A Visually Stunning Masterpiece

Rating: 8/10 (7 February 2018)

Finally, after 42 years of neglect I got to watch Stanley Kubrik´s period masterpiece BARRY LYNDON. It´s a film best watched with a cup of red wine by your side. Although it moves at slow pace action wise, it is never boring. The costumes, the fine details of the era (the 18th century) are stunning to watch even in this age of high tech movie warfare. Still, as visually gorgeaus as this movie is, it is never really engaging. A lot of it, I think, comes from Ryan O'Neil's stiffer-than-a-corpse portrayal of Barry Lyndon. I don't know if his emotionless portrayal was done on purpose or if it's inherent of Mr. O'Neil's acting skills (think Keanu Reeves but much stiffer). BARRY LYNDON would've been much suited for a short mini-series. In that format, BARRY LYNDON's story would've been much more engaging.
Humor is very present in a very subtle way, in the narration and in the story itself, yet in never borders on comedy at all. Despite being a 3 hour long movie, BARRY LYNDON goes by pretty quickly without ever being boring.
Unlike other Kubrick films, there's little hidden meaning behind BARRY LYNDON with a very straight forward story and an ending that feels rather inclomplete.
Still, BARRY LYNDON is a marvel to watch and an overall satisfying Kubrick film, but certainly not his pinnacle.