Question about the plot to The Big Lebowski (1997).

There are a couple of parts of the plot I don't get and I was wondering if someone could clear them up.

SPOILERS

Basically I didn't understand why the rich Lebowski had to get the dude to pay the ransom in the first place. The dude says that Lebowski wanted to be rid of his wife, which is why he paid arranged to pay the ransom with a 'ringer'. But if he wanted to be rid of his wife, and wanted the kidnappers to kill her, then why pay a ransom with a ringer at all? Why not just do nothing, and let the kidnappers kill her, and not respond to the ransom calls at all?

And another thing I didn't get, after the dude finds the homework in his car, he and Walter decide to go confront the kid to get the briefcase back, that fails. After it fails, instead of smash up the car, why not just go to the police and give them the homework as evidence for the police to possibly arrest the kid to get the briefcase back?

They may not have enough evidence to charge the kid, but if they dusted the car for his prints, on the steering wheel, they very well could, and this could cause the kid to give the briefcase back.

Now the dude and Walter might be worried that the police might find out that there is a lot of money in that briefcase, but the police wouldn't have any probable cause to search the case. If a person who's car is stolen reports to the police that a briefcase is missing, and the police find it, the police are not allowed to search the case without probable cause. So since they don't have any, the dude would legally get the case back most likely.

So why not just go to the police with the evidence to try to get the kid arrested and crack in fear of being charged?

This was all explained after Bunny reappears in the scene when Walter drags Lebowski out of his wheelchair and throws him to the ground.
When Bunny vanished, she did so on her own.
It was the 3 German guys saw that as an opportunity to get some cash out of Big Lebowski by pretending to have kidnapped her.
Lebowski then sees his own opportunity, as The Dude says "To make some money disappear".
As Dude explains: All that Big Lebowski knows is that Bunny is missing and there's a ransom plea... and sees the opportunity to pay the ransom with a ringer... then, when the cops get involved, which as far as Lebowski is concerned, they will, he can say that Dude stole the cash.
Lebowski can then keep the cash himself, and at the same time, be rid of his gold-digger wife.
As Maude explained as well, Big Lebowski has no money of his own.
All he does is move other peoples' money around for the Fund and gets everything paid for using a budget. He's basically skint.
Then, Bunny reappears... and blows the whole thing wide open about the fake kidnapping, the Germans, Lebowski's plan et al.



You're reading too much into a comedic turn of events.
The other thing, if you want to be serious about it... we're talking about Walter here.
What else did you expect Walter to do in this situation?
I mean, he pulled a gun on a fellow bowler because the guy's toe slipped over the line when he bowled.
It's all part of the character based comedy.

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Yeah okay, that makes sense about Walter.

I know the kidnapping never really happened, but of course, Big Lebowski doesn't know this of course... So basically you are saying that Lebowski couldn't have kept the money himself unless he were to make it look like it was stolen, as oppose to just not paying a ransom at all?

Yep.
Big Lebowski has no cash technically.
He lives off a budget. A high budget, but a budget. He doesn't get paid as such, nor has any savings, as explained by his daughter Maude.
So, Big Lebowski gives The Dude a case with nothing in it.
As it happened, Walter actually tried to steal the cash anyway, but, Dude points out, "You swapped a ringer for a ringer!".


But, for all intents and purposes... when Bunny vanishes, and that ransom demand appears... Big Lebowski sees the opportunity to get rid of his wife, and pocket some cash as well... he can then tell the authorities he gave the cash to The Dude, and The Dude stole it.

Okay thanks, this kind of makes sense, but why get the dude to do it at all? Why doesn't Lebowski just use his faithful butler and get him lie to the police, saying he delivered it, when in fact, he didn't. Why go through with the actual delivery and hire a courier like the dude, who is an external witness to the whole thing, when Lebowski could have kept the plan much more internal?

And why did Lebowksi confront the dude about failing to deliver the ransom? Since the the briefcase was a ringer, why did Lebowski care to confront the dude about it at all, afterward?

As Dude himself explains at the end, "you just needed someone to pin it on...you just met me, you human paraquat!" He's meant to be the fall guy if/when things go south, hence why the nihilists go after him for the missing money instead of Big Lebowski (who has told them that Dude took the money).

As for why Big Lebowski confronts Dude, assuming that the part about Big Lebowski keeping the money himself is true, that can still be part of his plan. By pitting Dude and the nihilists against each other, Big Lebowski is able to take the heat off himself - he uses the threat of the severed toe to motivate Dude to recover/return the money and he blames Dude for throwing the ringer so that the nihilists will go after Dude instead of him.

Yep ^
Basically, it all hinges on the cops and the nihilists thinking that The Dude stole the cash... and BL can then keep the cash to himself.

Don't forget that Jackie Treehorn uses objects like women, man. I feel like that is also important.

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We are both the source of the problem and the solution, yet we do not see ourselves in this light...

I was too busy laughing to notice any plot holes.

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