I'm a Lebowski, You're a Lebowski: Life, The Big Lebowski, and What Have You

I'm a Lebowski, You're a Lebowski: Life, The Big Lebowski, and What Have You

4.01 of 5 stars 4.01  ·  rating details  ·  527 ratings  ·  92 reviews
The ultimate fan's guide to the Coen Brothers' cult classic, with an introduction by the Dude himself, Jeff Bridges.

To some The Big Lebowski is just a movie, to others it's THE MOVIE. Over the past several years the movie has developed a massive and passionate cult following, led by the creation of Lebowski Fest, a traveling festival celebrating all things Lebowski. Held i...more
Paperback, 256 pages
Published August 21st 2007 by Bloomsbury USA (first published January 2007)
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Luke Peterson
Aug 29, 2007 Luke Peterson rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: die-hard fans
I abide this book five stars for the same reason many Christians would probably give the Holy Bible five stars: It's the primary book around on its relatively specialized subject matter.

I received this book as a gift and was extremely jazzed at the prospect of catching some of the back story of a film I've seen 80 or 90 times. Turns out the book is pretty funny and slightly inspiring at times, but can't match the genius of the work it has been written to supplement.

The authors are the "founding...more
Blayne
I am an Acheiver from way back. I have a t-shirt from the 1st Annual Lebowskifest and attended the 2nd and 3rd in Louisville.

I first saw The Big Lebowski March 2008, when it first came out in theaters. The theater only had a handful of people, inlcuding a guy sitting behind me, that laughed the entire movie. I don't recall anyone else laughing and I found his continous laughter a little annoying and distracting.

As my girlfriend (now wife) and I left the movie, I remember saying, "I want to see t...more
jenna
Jun 08, 2012 jenna rated it 4 of 5 stars Recommends it for: Anyone who adores "The Big Lebowski"
Shelves: 2012
Lebowski fans, rejoice!

This book is rich with incidental facts and trivia of the beloved movie. What I love best is it's interviews with the most "inconsequential" actors and historical figures that inspire the movie. Watching the movie I am definitely enamored with the nuances that are so subtle and appear so "inside", but you get it some how! "Sometime you eat the bar, sometime the bar eats you"; makes sense when you hear it, but there's actually this great context to it!

Like many, The Big Leb...more
KDB
Sometimes there's a book... to describe a movie that rests in the hearts of so many Achievers. If you aren't a fan of The Big Lebowski, a masterpiece from the ever brilliant Coen brothers, then don't bother with this book. You're out of your element, like a child that wanders into the midst of pages you simply won't understand. This book is excellent - like the Dude's rug, it really ties the room together. Even after countless viewings of the greatest movie ever made, I learned quite a bit from...more
Sherrie
This is a book about one of my favorite movies, The Big Lebowski. The book explores the cult following surrounding the film, interviews the actors, introduces the real people who inspired the characters, offers a plethora of trivia about the movie, and what have you. If you are a fan of the movie, this book is highly recommended. If The Big Lebowski isn't your thing, skip it- in the words of the film's Walter Sobchak, doing so may cause you to "enter a world of pain" if your sense of humor isn't...more
Mike
My mom, being a nice mom, got this for me when things got goofy with my girlfriend recently. I definitely think The Big Lebowski is a fantastic movie, but I've never been a huge nerd about it (not to say that I'm not a huge nerd about things in general). It's one of those movies that has been sort of appropriated into a lifestyle by a lot of college-dude types, and I tend to avoid must college-dude types, but reading through this I started to remember why it is also a great film and just why so...more
Matthias Ferber
Skimmed this in a Barnes & Noble while I had time to kill. Basically it's the product of some scarily obsessed fanboys. It includes a fanatically comprehensive set of interviews -- they not only tracked down the actor who played Larry, the kid who steals the Dude's car ("IS THIS YOUR HOMEWORK, LARRY?") but also the former kid whose real-life involvement in a car theft inspired the Larry incident. They even interviewed the actress who played the supermarket checkout girl in one of the opening...more
Joseph D'Agnese
Sometimes, there's a book, well, it's the book for its time and place. It fits right in there. And that's this book, right here. And even if it's a lazy book - and any book 'bout the Dude is most certainly that. Quite possibly the laziest in Los Angeles County or any other, frankly, which would place it high in the runnin' for laziest worldwide. But sometimes there's a book, sometimes, there's a book. Aw. I lost my train of thought here. But... aw, hell. I've done introduced it enough.
Dwight
Jul 12, 2011 Dwight rated it 4 of 5 stars
Recommended to Dwight by: Matt Talamini
This book is for everyone who, like me, has been waiting for a real The Big Lebowski special edition DVD.

The best part is the interviews. They interviewed most of the actors and many of the people that the Coen Brothers based the various characters on. All the way down to the real little Larry Sellers.

Sometimes the movie quotations go a little over the line but they didn't go too far, maybe their toe just slipped over. ;)

Nick Davis
This is my favorite movie of all time. This book gives some interesting facts about the movie, but nothing earth shattering. The most interesting thing was finding out how the Cohens got their inspiration. If you're as huge a fan as I am, this might be for you, but otherwise pass. But Definitly watch the movie, for the first, second, one hundredth time. The Cohen brothers are geniuses.
Alex Gherzo
If you're a fan of The Big Lebowski, you must read this book! No two ways about it. There are great stories about how the Coen Brothers came up with the Dude's many misadventures, interviews with much of the cast (even people with tiny roles), descriptions of Lebowskifests past, testimonials from some famous and some not-so-famous fans, information on locations used in the film, and lots of fun references to the movie (the kind you no doubt make in everyday conversations if you're anything like...more
Sonia
Loved it- I'm such a big fan (I learned that we're called "Achievers" as in the little Lebowski urban achievers (and proud we are of all of them)) Reading this made me want to call my friend Colin on every page- in college, we'd go bowling, drink white Russians, and watch this movie. SO GOOD. Favorite quote: "You're obviously not a golfer"
Richard
where do i start. brilliant. the book about the movie about the man for his time and place. our time. lebowski's time. i mean to say 'the dude' (or the duderino or his dude-ness if you're not into the whole brevity thing). learn what it means to be an achiever, and the scourge of being a bum. because they lost. tattoo it on your forehead! because the dude minds! this aggression will not stand, man!

big lebowski fans, your time has arrived. this-is-a-must-have for you. this book, even on shomer s...more
Amanda Hartman
This was a Christmas gift from my boyfriend. It's a fun collection of trivia and interviews with cast members and others. After reading it, I re-watched the movie, and was amused by some of the small things mentioned in the interviews that I had previously missed. I would recommend this for anyone who loves the movie.
Dan
Mar 30, 2008 Dan rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: Achievers
Recommended to Dan by: My Dad
This is a must read for any Achievers (the preferred nomenclature for die hard Big Lebowski fans, in the parlance of our times.)

This book is great. It contains interviews with actors. But it also contains interviews with the people who were the inspiration for the characters in The Big Lebowski. Yup, there is a Dude (Jeff "The Dude" Dowd,) and there are many inspirations for Walter. Furthermore, the authors discovered that there were many actual events that inspired The Big Lebowski. These inclu...more
Robb
Mar 29, 2008 Robb rated it 5 of 5 stars
Shelves: 2008
This is a great book for anyone who's crossed the threshold from casual viewer to obsessed, multi-viewing, actually going to Lebowskifest, dressing up like the characters fans... such as myself.

It's great because it goes into all the details that you would want to know about a movie you're obsessed with. Where the scenes were shot, how the characters were conceived, what was based on actual events, and things like that. It analyzes dialogue, interviews the actors, and covers everything so thoro...more
Dave Ward
I'm a Lebowski, You're a Lebowski: Life, The Big Lebowski, and What Have You, by Bill Green, Will Russell, Ben Peskoe, Scott Shuffitt (Bloomsbury 2007) is simply a fan book based on the movie. The book is dumb, but boy the movie was funny! 4/10, finished 3/14/11.
Sarah
It's not so much a good book all on its own, but it is a really decent book about one of the best movies ever made. (If you don't agree with that last bit, you probably should take a pass on this one.)
Nick
For the Lebowski junkie, this is a terrific book. Contains ridiculous details and encyclopedic tidbits for those who have seen the movie many, many times. Very well done.
Chris
This book is the ultimate fan book. I don't think there is any part of The Big Lebowski that this book does not cover. For someone who has seen the movie many times, there is still some info for you here in this book, but at times it gets repetitive. The book basically breaks down like this: an introduction; interviews with all actors/actresses in the film; interviews with the people who served as inspiration for various characters; interviews with fans (some are well known); Lebowski Fest info;...more
Phil Simon
Give these guys props for finding just about everyone in the movie and interviewing them. If you don't like the movie, then don't get the book. It will be lost on you.
Nick
Fun book for any Achiever. Excited to watch the movie again with reference materials: by-your-side guide to watching The Big Lebowski
Des Cannon
The Dude wrote the Foreword for God's sake, so what could I do but award a quintuple of stars...well that's just like, my opinion.
Celeste
I LOL'd many times while reading this. Great interviews of random cast members and what have you. A must-read for Achievers!
Weston
If you are a fan of 'The Big Lebowski', you should read this book. It has interviews with the cast, and also with the people that inspired the characters. More of this movie is based on fact than I had ever imagined possible.

"Is this your homework, Larry?"
Russell Ince

Some people have only rated this book 2 stars:

"Yeah, well, that's just like, their opinion man..."
Mick Davidson
The perfect companion to a brilliant film. I need to go make a Caucasian...
Pyratealeman
Some very interesting info for Lebowski fans, aka Achievers.
Kerry
Nov 09, 2007 Kerry rated it 4 of 5 stars Recommends it for: all who enjoyed the movie The Big Lebowski
Shelves: coffeetable, iownthis
I bought this book on impulse, and I don't regret it at all. It's a fantastic coffee table book, and easily flip-throughable. Most of the book consists of interviews with the actors in the film -- ALL of the actors, from Julianne Moore and Jeff Bridges to the Dude's landlord, and Liam (the Jesus' bowling partner.) And they all love the movie, apparently.

It's obviously all over the dick of the movie, but that's not too annoying. And it makes me more determined to actually attend a Lebowskifest, w...more
Greg Schell
A fun, quick read that is sure to be appreciated by Achievers everywhere.
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