the generations, westward the wagons, across
the sands a time until-- aw, look at me, I'm ramblin' again.
Wal, uh hope you folks enjoyed yourselves.
He brushes his hat brim with a ngertip as we begin to pull back.
THE STRANGER
Catch ya further on down the trail.
::@ 9 $+, ,'5.
1he 8lg Lebowskl Screenplay Analysls
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age 9
A noLe from Lhe auLhor:
Wrluen analysls of lm ls a cruclal sLep for any screenwrlLer. l've found no beuer way Lo learn
Lhe cra Lhan breaklng down my favorlLe lms and dlscoverlng whaL makes Lhem uck. lf you've
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favorlLes. CeL deLalled. uL ln Lhe hours. ?ou'll be glad you dld.
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helped brlng lL all LogeLher. WlLh Lhorough commenLary on concepL and Lheme, hls sLrucLure
paradlgm ls easy Lo undersLand and apply. SLory Maps ls an lnslghuul look aL Lhe cra of
screenwrlung, a musL read for Lhe asplrlng screenwrlLer.
AbouL Lhe book:
Learn Lhe secreLs Lo wrlung a C8LA1 screenplay from a
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1he book clLes examples from hundreds of lms, several
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book provldes deLalled lessons on formaL, capLurlng volce
and Lone on Lhe scrlpL page and developlng greaL characLers
wlLh powerful dlalogue.
?ou can purchase uan's book from Amazon.com or Lhe l1unes SLore.
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1he 8lg Lebowskl Screenplay Analysls
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age 10