"He's a lovely cat"

Happy 25th birthday to The Big Lebowski, which was my first Coen brothers' film - and remains firmly my favourite.

It's mind-boggling to consider that the film - "a detective tale that upended all the LA noir tropes" - initially fared poorly with both the critics and at the box office. As Jeff Bridges, who starred as the eponymous hero, told the Hollywood Reporter, "I thought it was going to be a big hit. I was surprised when it didn't get much recognition. People didn't get it, or something."

(With that "or something", Bridges sounds like he's slipping back into character - and he could certainly see plenty of himself in the Dude: "I thought the brothers must have spied on me when I was in high school.")

But at least critical acclaim and popular adoration have come, albeit belatedly. It's a wonderful, wonderful film - with dialogue and phrases that I still catch myself quoting on an almost daily basis.