Rating: 
Summary: kubrick at his not so very best
Review: I am a huge Stanley Kubrick fan and loved all of his movies, except this one. That's not to say it was bad, it was quite good at parts, but definitely not up to Kubrick standards. Technically marvelous, it was shot in all natural light. The costumes were marvelous as were the sets and as a historical movie it was pretty well made. It was way too long however and the performances were lifeless to say the least. Personally I would have prefered to see Kubrick tackle Napoleon if he was going to do a historical epic.
Rating:
Summary: Epic form, modest content
Review: Don't listen to anyone who says the film is too slow. The slow pace of the film captures the leisurely feel of 18th-century settings just as the slowness of 2001 captures the eeriness of space and prehistory. Don't listen to anyone who says the film is too cold. Great passion lies just beneath that icy surface, and it sometimes breaks out with great drama. Don't listen to anyone who says that the film is highly regarded only because of the director's name. The film contains real brilliance. The final duelling scene deserves to be a cinematic classic, the choice of music and its synchronicity with the action is sometimes almost unbelievable -- not to mention perfect acting and stunning visuals. The characters are richly drawn. Near the end of the film I am drawn into identifying with both Barry and his estranged stepson. This makes the final duelling scene all the more tragic. Well, then is there anything wrong with this film? Unfortunately, there is. Barry Lyndon is painted on a canvas of epic scale, but the subject matter is the rather dreary life of an Irishman who made it big despite modest origins only to fall into obscurity. In other words, the epic proportions of the film do not fit the modest subject matter. If only Kubrick had stayed with his original intention of making a film about Napoleon -- then we might have had here the greatest film ever made! At the very least, we would have had another epic to place alongside Spartacus and 2001. Nonetheless, the brilliance in this film is real, and it is well worth repeated viewing.
Rating: 
Summary: Worthless
Review: Yet another example of poor film given high marks simply because of the brand name behind it. If you want to watch are far more lush and interesting period piece, check out Dangerous Liasons. Barry Lyndon is a made for TV miniseries if I ever saw one.
Rating: 
Summary: Great movie, average DVD
Review: Barry Lyndon is Kurick's bleakest movie and one of his best. Although the DVD is better than the film transfer, I would have expected a grand epic like this on stereo surround and 2.35 widescreen, not 1.66 (which isn't too far from standard, 1.33) Some scenes seem blurred, yet some are incredibly sharp. These DVDs should have been given to MGM to transfer, because Warner transfers are most of the time, poor. It's annoying to watch a great movie like this in this form, because you keep wishing all of Kubrick's DVDs, including this, were like 2001, which was the best transfer (from MGM)
Rating:
Summary: "Barry Lyndon" shines technically and conceptually
Review: The late, great Kubrick spent more than three years making this and many other of his films. The thoroughness in every aspect of "Barry Lyndon" makes it stand out clearly among others in its genre. The film has been touted for its use of advanced cinematographical techniques, but the use of sound appears to be innovative, too. An example is throughout the final duel scene. This takes place in a stable in which there are many doves. The busy cooing of doves is heard just under the level of the dialogue, lending further intrigue to the scene. This is reminiscent of the spacewalk scene early in the battle with HAL in "2001". The only sound heard in that scene was the astronaut's breath and the dead silence of space. As with Kubrick's other films, the score for "Barry Lyndon" was outstanding.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent movie, very bad DVD
Review: I watched "Barry Lyndon" in a movie theater many years ago and expected the DVD version anxiously. What a delusion! It looks like a pirated DVD! If Kubrick were alive, he would allow this kind of "crime" against his masterpiece? "A clockwork orange" is better, but still another dellusion. What happened? I feel deceived by Warner, whose DVDs used to be so good.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent film, questionable DVD
Review: Other writers have commented on the flim's sumptuous gorgeousness, its meticulous production values, its ground-breaking technical achievements in lighting--all true. What's been almost completely ignored is the uniform excellence of the supporting performaces (from many of the same actors who appearred in "A Clockwork Orange"). A chapter of biographical sketches of actors and technicians would have been greatly appreciated. As for Ryan O'Neal, well.... he is sort of the black hole at the center of the movie's universe, but that's the idea, too. Everyone else does a warm, rich job, every other performance is as believeable as every shot. You can practically smell the scenes, whether they take place on the battlefield, in the country, or the gambling parlor. Granted, the movie does begin to drag a bit near the end--a real problem for a piquaresque tale--but then it picks up steam again and ironically seems to end too quickly. One of the longest scenes (the duel near the end) is absolutley compelling.
Rating:
Summary: Slow-paced, but richly detailed adventure.
Review: The rise and fall of Redmond Barry (taken from Thackeray's novel) is a slow-paced, but richly detailed period piece. Over three hours long with an intermission, this movie certainly won't be to everyones' taste, but I found it mesmerizing. It was fascinating how Kubrick took our young, naive hero, and as the film progressed, made him less than likable. By the time the film winds down, you actual dislike this unfeeling rogue who is out only to worm his way up the political ladder and doesn't care who he steps on or hurts in the process. Yet, surprisingly, when Barry does fall, Kubrick allows us to feel the pain, leaving the viewer wishing things had turned out differently. Between 1 and 10, this lavish production with near-perfect cinematography, gets a 9. This is a Kubrick film. Nothing more needs to be said. It is one-of-a-kind. Kubrick's cold, dispassionate filmaking, somehow makes the viewer feel a myriad of emotions, which is the legacy this great filmaker left behind.
Rating:
Summary: Great Movie! Lousy film transfer on DVD.
Review: The actual film version is breathtaking. Warner has done a terrible job with the transfer to DVD. The image (viewed on a a Sony DVD player) is very jittery and lacks proper contrast and color balance. One of the worst DVD presentations I've seen. Apparently they digitized it at a low bit rate to cram the long film into one disk. I can't explain why. Try "A Clockwork Orange" or "Lolita" for better (though not great) transfers.
Rating: 
Summary: Good movie, a good look at how a life can go bad
Review: Barry Lyndon was a movie I originally rented becuase I had seen all of Kubricks other movies. SO I saw the two tape set and thought what the heck. I loved this movie. I was suprised and amazed at how this little boy Barry grew up and became such a egomanical jerk. He was sneaky, thrifty, and evil, and watching him manipulate his way into the rich lifestyle was a pleasure. This movie was great
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