Wednesday, April 19, 2017

Scattering Donny's Ashes


One of the final scenes in the film The Big Lebowski comes when the dude and Walter go to a California mountaintop to scatter the ashes of their departed friend Donny into the Pacific Ocean. The scene is meant to have a twisted humor to it, which the aesthetic dimensions tries to highlight. This starts with the first shot of the scene which tries to set a tranquil scene, where the only noises are the ocean waves and nearby seagulls with a shot of a California coast. While you think this is a serious scene where you think Walter will show emotion and compassion, you can see more and more of the vessel in which their dear friend Donny's remains are contained in; a used Folgers can. The timing comes when Walter turns to being more like the character he was for most of the film. To add to the dark humor of the scene, as Donny's ashes are released, the camera pans to the dude, whom immediately is hit with a face full of poor Donny's ashes. In a way, it gives the film a calm ending, without being too sad, and still light hearted. 

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