Just sumptuous

Rating: 9/10 (12 October 2008)

I regard Barry Lyndon as a highly distinct film. As I have seen many 20 years olds like me commenting on the film, I was motivated to respond.
The first complain that comes to mind is the narration. This is a told story, not one when the viewer is left to discover the outcomes from its characters' adventures. And - mind you - it is a narrated movie par excellence. So some viewers are bothered when events are described before they actually happen, including the ending. I think this is the beauty of it. We here assume the role of the admirers. We contemplate the scenes, discover the smell of the era. Kubrick knows this is not a movie that needs to move fast, because it has a remote subject. The viewers are left the necessary moments to relate and comprehend the events that happened in times when man lived quite a different life. A life candlelit by night, instable and war-struck, insecure. The family theme is at a sad period. Duels are occur on an almost daily basis, and their leading to death is treated awkwardly... fair.
Most of these are surely elements that we have to believe, in some sense be hypnotized in order to believe them. Ultimately this lead us to see that the values implied are timeless. One is left pondering at the end on this matter: what elements (life stages, truth and lies, courage, etc) are still present today, and in what form, with what consequences, etc.? This exercise is mandatory for a great movie - even if Barry Lyndon is indeed a story, it is not the straightforward story.
All in all I believe we are presented a solid fragment of life from the 18th century. It is just for its complexity, its ups and downs, the long and winding road that its main character follows that mark this effort a candidate for a masterpiece.
Try seeing it as gentle and appealing introduction to history, painting and music!