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DVDs
Barry
Lyndon
 By
Richard Moore
Of
all the Oscar winners for best cinematography, the gold statuette
won for Barry Lyndon has to be the most deserved.
The
movie tracks the adventures of an 18th Century social climber as
he gambles, romances and fights his way around glittering European
and British courts with the sumptuous visuals adding spectacular
depth to what could have been an overblown costume drama in the
hands of a lesser talent than Stanley Kubrick.
Every
frame in Barry Lyndon is bursting with richness - whether
it be widescreen shots of lush countrysides, grand houses and battles,
or a heart-aching close-up of the exquisite Marisa Berenson.
Each twist and turn of Barry Lyndon's life - his triumphs and failures
- are added to with such artistic imagery you can almost feel the
rough-hewn stone walls of his native Ireland or the cool silks of
noble fashions.
The
lighting is without peer as the production team devised ways of
turning banks of powerful lights into representations of natural
light through Restoration windows or toning it down to catch the
thrown light from a single candle.
Some
critics complain that Kubrick has made the movie way too long but
the deliberate pace adds to the sensation that you are with this
person and his contemporaries as he wends his way through an adventure
and experience-filled lifetime.
Ryan
O'Neal is well-cast as the hero and while there are times when you
want to shake him out of behaving like a cad, this only goes to
show how engaging his portrayal has been.
The
supporting cast - headed by Patrick Magee as a young Lyndon's role
model and Hardy Kruger as the ambitious Prussian aristocrat - is
without fault.
To
highlight the effect the photography has upon viewers, Kubrick has
put together a soundtrack that moves from one classical masterpiece
to the next, leaving one's ears positively vibrant.
A
film filled with glorious visuals and sublime music makes for perfect
DVD material and even without a huge amount of extras, this offering
is a worthy addition to any movie collection.
Conclusion:
Movie:
90%
DVD
Extras: 50%
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