<Tr> <Th> Budget </Th> <Td> $15 million </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Th> Box office </Th> <Td> $46.2 million </Td> </Tr> <P> The Big Lebowski is a 1998 American crime comedy film written, produced, and directed by Joel and Ethan Coen . It stars Jeff Bridges as Jeffrey "The Dude" Lebowski, a Los Angeles slacker and avid bowler . He is assaulted as a result of mistaken identity, after which The Dude learns that a millionaire also named Jeffrey Lebowski was the intended victim . The millionaire Lebowski's trophy wife is kidnapped, and he commissions The Dude to deliver the ransom to secure her release; but the plan goes awry when the Dude's friend Walter Sobchak (John Goodman) schemes to keep the ransom money . Julianne Moore and Steve Buscemi also star, with David Huddleston, John Turturro, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Sam Elliott, Tara Reid, David Thewlis and Flea appearing in supporting roles . </P> <P> The film is loosely inspired by the work of Raymond Chandler . Joel Coen stated: "We wanted to do a Chandler kind of story--how it moves episodically, and deals with the characters trying to unravel a mystery, as well as having a hopelessly complex plot that's ultimately unimportant ." The original score was composed by Carter Burwell, a longtime collaborator of the Coen brothers . </P>

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