A reader, and now guest blogger, submitted a movie review of Barry Lyndon, a favorite movie of mine and an ageless classic. Here is his review:

BARRY LYNDON

British-American, 1975, 3 hours

Produced & Directed by Stanley Kubrick

Few (if any) productions of costume dramas rival Kubrick’s film, Barry Lyndon, adapted from William Thackeray’s classic novel, The Luck of Barry Lyndon. Thackeray designed his story as a picaresque novel, a genre that recounts the fortunes and misfortunes of a charming rogue who relies solely on his native wits to navigate through the vicissitudes of life. The novel was inspired by the actual exploits of Andrew Stoney, an Anglo-Irish fortune-hunter. Born into poverty in an Irish village, Barry Lyndon aspires to become a British aristocrat. He is first and foremost a survivor coping with events that are beyond his control. Again and again, the Irish rogue succumbs to the hurdles of blind fate, but overcomes old obstacles only to face new challenges. Barry’s precarious prospects are altered after a serendipitous encounter with the beautiful Countess Bullingdon: finally his chance to rise from pauper to aristocrat! But can an inveterate rogue ever settle for a life of domestic tranquility? Or will good fortune slip once more through his careless fingers?

The picaresque genre imitates life more closely than the conventional romantic novel: it eschews neat plots with predictable endings. The picaresque style of story-telling does not demarcate clear turning points in an overarching plot. Rather, episodes are connected through fortuitous events as well as unforeseeable consequences of human actions. The hero (or antihero) in Thackeray’s tale is no paragon of virtue. Yet, for that very reason, his human flaws make him a more endearing figure.

The film features Ryan O’Neal in the title role, with Marisa Berenson as the Countess. The famed Irish actor, Patrick McGee, puts on a strong performance in a supporting role as the Chevalier du Balibari, an Irish spy who befriends a beleaguered Barry. As partners in crime, the co-patriots join forces to fleece the nobility in the gambling houses of Europe.

Although Kubrick remains close to the original plot, his primary ambition was to recreate scrupulously the authentic atmosphere of aristocratic circles in 18th century Europe. His artistic deftness is reflected in the tapestry of mansions and landscapes, costumes and wigs. Kubrick received special praise for his elaborate design of interior scenes (inspired by paintings) using only candle light. The music, seamlessly woven into the narrative, is replete with generous excerpts from Vivaldi, Bach, Handel, Mozart and Schubert.