The Dude Review

Jeffrey "The Dude" Lebowski is a single, unemployed California, slacker who enjoys marijuana and spends his days "bowling, driving around, [and having] the occasional acid flashback." A devoted Creedence Clearwater Revival fan, he actively hates The Eagles. He freely uses profanity and is not above postdating a check for $0.69 to buy a carton of half and half for his favorite drink, White Russian cocktails. He claims to be one of the members of the "Seattle Seven" and a former roadie for Metallica, though he is not fond of the bandmembers (he refers to them as a "bunch of assholes"). The Dude is a laid-back pacifist who gets caught up in a scheme of kidnapping and embezzlement after seeking reparations for his beloved rug — which "really tied the room together" — after it was peed on.

Walter Sobchak is a Vietnam War veteran who "lives in the past"; he is the Dude's best friend and bowling teammate. Born a Polish Catholic, he converted to Judaism when he married his wife Cynthia and is accused of having a "sick Cynthia fetish" by The Dude ever since the two were divorced five years prior to the events in the film. Walter is a paranoid, mentally unstable man who often relates situations to his experiences in the Vietnam War. He often deals with situations aggressively and stubbornly, providing the main impetus for much of the story. He is boisterously confident in his actions, though his plans usually backfire, often ending disastrously for himself and the Dude. Walter runs his own security firm, Sobchak Security, and places bowling second to only his reverence to his religion, as evidenced by the memorable line "I'm as Jewish as the fucking Tevye" and his strict rule against bowling on Shabbos.

Theodore Donald "Donny" Kerabatsos is a member of Walter and The Dude's bowling team. Charmingly naïve, he interrupts conversations between The Dude and Walter to inquire about the parts of the story he missed, evoking responses such as "you're out of your element" and "you're like a child who wanders into the middle of a movie." He is an avid bowler, and surfer in his younger days. Following his death and cremation, Walter and The Dude scatter his ashes over the ocean, in accordance with what his final wishes "might well have been."

Maude Lebowski is the Big Lebowski's daughter. She is a feminist as well as an avant-garde artist whose work "has been commended as strongly vaginal." She is good friends with video artist Knox Harrington, and she is also the person who introduced Bunny to Uli Kunkle, the nihilist and would-be kidnapper. Maude strongly disapproves of her father's marriage to Bunny.

Jeffrey Lebowski, "The Big Lebowski" to which the movie's title refers, is a multi-millionare who lost his legs to "some Chinaman [...] in Korea." He is married to Bunny and is the father of Maude by his late wife. He is a very vain man who prides himself on the fact that he has "accomplished more than most men, and without the use of [his] legs."

Brandt, a sycophant and loyal assistant to Mr. Lebowski, tries to please everyone. Brandt, who is one of the few people outside the Dude's circle who calls him by his preferred title, has a habit of echoing his boss as well as forcing out nervous laughter during awkward moments.

Bunny Lebowski, is the Big Lebowski's “trophy wife" She ran away from her family in Minnesota and soon found herself making pornographic videos under the name Bunny LaJoya. She is a careless, irresponsible person who is an annoyance to her husband because "she owes money all over town, including to known pornographers."

Jackie Treehorn is a bigtime pornographic film producer who lives in Malibu, California. He employs the two thugs who ambush The Dude in his home at the beginning of the movie. In spite of this apparent disrespect, he does call Lebowski "The Dude".

The Nihilists are a group of ethnic Germans who claim to be nihilists, although they do not seem to completely grasp the tenets of nihilism, vis-a-vis their desire for the money and complaints about unfairness. The group, composed of leader Uli Kunkle, Franz, and Dieter. The group, along with Kunkle's ex-girlfriend, Lu Ahkrugns, are the supposed kidnappers of Bunny Lebowski.

Jesus Quintana is one of The Dude and Walter's opponents in the bowling league semifinals match. This eccentric character served "6 months in Chino for exposing himself to an 8-year-old". He speaks with a thick Hispanic accent, wears a uniform which matches his purple bowling ball, and refers to himself as "The Jesus". Although he only appears in two scenes, his line "You said it man! Nobody fucks with The Jesus!", is one of the most oft-quoted lines in the film.