Frequently Bought Together
What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?
Product details
|
Reviews
Amazon.co.uk Review
Perhaps Stanley Kubrick's most underrated film, Barry Lyndon--adapted from the picaresque novel by William Makepeace Thackeray--inhabits the 18th century in the way A Clockwork Orange and 2001: A Space Odyssey inhabit the future: perfect sets, costumes and cinematography capture characters whose rises and falls are at once deeply tragic and absurdly comical. Narrated in avuncular form by Michael Hordern, the film follows the fortunes of Redmond Barry (Ryan O'Neal), a handsome Irish youth forced to flee his hometown after a duel with a cowardly English officer (Leonard Rossiter). Stripped of his small fortune by a deferential highwayman, Barry joins the British army and fights in the Seven Years War, attempting a desertion that leads him into the Prussian army. A position as a spy on an exquisitely painted con man (Patrick Magee) leads to a life of gambling around the courts of Europe, and just before the intermission our hero achieves all he could want by marrying a wealthy, titled beautiful widow (Marisa Berenson). However, Part Two reveals that Barry can no more be a clockwork orange than the protagonist of Kubrick's previous film, and his spendthrift ways, foolhardy pursuit of social advancement and unwise treatment of his new family lead to several disasters, climaxing in another horrific, yet farcical duel. Shot almost entirely in the "magic hour", that point of the day when the light is mistily perfect, with innovative use of candlelight for interiors, Barry Lyndon looks ravishing, but the perfection of its images is matched by the inner turmoil of its seemingly frozen characters. Kubrick is often accused of being unemotional, but his restraint is all the more affecting when, for example, Barry is struck by the deaths of those close to him, his wife writhes into madness or his stepson (Leon Vitali) vomits before he can stand his ground in a duel.
On the DVD: The extras are skimpy, a trailer and a list of awards, a French alternate soundtrack and subtitles in seven languages. However, the film--"digitally restored and remastered"--is served superbly by the medium. Letterboxed to 1.59:1 (which fits the 14:9 option of a widescreen TV), with a 5.1 Dolby Digital soundtrack, the print looks and sounds wonderful, which not only allows a fresh appreciation of the wit and beauty of the film but shows just how good the apparent underplaying (unusual in Kubrick films) of the cast is. --Kim Newman
Special Features
DVD Technical Information:
- Languages: English, French
- Sub-titles: English, French, Italian, Dutch, Arabic, Spanish, German; English for the hearing impaired
Tags Customers Associate with This Product(What's this?)Click on a tag to find related items, discussions, and people.
|
Customer Reviews
|
Share your thoughts with other customers:
|
||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
23 of 25 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Just feel the quality,
By A Customer
This review is from: Barry Lyndon [1975] [DVD] (DVD)
Ryan O Neal stars in the title role of this historical epic about the adventures of a gentlemanly rogue travelling the battlefields and parlours of 18th century Europe. Determined to make for himself the life of a nobleman through seduction, gambling and duelling in this methodical film showing the rhythm and life of the period. Director Stanley Kubrick brings his usual eye for detail to this underrated drama, which boasts some very spectacular locations and great cinematography by John Alcott who won an Oscar for his work.
10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Tragic Tale,
By
This review is from: Barry Lyndon [1975] [DVD] (DVD)
It really annoys me when critics say Kubrick was cold and inhuman in the treatment of his characters.This film made after the infamous Clockwork Orange has heart rending scenes of human frailty and oppertunism gone wrong. The tale of an eighteenth century irish rouge and his often inept efforts at social advancement This makes a change from recent costume dramas being that it is told from a male perspective and his journey into becoming a social chameleon, which ultimatley ends in tragedy.There is as always in Kubrick films faultless detail and slow deleberate camera movements and of course the ground breaking cinemaphotography wich use's natural light. Kubrick's great unmade Napoleon was to be made the year before which was scuppered by the release of Waterloo and you can get a hint of what he would have done in the Napolionic battle scenes here. In my opinion his most moving film with great performances and unforgettable music. By the way will someone please release the soundtrack.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Exquisite costume drama shot in a dead 18th century Europe,
By D. TSIMBOUKIS (Athens Greece) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Barry Lyndon [VHS] [1975] (VHS Tape)
See it ! I have read the book and the movie does justice to thatgreat man of letters William Makepeace Thackerey. Only there is no peace and even death seems like luxury in this war torn lanscape where anything goes and where Barry is God a man of no morals and no religion whatsoever.The fall of the old aristocracy and the rise of a problematic middle class where money is the only measure of power and the only cultural, social and political value, where opportunism reigns supreme like inside a Hogarth painting leaves the spectator with a taste of bitterness like a black morning coffee heralding the futility of the Age of Enlightment, Voltaire and the Great Encyclopedia. Excellent !
Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
Would you like to see more reviews about this item?
|
Most Recent Customer Reviews |
Customer Discussions
|
This product's forum
Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
|
Related forums
|
Listmania!
|
|
Look for similar items by category
Look for similar items by subject
Feedback
- Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
|
