20 Opening Movie Scenes That Are Totally Flawless

20. He Called Himself The Dude - The Big Lebowski (1998)

The Coen Brothers' surreal cult comedy The Big Lebowski opens to a desert landscape just outside of Los Angeles, as the mysterious Stranger (Sam Elliot) gives a monologue to introduce The Dude (Jeff Bridges), the City of Angels, and the political upheaval of the time.

Thanks to Elliot's unmistakable deep voice and the almost dream-like way in which L.A is presented, the monologue sets The Dude up as an almost mythical figure - lazy, endearing, and completely at peace with the world and his place in it.

Since the film has always been described as a mix between crime-thriller, neo-Western and comedy, the introduction ends up watching like an hilariously melodramatic set-up to the ridiculous, inexplicable things to follow, whilst letting audiences know - without any dialogue from the man himself - just how peculiar and unique The Dude is.

It's definitely one of the great character introductions of modern cinema, and sets the tone of the movie without flaw.