This scene from, The Big Lebowski, is very intense with a decent amount of movement at the beginning. It is a chaotic moment in the movie that establishes the beginning of its story. After watching the scene carefully, I paid attention to the 180-degree rule, the rule of thirds and the rule of thirty.
Focusing on the 180-degree rule first, I could not find any shots that transitioned into the next that broke the 180-degree rule. Directors, Ethan and Joel Coen, along with the Director of Photography, Roger Deakins, played it safe. They made some transitioning shots that were close to being 180 degrees, but nothing broke this rule.
Every shot that was broken down from this scene stuck to the rule of thirds. There were a couple shots that purposely messed with the rule of thirds a bit to provide more symbolism within the shot. The second shot kept the focus on the two characters in the middle of the frame. This is within the borders of the rule of thirds, but makes it so your eyes go against your nature of usually looking to the left. You focus on what is in the middle instead. The last shot did the same exact thing with a separate character. Its purpose was to show the dominance of this character. The audience should feel a bit of a threat when watching this shot. Again, the Coen Brothers chose to play it safe.
Lastly, comes the rule of thirty. As each shot transitions from one to the next, none of them broke this rule. Every shot was changed by well over thirty degrees.
The Big Lebowski provides the audience with an affective scene. Ethan and Joel Coen, along with Roger Deakins, chose to stick to the rules that have been used by many professionals for years.
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