War Movie Theatre | for Fans of Classic War Films and Cinema History · Robert Hutton & Duncan Weldon - War Movies Fans

Barry Lyndon - with Robert Smith

·1 hr 20 min·5 clips

Kubrick used NASA lenses and candlelight to film Barry Lyndon by mostly natural light.

War Movie Theatre opens Barry Lyndon with its usual dry wit and a little housekeeping before the film chat properly gets going. Robert Smith joins Robert Hutton and Duncan Weldon for a discussion that treats the film as a classic worth serious attention, even as the jokes keep coming. They lean into the movie’s reputation for stateliness, but never let that flatten what they are actually talking about. Again and again, they return to the gap between the film’s measured surface and how much is really happening in it. The early discussion circles the idea that the film can feel slow while still being packed with events. That contrast becomes one of the episode’s main threads. They talk through the duels, the military reversals, and the battles that keep the story moving. The opening card scene and the film’s composed imagery also come up, with the hosts noting how striking, even erotic, those scenes can feel in a way that sits apart from much seventies cinema. The conversation stays close to concrete moments rather than broad praise. It spends time on the final duel and the twists inside it, and on how even repeat viewers can still be caught by the tension. A BFI screening and the audible reactions of first-time viewers offer a neat example of how the film still works in a room, not just on paper. The hosts also keep coming back to the question of whether Barry Lyndon should be thought of as a war movie at all, or something stranger and cooler than that. The result is a discussion that treats the film as elegant, volatile, and full of sudden impact. It is interested in how the film moves, how it withholds, and how it still surprises. The episode ends with the usual friendly sign-off and a tease for the next film, leaving Barry Lyndon as another entry in an ongoing conversation about war cinema and film history.

As heard by us

Kubrick appreciation, dry banter, and an eventful look at Barry Lyndon.

Barry Lyndon is treated here as both a film and a slice of history, with Robert Hutton, Duncan Weldon, and Robert Smith balancing jokes, memory, and Kubrick appreciation.

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Why you'd press play

You want a very dry Barry Lyndon talk with painting-like shots, sharp shocks, and a pod that keeps very still while the camera pulls away.

Read the full recommendation in PlayNext →

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