The Big Little Lebowski

There are so many things to say about The Big Lebowski. I will admit that the first time I tried to watch this film I only made it through the first half hour. I know what I did wrong. I had all of these expectations of the film. I heard things from my older sister and some friends, so I expected it to be _____. However, this time was I was forced to watch it for this class. I went into my screening with the correct mindset. I expected nothing. I found myself to be completely shocked about this film. It was so awesome! This film was completely different from any other that I had seen before. I believe one of the things that was so different from the mainstream was that it did not present its meaning to the audience. This film requires that the audience chisel what ever they want to take away themselves.
This film allows for many interpretations. After reading the related article I can see the possible underlying meanings. However, after giving credit to those I have my own theories. I think what makes this film so unique is that you can't apply just one meaning of idea to it. It is sort of like life, it is so complex and can be interpreted in different ways depending on the point of view. This film would have never become a commercial success because it does not pander to the average american audience. This film is for the type of people who love cult classics. It is impossible to assign a definition to exactly who those people are, but I will attempt to describe what constitutes a cult classic.
There was one point that was brought up in class that I really liked. A cult classic has a unique quotability to it. There are lines from the film that resonate with the audience. They may be goofy lines, but there is this reason that they seem to apply to our own lives. This points to the reality of the film in question and the all-too-real characters. Also cult films are films that can be watched an unlimited amount of times. I do not know why this is. These are films that never tire the inclined audience. Each new view presents the audience with new things to take away. These films are open to unlimited intellectual conversations. I believe that cult classics are limited to films that do horribly at the box office. What is the fun in having a film like Saving Private Ryan as a cult classic...well it isn't. I could never watch that more than once, and there really is nothing to be said afterwords. The best films always leave the audience thinking. The Big Lebowski does this phenomenally.