Kubrick and Thackeray; on the same page

Rating: 10/10 (28 November 2014)

Although the choice of stars in some movies seemed odd at the time they were made, over the years, they have grown into their roles.
Ryan O'Neal in Kubrick's "Barry Lyndon" is a classic example. Back in the 70's he was a pretty big star, but seemed connected to more lightweight fare. It was a surprise when he ended up in a major film from Stanley Kubrick.
These days, he doesn't carry the baggage that surrounded him back then and now seems quite an inspired choice to play Redmond Barry, a brash, impulsive, Irish opportunist during the Georgian era in England and Ireland. After many adventures, he rises from lowly beginnings to become a gentleman of means, only to slide back down again in an even more spectacular fall.
Along the way he marries a beautiful widow, Lady Lyndon (Marissa Berenson) and makes an arch enemy of his stepson, Lord Bullingdon (Leon Vitali).
Kubrick wrote the screenplay from William Makepeace Thackeray's novel. Thackeray had a witty turn of phrase - for example, at one point in the novel, Redmond Barry beats the living daylights out of young Lord Bullingdon, which Thackeray refers to as "administering a correction". Kubrick catches Thackeray's satirical tone and the script is full of wry, Thackeray-inspired observations on the human condition. Apart from anything else, the script itself is an impressive achievement.
Thackeray wrote the novel in the first person from Redmond Barry's point of view whereas Kubrick uses the voice of an anonymous narrator, speaking in the third person. Although narration can sometimes seem a lazy way of telling a story in a film, it works perfectly here; we find ourselves waiting for the commentator to put Barry's often-painful experiences into perspective.
Kubrick changed the story a great deal, without losing the essential themes. I can't help feeling that in a couple of areas he actually improved it, especially the ending, which in the novel is rather meandering - instead of the decisive duel of the film, Barry's fortunes run down, and he eventually lands in prison after being given "a tremendous castigation" by Lord Bullingdon. Kubrick tightens the whole thing and that long, final confrontation is one of the most powerful scenes in the film.
This movie has a brilliant look whether indoors or out, night or day. What an amazing talent Kubrick was. Jack Nicholson once said of him, "Everybody pretty much acknowledges he's The Man, but I still feel that underrates him". He was a guy from New York who could embrace British literature and history, and produce such a believable work as this - it was almost as though he had Thackeray himself sitting in a canvas chair beside him acting as technical adviser.
The true genius of the movie is in how Kubrick captures the period perfectly, maintains that beautifully measured pace, and yet delivers a film that is full of wit and tension from beginning to end.