NOTE: The below Blu-ray and 4K UHD captures were taken directly from the respective disc.

ADDITION: Criterion 4K UHD (July 2025): Criterion have transferred Stanley Kubrick's Barry Lyndon to 4K UHD. It is cited as a "New 4K digital restoration" and the 4K UHD as "One 4K UHD disc of the film presented in Dolby Vision HDR and two Blu-rays with the film and special features". The Blu-rays are Criterion's 2017 2-disc package as evidenced by the M2TS file dates:

We compared that to the Warner (1.78:1) 2011 Blu-ray HERE, and below to the 2025 4K UHD.

Sourced from a scan of the 35mm original camera negative and presented in the film’s intended 1.66:1 aspect ratio, the Dolby Vision HDR transfer enhances the film’s painterly aesthetic, with vibrant yet natural colors, deep blacks, and exceptional shadow detail and slightly darker than the older Blu-rays. The candlelit scenes, shot with groundbreaking f/0.7 Zeiss lenses, shimmer with a warm, authentic glow, while exterior shots of landscapes and battlefields boast stunning clarity and texture. Grain remains which adds to the filmic quality. Kubrick’s compositions are rigorously symmetrical, often placing characters at the center of the frame or within architectural lines, such as doorways or windows, to suggest order and confinement. Battle scenes, by contrast, are chaotic yet choreographed, with smoke and movement breaking the frame’s symmetry to reflect the disorder of war. The visual style reinforces thematic concerns. The recurring motif of duels, framed with stark precision, symbolizes the ritualized violence of the era, while the contrast between expansive landscapes and claustrophobic interiors mirrors Barry’s oscillation between freedom and entrapment. Simply put, the 2160P resolution is the best the film has ever looked on the digital home theatre format. Nuances of the cinematography are more readily revealed. The film’s final shot - a frozen tableau of Lady Lyndon signing a cheque for Barry - evokes a portrait, encapsulating the stasis of her life and the end of Barry’s ambitions. These visual choices make the film a meditation on beauty as both an ideal and a cage. It is all brought our to a higher film-like experience with this higher resolution HDR presentation. Of course, the larger the system the more discerning the improvement over the, already strong, Criterion Blu-ray.

It is likely that the monitor you are seeing this review is not an HDR-compatible display (High Dynamic Range) or Dolby Vision, where each pixel can be assigned with a wider and notably granular range of color and light. Our capture software if simulating the HDR (in a uniform manner) for standard monitors. This should make it easier for us to review more 4K UHD titles in the future and give you a decent idea of its attributes on your system. So our captures may not support the exact same colors (coolness of skin tones, brighter or darker hues etc.) as the 4K system at your home. But the framing, detail, grain texture support etc. are, generally, not effected by this simulation representation.

NOTE: We have added 56 more large resolution 4K UHD captures (in lossless PNG format) for DVDBeaver Patrons HERE

On their 4K UHD (like their 2017 Blu-ray) Criterion give the option of an authentic linear PCM 1.0 mono track (24-bit) or a DTS-HD Master 5.1 surround bump. It was so important to give the choice and purists will select the mono - which is flat but carries some buoyancy. The surround has some formidable intensity in the aggression - battle sequence etc. The soundtrack, curated and adapted by Leonard Rosenman (Hide in Plain Sight, Prophecy, The Car,) is a cornerstone of Barry Lyndon’s emotional and historical resonance. Kubrick selected a blend of classical and folk music to evoke the 18th century while underscoring the film’s themes. The monaural track preserves the film’s original sound design, delivering clear dialogue and a period-appropriate mix, with Leonard Rosenman’s score - featuring Handel’s Sarabande and Schubert’s Piano Trio No. 2 - sounding rich and evocative. The 5.1 surround mix, cosupervised by actor Leon Vitali, enhances the music’s dynamism and spatial depth, particularly in orchestral swells and ambient battle sounds, without overpowering the film’s subtle soundscape. While purists may prefer the mono for authenticity, the 5.1 track, as Vitali explains, aligns with Kubrick’s interest in modern sound technology, offering a more immersive experience. Criterion offer optional English (SDH) subtitles on their Region 'A' Blu-ray of the feature and Region FREE 4K UHD disc.

The Criterion 4K UHD includes the 2017 Blu-rays of which the second is dedicated to the supplements. Making Barry Lyndon is a 2017 documentary, produced by Criterion featuring cast and crew interviews (Jan Harlan, Brian Cook, Michael Stevenson, Dominic Savage, Leon Vitali) as well as audio excerpts from a 1976 interview with director Stanley Kubrick. It runs 38-minutes and is quite interesting. Achieving Perfection is another Criterion-produced program about the film’s groundbreaking visuals, featuring focus puller Douglas Milsome (Full Metal Jacket) and gaffer Lou Bogue (The Shining) as well as excerpts from a 1980 interview with cinematographer John Alcott (Overlord) detailing the technological artistic achievements behind the film's cinematography. It runs 1/4 hour. Drama in Detail is also a 2017 Criterion piece and runs 1/4 hour. It is about Oscar winning production designer Ken Adam featuring historian Christopher Frayling who wrote Ken Adam: the Art of Production Design. Timing and Tension is a 14-minute, interview with editor Tony Lawson discussing Barry Lyndon. On the Costumes is a 5-minute segment from a French television interview from September 9th, 1976, broadcast of Les rendez-vous du dimanche with Ulla-Britt Söderlund, who co-designed the film’s Oscar-winning costumes and discusses her work with the film's lead costume designer, Milene Canonero. Passion and Reason is an 18-minute interview with critic Michel Ciment (Kubrick the Definitive Edition) discussing Barry Lyndon. Balancing Every Sound is another interview - this time spending 10-minutes with actor Leon Vitali about the original monaural audio work and the 5.1 surround remix of the soundtrack, which he co-supervised in 2000. A Cinematic Canvas is a 1/4 hour piece analyzing the fine-art-inspired aesthetics of the film with curator Adam Eaker (Metropolitan Museum of Art) discussing the fine art that inspired the visuals of Barry Lyndon, particularly the film's evocation of eighteenth-century paintings. There are two trailers plus the package has a liner notes booklet with an essay by critic Geoffrey O’Brien (The Phantom Empire: Movies in the Mind of the 20th Century) and two pieces about the look of the film from the March 1976 issue of American Cinematographer. The extensive special features provide a thorough exploration of the film’s technical and artistic achievements, from candlelit cinematography to period-accurate costumes and fine-art inspirations.

Stanley Kubrick's Barry Lyndon is adapted from William Makepeace Thackeray’s 1844 novel The Luck of Barry Lyndon. It is a sprawling yet meticulously crafted tale of ambition, class, and the capriciousness of fate. The narrative is divided into two distinct halves, as announced by intertitles: “Part I: By What Means Redmond Barry Acquired the Style and Title of Barry Lyndon” and “Part II: Containing an Account of the Misfortunes and Disasters Which Befell Barry Lyndon.” This bifurcated structure mirrors the rise-and-fall arc of classical tragedy, emphasizing the inevitability of Barry’s (Ryan O’Neal - Paper Moon, The Driver, Tough Guys Don't Dance) decline. Barry Lyndon is a meditation on the illusion of social mobility and the rigidity of class structures. Barry’s journey - from Irish countryside to British aristocracy - illustrates the precariousness of ascending a stratified society without true power or legitimacy. His rise is facilitated by deception, charm, and marriage to the wealthy Lady Lyndon (Marisa Berenson - Cabaret, Death in Venice, Coronet Blue,) but his lack of genuine aristocratic breeding and his impulsive nature ensure his eventual ruin. The film’s detached, almost clinical tone, reinforced by an omniscient narrator (Michael Hordern - The Taming of the Shrew, Girl Stroke Boy, The Green Man, The Night My Number Came Up,) underscores the futility of Barry’s ambitions, framing his life as a cautionary tale about the limits of individual agency in a deterministic world. Criterion’s 4K UHD release of Barry Lyndon is a triumph, offering a visually stunning and aurally pristine presentation of Stanley Kubrick’s beloved masterpiece. Though the lack of new extras may disappoint some, the upgraded video alone make this a must-own for Kubrick fans and cinephiles, cementing Barry Lyndon’s status as a visually unparalleled historical drama that rewards close examination. A strong recommendation! 

Gary Tooze