Barry Lyndon (1975)

I watched this over the course of a few evenings.  Is it a brilliant period piece or an overlong piece of junk?  I'm conflicted by this film, because Kubrick's choice of music, framing, and direction are all wonderful, and the supporting cast is first rate.  Unfortunately, Ryan O'Neal is not up to the task of portraying the full sweep of Barry Lyndon's life; he does not change at all the manner in which he acts from the young Barry to the older Barry.  Also, I think that presenting the story in the third person with an omniscient narrator, while perhaps necessary to make the transition to film, is not as strong as the unreliable first person narrator of the book.  The film could also use some of the humor from the novel; it's unremittingly smile-free tone is what makes the movie drag.