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Title: Barry Lyndon (1975)
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| Cast overview, first billed only: | |||
| Ryan O'Neal | ... | Barry Lyndon | |
| Marisa Berenson | ... | Lady Honoria Lyndon | |
| Patrick Magee | ... | The Chevalier du Balibari | |
| Hardy Krüger | ... | Capt. Potzdorf (as Hardy Kruger) | |
| Steven Berkoff | ... | Lord Ludd | |
 |
Gay Hamilton | ... | Nora Brady |
| Marie Kean | ... | Barry's Mother | |
| Diana Körner | ... | Lischen (as Diana Koerner) | |
| Murray Melvin | ... | Rev. Samuel Runt | |
| Frank Middlemass | ... | Sir Charles Lyndon | |
| André Morell | ... | Lord Gustavus Adolphus Wendover (as Andre Morell) | |
|
|
Arthur O'Sullivan | ... | Capt. Feeny - the Highwayman |
| Godfrey Quigley | ... | Capt. Grogan | |
| Leonard Rossiter | ... | Capt. John Quin | |
| Philip Stone | ... | Graham | |
In the eighteenth century, in a small village in Ireland, Redmond Barry (Ryan O'Neal) is a young farm boy in love with his cousin Nora Brady (Gay Hamilton). When Nora gets engaged to British Captain John Quin (Leonard Rossiter), Barry challenges him to a duel of pistols. He wins and escapes to Dublin, but is robbed on the road. Without an alternative, Barry joins the British Army to fight in the Seven Years War. He deserts and is forced to join the Prussian Army, where he saves the life of his Captain and becomes his protégé and spy of Irish gambler Chevalier de Balibari (Patrick Magee). He helps Chevalier and becomes his associate until he decides to marry the wealthy Lady Lyndon (Marisa Berenson). They move to England and Barry, in his obsession of nobility, dissipates her fortune and makes a dangerous and revengeful enemy. Written by Claudio Carvalho, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
While this is, in my opinion, not the best of Kubrick's films, it is in no way a bad film of his... some have claimed it is overlong and dull, but I don't think so. From what I've heard, it does the novel justice, and I believe that is what Kubrick went after, more than anything else. That is admirable, for a man who throughout his career was known for making unfaithful film adaptations of famous and popular novels, much to the dismay of the authors. The film perfectly presents everything from the time period in which it takes place... something that few, if any, other films have accomplished. It deals with the life of Redmond Barry, his ups and downs. The first half has us feeling sympathy with him, and shows his rise to a high position and gain the name Barry Lyndon, and everything that entitles. The second seems to turn us a little more against him, as he goes through the expected downfall that must always follow an unexpected rise to high life. Through the film he gets desensitized and careless. We follow him through most of his life, and an uneventful one it is not. As all other Kubrick films, the visual side is probably the most prominent one of the film, as he grants us several long looks at the beautiful sets and locales, and there are more than a few of his trademark shots slowly zooming out from the focus point to display the surroundings. The plot is great, and almost constantly developing. It is narrated with a good sense of irony and clever social satire on the time period. There's plenty of humor in the film to make the three hour run-time seem less long. The pacing is good and thorough without the film being slow(though I do admit that it isn't a film for those who are not used to long, visual films). The characters are well-written and credible. The acting is excellent all the way. Not even the child-actors seemed less than perfectly convincing. The costumes and sets are great. From what I understand, there is no detail in the film that is even slightly historically inaccurate. That is quite impressive for a film that takes place about a century and a half before it was made. I have heard of great deals of work done to keep many films accurate, but I don't believe one exists that manages to do so with such perfection as this. Even the very language that they speak is accurate. The special effects in the film also deserve mention here... for a film that is almost thirty years old, it's impeccable how believable and convincing the effects are... I couldn't tell how most of them were done. Kubrick was indeed one of the most brilliant directors ever... he was not only a master at his craft, he was also one of the most innovative and inspiring film-makers to have ever lived. I recommend this great piece of cinema to anyone who has an interest in the time period the film is set and any fan of Stanley Kubrick. Don't miss this one. Not his greatest, but a truly great one nonetheless. 10/10