Barry Lyndon: Stanley Kubrick's Masterful Period Epic Makes Its 4K Debut (Criterion 4K/Blu-ray)

The Film:

Stanley Kubrick, considered by many to be the greatest director in the history of cinema, delivered many masterpieces throughout his incredible career, including "2001: A Space Odyssey," "A Clockwork Orange," "Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb," and "Paths of Glory." However, one masterpiece from his filmography that doesn't seem to get talked about nearly as much is his remarkable period epic "Barry Lyndon," an adaptation of the 1844 novel by William Makepeace Thackeray.

Of course the film is well-noted by film buffs/film historians and is held in great esteem, and it was also a very popular awards darling at the time, earning seven Oscar nominations (including Best Picture, Director, and Adapted Screenplay) and winning four (Best Cinematography, Art Direction-Set Decoration, Costumes, and Adapted Score), but it just never seemed to reach the high popularity of some of Kubrick's other works. This year, this remarkable masterpiece reaches its 50th anniversary, and to celebrate the grand milestone Criterion is giving the film its prestigious 4K upgrade and including all of the marvelous extras from the previous Blu-ray release, so let's go back and delve into this marvelous epic to see why it's regarded so highly, and perhaps also see why it's not mentioned as much by fans of the director's work.

Taking place in 1750s Ireland, the film centers on Redmond Barry (Ryan O'Neal), whose father is killed in a duel. He falls for his cousin, Nora Brady (Gay Hamilton), who becomes involved with a British Captain, John Quin (Leonard Rossiter). In his jealousy, Barry challenges him to a duel and shoots him, forcing him to leave his mother (Marie Kean) behind and go on the run. However, he is soon robbed by highwaymen, leaving him penniless and desperate, which leads him to join the Army and fight in the Seven Years' War in Germany. Further misadventures have him deserting, becoming a spy & professional gambler, and eventually becoming infatuated with Lady Lyndon (Marisa Berenson), a turn that will end up setting his final fate into motion.

Stanley Kubrick's "Barry Lyndon" is, without a doubt, one of the most gorgeous films ever made. Utilizing stunning production design, costumes, makeup, and cinematography, it tells the story of the rather strange & compelling misadventures of its titular antihero, who, through compulsions of jealousy, ends up being cast adrift into the world to try and make his own way. What's particularly fascinating about Kubrick's astonishing epic is the way in which the story keeps the audience at a distance from its central character, never glorifying or approving of his rogue-like behavior throughout the film, but rather presenting him as-is, faults & all, as he goes about using devious means to achieve his goals, with things often not going as he planned.

It's this intriguing approach that could explain why the film is not mentioned quite as much as the auteur's other masterpieces. After all, a film that's somewhat emotionally distant, purposefully isolating its subject, certainly won't resonate with all viewers. In fact, it may be enough to turn some away, though that obviously hasn't stopped the vast majority from being able to declare the film a great masterwork that achieves its goal in glorious fashion, with that being not only to present a compelling drama of this young man's life, but also to act as a kind of warning against his deceitful & manipulative ways.

What's even more impressive about Kubrick's accomplishment is that he took a rather mediocre book, one that meanders quite a bit, and streamlined it into a three-hour masterpiece, bringing the much-needed focus to the story that had been missing from the novel. It's interesting to note that he would do the same thing just five years later when he adapted "The Shining," taking a novel that had a few issues, fixing them or removing them entirely, and delivering another cinematic masterpiece. When it came to adaptations, Kubrick certainly had a keen mind for knowing what worked and what didn't, which is why he made a number of changes from these sources, while hardly having to make any changes when it came to adapting Anthony Burgess' "A Clockwork Orange" for the screen.

When it comes right to it, "Barry Lyndon" is simply a wildly-entertaining adventure, one in which every frame is a beautiful work of art. It provides not only a thoroughly-pleasing feast for the eyes, but also a compelling tale in which you never know what's going to happen to this young man next. It's rare to find a film in which three hours fly by so quickly, but that's exactly what Kubrick achieved with this glorious period epic, and with it celebrating its incredible 50th anniversary this year, there's no better time to revisit it or to dive into its engrossing world for the very first time, with Criterion's new 4K/Blu-ray release being a prime way to do just that.

Video/Audio:

This new edition comes with the film on both 4K (2160p, UHD) and Blu-ray (1080p, HD) in 1.66:1 transfers of outstanding quality. The 4K digital restoration makes the film look brand new again, with a beautifully sharp picture that highlights the film's gorgeous Oscar-winning production design, costumes, and cinematography. Likewise, the uncompressed monaural and alternate 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio soundtracks are fantastic, giving you all of the dialogue, sound effects, and the Oscar-winning adapted score in excellent quality. Overall, Criterion has done a phenomenal job restoring Kubrick's period masterpiece for this new release.

Special Features:

Making Barry Lyndon (38 Minutes)

Achieving Perfection (16 Minutes)

Timing and Tension (14 Minutes)

Drama in Detail (14 Minutes)

Balancing Every Sound (10 Minutes)

On the Costumes (5 Minutes)

Passion and Reason (18 Minutes)

A Cinematic Canvas (15 Minutes)

The 4K/Blu-ray release imports all of the excellent extras from the previous release, which includes a multitude of featurettes (totaling a little over two hours) that focus on areas such as the making of the film, editing, costumes, cinematography, sound, and production design. Each and every one of them is worth delving into for those looking to learn more about Kubrick's gorgeous masterpiece.

Conclusion:

Stanley Kubrick's "Barry Lyndon" is a wildly-entertaining adventure that utilizes gorgeous production design, costumes, makeup, and cinematography to tell the compelling tale of its titular antihero. It may be rather emotionally distant in its telling as it seeks to warn against this type of deceitful & manipulative behavior, but the film remains completely engrossing throughout its three-hour runtime, resulting in a grand masterpiece that remains one of the auteur's greatest works of art.

Score: 5/5

Available on Criterion 4K/Blu-ray starting today.

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