How The Big Lebowski functions as Noir

If you found yourself wondering how The Big Lebowski fits into black and white films from the 40’s and 50’s, you’d be sane as on the surface The Dude and his misadventures seem little more than absurdist stoner comedy.

That’s not the case however. In an interview discussing the inspiration for the movie, the Cohen brothers cited classic Raymond Chandler pulps as direct inspiration. The name of the movie itself, The Big Lebowski, is a play on the names o popular noir movies like The Big Short and The Big Heat.

Beyond the name, characters and conventions are either used or manipulated by the Cohen brothers in a way that classify The Big Lebowski as a Noir.

The Dude: The Dude himself is a sardonic take on the classic Noir investigator. Like many others, he is thrust into the role as investigator, only getting involved due to his namesake and desire for a new rug. However he trades Bourbon for White Russians and cigarettes for weed. He isn’t poetic or clever like say Phillip Marlowe, again this is done purposely as a twisting of the genre. He’s a callback to the great Private I’s of that era without any of their particularly useful skills.

The Big Lebowski: Jeffery Lebowski is a caricature of the classic rich benefactor. These characters act as the catalyst for the story, introducing our investigators into certain characters, or recruiting them in order to solve a case. The ladder being the role of The Big Lebowski in this movie

Maude Lebowski: Maude acts as two sorts of characters. She could serve as both the femme fatale as she ends up seducing and later discarding The Dude after she has her way with him. Yet she is more akin to the helpful romantic interest, with seduction and charm being replaced by feminist ideals and a cold demeanor.

Bunny: Jeffery Lebowski’s trophy wife more closely resembles the classic femme fatale in that she is a nymphomaniac that uses her beauty to get what she wants. It’s assumed that she faked being kidnapped for ransom money, maybe with her even being the originator of the idea. One thing is certain though. She did offer to give The Dude a blowjob after he first meets the Big Lebowski

Walter and Donny: These two friends of The Dude are a play on the classic duo of “the brawn” and “the little guy”. However rather than being helpful or acting as a compass for our investigator, they serve to muddle and confuse The Dude’s journey even more.

The setting: I touched on this earlier, but The Big Lebowski being set in L.A. is no coincidence. However rather than a bleak sprawling urban environment, The Dude spends his time in sunny bungalows and exotic porn houses. The classic rainy streets are swapped for vibrant L.A. locations. A fitting change that still warrants itself as noiresque.

The Style: just because settings and characters fit into noir conventions doesn’t mean the movie is noir. What makes The Big Lebowski a sardonic noir is it’s use of elements like flashbacks, dream sequences close ups, blinds, and mirrors. These elements replicate the surrealism of classic noirs while also servicing the absurd plot.