The Battalion )nday • March 9, 1998 ir-oicl The Big Lebowski Starring Jeff Bridges, John Goodman and Julianne Moore Directed by: Joel and Ethan Coen Rated R Playing at Hollywood 16 Critique: A m Travis Irby staff writer I he Coen brothers roll a perfect 10 with the oddball comedy The Big Lebows ki. The quirk-filled film is not for everyone as it spins a tale about bowl ing and betrayal. The film starts out with a look at the life of Jeff Lebowski, a.k.a. The Dude (Jeff Bridges), a pot-smoking, white Russian-swilling, counter-culture reject. The only thing that The Dude lives for is his bowling with buddies: the psychotic vet Walter (John Goodman) and the lovable, but dumb Donnie (Steve Buscemi). The Dude comes home one day and finds a couple of thugs ready to trash him. The goons are looking for a large amount of cash owed by a Mr. Jeff Lebows ki. They have the right name, but the wrong dude. The Dude is so poor that the roaches in his apartment think they are slumming. The Jeff Lebowski the bad guys are look ing for is an elderly, wheelchair-bound millionaire. When The Dude visits The Big Lebows ki to straighten out the whole situation, he is sucked into a kidnapping plot in volving Lebowski’s sex bomb wife, his avant garde artist daughter, German Ni hilists and pornographers. The movie is as strange as they come with dream sequences, incontinent toughs, a marmot and lots of bowling. Discussing the plot anymore would give away the movie’s surprises. The Big Lebowski is more in tune with the Coen’s classic Raising Arizona than their recent Fargo. The comedy is subtle, yet over the top. A great example is a scene in which The Dude’s bowling rival Jesus, played hilari ously by John Turturro, is introduced ac companied by a Spanish language version of The Eagle’s “Hotel California.” This moment is pure Coen, bizarre but never boring. Bridges plays The Dude with dead head, dead-pan gusto. His hippie dialect is pep pered with the phrase “hey man.” He cares about nothing more than toking doobies and bowling strikes. Goodman, however, steals the show as the nutso Walter. Walter, a practitioner of orthodox Ju daism, is ready to send people to a world of pain if they cheat in bowling. And even so, he thinks he is the most level-headed individual on the planet. Julianne Moore plays The Big Lebowski’s bohemian daughter. She likes to wear as little as possible, while talking in a clipped eastern accent. Sam Elliot, Turturro and even Flea of Red Hot Chili Peppers' fame all provide laughs in the small but notable roles. The beauty of The Big Lebowski is that some people will love it or hate it, there is no in between. After all, it is the Coen brothers way. James Francis aggie life editor Ihe one fac tor that made The Fugitive so popular was Harri son Ford, a man cel ebrated for his cin ematic works. It was even a plus to see him work with Tommy Lee Jones, another actor people usually keep up with. But in the case of U.S. Marshals, there is no Har rison Ford and Tommy Lee Jones seems tired. At the start of the film, Mark Sheridan (Wesley Snipes) becomes involved in a traffic accident, but Chicago police take fingerprints from his truck and find that he is wanted for murdering two men in New York City. Sheri dan, under the name of Mark Roberts, tells his girlfriend not to worry and that it is just a case of mistaken identity. Somebody smell conspiracy here? No matter the attempt, it is a weak and cliched use of the “wrong man” syndrome. US. Marshals Starring Tommy Lee Jones, Wesley Snipes and Robert Downey, Jr. Directed by: Stuart Baird Rated R •i-JWllSgfl Playing at Hollywood 16 IMlM Critique: D+ Soon Roberts... well, Sheri dan (oh what does it matter?) is convicted of murdering two government officials, but as he is being flown from Chicago to New York on a prisoner trans port plane (Con Air anyone?), another prisoner attempts to shoot him, which misses, shat ters a window and causes peo ple to be sucked out into the high-altitude air. If that sounds confusing, it’s only the beginning of a film that throws in Robert Downey, Jr. as a government agent as signed to the team tracking Snipes’ character, adds a bit of intrigue concerning a Chinese spy ring and glosses all of that over with a heaping spdonful of the United Nations. But, the action scenes are pretty cool, and that is what action films are all about, right? Wrong. With an invisible storyline, U.S. Marshals does not mea sure up to its predecessor, The Fugitive. The acting is ac ceptable, but somebody please find Harrison Ford and tell him not to waste his time watching the sequel. Lt. Samuel Gerard (Tommy Lee Jones) holds Mark Sheridan (Wesley Snipes) at gunpoint during one of the chase scenes in U.S. Marshals. d. Peace Prize Recipient & Stonier South. African President .ef Economist of the Vforld Bank for j’ormer Deputy Commander-in- Hiief U.S. European Command Fanner Public Prosecutor Zambia it and Human Rights Expert lie Road To Stability: frica in the Next Millennium March 27, 1998 at Rudder Auditorium flWILEY Jse c r t i u eI MSC Bck Office: 845-1234. BF—^ TidkEfcs Avai .Labile at the 1 I I OURSELF! Bryan/College Station's first and finest private lormitories are looking for motivated individuals to be a part of the 1998-1999 Resident Advisor Staff. II applicants must have at least one year of college. |Applications can be picked-up at the front desk of ]University Tower in the lobby and are due Friday, April 3 by 5:00 p.m. La The Forum FOR MORE INFORMATION CALI 846-4242 Computing Toolbox Computing News at Texas A<&M by Computing & Information Services Hey Ags! Here's a little multiple choice quiz for y'all . Question*. It’s okay to share a computer account with a friend... A. Only if the friend is a student here too. B. Anytime, since it’s my account. C. Only during the semester that my friend and I are taking the same class. D. If the friend is a trustworthy relative E. Never. Answer: E. Surprised?! Check http://www.tamu.edu/cis/qapcm/policy_info.html for common computing violations to avoid. Awareness through education is your first line of defense in maintaining the confidentiality, reliability, availability, and integrity of Texas A&M University Computing Resources. Users must respect the rights of other users and comply with local, state, federal and international laws, and university rules. Texas A&AA University reserves the right to limit, restrict or deny computing privileges to anyone violating university rules PAS Opera & Performing Arts Society