An epic tale of an Irish rogue whose ambition and opportunism propel him from a humble farm to the battlefields of the Seven Years’ War and the opulent parlours of 18th-century high society. Born from the ashes of his abandoned Napoleon project, Stanley Kubrick redefined the historical drama with this sardonic exploration of a ruthless aristocracy, adapted from William Makepeace Thackeray’s novel. Filmed using only natural or period-accurate light sources to authentically capture the era’s aesthetic—and inspired by the works of master painters like Gainsborough—Barry Lyndon stands as the most visually sumptuous achievement of Kubrick’s career.

One-off New Year’s Day screening celebrating the film’s 50th-anniversary.

Reviews

‘It’s a work of technical brilliance and considerable beauty; the slow and deliberate pacing only serves to make Barry’s adventures more fascinating.’
★★★★★
Wendy Ide, The Times

‘You can’t tear your eyes from it. Loosely held together by Michael Hordern’s drolly ironic narration, it might not catch very much of Thackeray’s tone but it creates a world that is sumptuously, even shockingly, vivid.’
★★★★★
Anthony Quinn, The Independent