I don't like too many movies. I have blogged about a few on here, true, but in general, I prefer television to film. The format of tv shows is more akin to chapter books, allowing for development of character and plot in a much more elaborate way than most movies are able to capture in their short amount of time.
That being said, my favorite movie of all time is actually about nothing - The Big Lebowski (I alluded to characters in The Big Lebowski in a previous post, but I would like to expound on the philosophy of that movie in more detail). Why do I say it's about nothing? Well, there are nihilists and they "belieef in nussing," but the movie on a whole is also about nothing in particular. When someone says, "what is it about?" and I try to describe it, the plot sounds terribly blase, or if I go into detail, incoherent. It's about a kidnapping? And bowling? And a rug? And a guy who drinks White Russians? And feminist art? And pornography? AND nihilists? Well, yes, it is about all of those things, but in no particular way. In fact, as the viewer, you are dropped into the world of "The Dude," aka Jeffery Lebowski, a washed up former hippie who does not seem to work, but likes to smoke pot, drink and go bowling. But you really don't know too much about him beyond what you see - his back story is hazy, his friends are an odd collection of misfits and he seems to try to do the right thing, but mainly he wants to be left to do what he wants. With this guy, The Dude, as our guide throughout the movie, it's hard for it to be about much of import when you first watch it. If watched once, the viewer would likely think, "That was ridiculous! I laughed, it was funny....blah blah." But, it's a grower of a film. With there being no real purpose for much of anything that happens in the plot, and in fact, even when the main characters plan for a particular outcome, it's botched somehow; the deeper meaning is that it mirrors the course of our lives.
Three characters, in particular, are avatars for aspects of our own being, which I will relate to Freudian terms of id, ego and superego because I think most of us have a general understanding of what is meant by each of those. The Dude is our baseline desire or "id", The Stranger is our "ego," and Walter is our "superego." Our lives are strung together by us, represented by the Stranger (Sam Elliot). He introduces us to The Dude and the story, and sums it up at the end. We do that for ourselves all of the time, furthering the narrative of what is "us" versus someone else. The ego is what we present to the world, and thusly, the Stranger presents to the viewer a coherent storyline and sensibility to the entire plot.
The Dude, as aforementioned, represents our desires. He's a lazy hedonist - not willing to really work for some pie-in-the-sky dream of jet-setting worldwide or owning a lot of expensive material items - but most definitely desirous of being able to continue to partake in that which he enjoys on a most basic level without any effort. His chill vibe is unyielding and in the midst of any sort of obstacle to him being able to just "be" actually ends up with him being annoyed and frustrated to the point of being at a loss for words. It is only when he is met with the harsh reality of knowing that his status quo chill will never be reobtained UNLESS he deals with the problem at hand that he actually begins to figure out how to solve the problem.
The third avatar of all of our personalities that appears is Walter, the Superego. He's an energetic absolutist who touts the rules that he holds near and dear to him. He is always reminding everyone of the "right" way to be. When you think about that nagging inner voice that tells you to make sure you exercise or go to church or not steal someone's lunch from the refrigerator at work, that's the "fault" of the superego. It represents the internalized values that form the principles by which we all stand by. In fact, in this movie, Walter actually calls out the nihilists as being bullshit because they do not have an ethos and are not to be feared because their own lack or suppression of a superego will lead them to inaction or even destruction in the end.
I have written much about our general desire for control over our lives when in fact we have very little. The illusion of control is strong and stability helps to cultivate that further, but in reality, everything we hold dear could end tomorrow (bus accident, asteroid, some other "act of god" scenario). So why not side with the nihilists? I come back to this point quite often. Maybe Walter was wrong and their belief in nothing mattering is the best course of action because it would potentially free the actor up to do whatever with no consequence. Yet, just like the nihilists in the movie, it's an unobtainable standard. They DO believe in something, in fact. And when faced with not getting what they wanted, they belie their supposed core tendency to not believe in anything by whining. So maybe to rephrase, the movie about nothing is really about something, just not anything tangible or even easily graspable upon first watch. There are many other aspects of the film that I have not mentioned (like, the dream sequences in the movie are only the Dude's, which is fitting if he represents the id or deeply unconscious mind)
It is only through the union or balance of our psychological components that we are able to actually achieve success. In my plea from December, I did ask for a Stranger to come into my life, as I was pulled between the baseness of pursuing only my own needs and what I knew to be "right." I did not know how to reconcile these two ends of the spectrum. I still don't entirely have the answer, but I do think I need to watch the movie again for some clues as to how to obtain it.
