Dude: The Big Lebowski screens tonight at the Boulder

The Dude abides. By definition, in fact: perhaps more than any other film in recent history, the Coen Brothers' magnum opus The Big Lebowski has proven its longevity -- if the number of academic papers written about it can be seen as a barometer of its importance, then The Dude...

By Jef Otte

February 23, 2011

[
        {
          "name": "Air - MediumRectangle - Inline Content - Mobile Display Size",
          "component": "12017618",
          "insertPoint": "2",
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "2"
        },{
          "name": "Editor Picks",
          "component": "17242653",
          "insertPoint": "4",
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "1"
        },{
          "name": "Inline Links",
          "component": "18838239",
          "insertPoint": "8th",
          "startingPoint": 8,
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "7",
          "maxInsertions": 25
        },{
          "name": "Air - MediumRectangle - Combo - Inline Content",
          "component": "17261320",
          "insertPoint": "8th",
          "startingPoint": 8,
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "7",
          "maxInsertions": 25
        },{
          "name": "Inline Links",
          "component": "18838239",
          "insertPoint": "8th",
          "startingPoint": 12,
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "11",
          "maxInsertions": 25
        },{
          "name": "Air - Leaderboard Tower - Combo - Inline Content",
          "component": "17261321",
          "insertPoint": "8th",
          "startingPoint": 12,
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "11",
          "maxInsertions": 25
        }
      ]

The Dude abides. By definition, in fact: perhaps more than any other film in recent history, the Coen Brothers' magnum opus The Big Lebowski has proven its longevity -- if the number of academic papers written about it can be seen as a barometer of its importance, then The Dude is pretty much a Charles Foster Kane for the slacker era. So classic is Lebowski's easygoing greatness that it's almost hard to believe it came out just thirteen years ago -- it has that timeless quality that makes it seem older -- but that's still a long enough time ago that many of the film's younger admirers have never seen it in the full glory of the silver screen. If that's you, then tonight's your lucky night.

And if your life is sad enough that you've never seen it at all, then there's no better time. Just as a primer (and a demonstration of the extent to which people love this movie), the two clips below edit the film down to each instance of various words' appearance throughout -- the first catalogs every use of the word "fuck," while the second tackles "dude."

And if that doesn't make you want to see the whole thing, the you are out of your fucking element, Donnie. The Big Lebowski screens tonight at 7:30 p.m. the Boulder Theater; tickets are $9, and showing up in a bathrobe gets you a $1 discount on white russians.

Follow us on Twitter!

KEEP WESTWORD FREE... Since we started Westword, it has been defined as the free, independent voice of Denver, and we'd like to keep it that way. Your membership allows us to continue offering readers access to our incisive coverage of local news, food, and culture with no paywalls. You can support us by joining as a member for as little as $1.