*Mild Spoilers*
"In even my negative reviews, I try to give some sense of why you might want to see a film even if I didn't admire it." - Ebert
This is not a negative review. But I find myself struggling to tell you what you might need to hear to go see this film. Isn't that odd?
Redmond Barry. This is what I think I can say of him and his journey. Redmond Barry rises and falls and rises some more and falls also again. But I do not think you have seen this story. It would somehow both be right and not right to say this film is devoid of cliche. Redmond Barry is not really a prodigal son. Nor is he some calculating conniver. Kubrick said of him that "He is driven by a relentless ambition for wealth and social position." But we're never really inside Redmond's head. He clearly has strong will and gumption, but I do not think he has some master plan. I do not think he looks too far in front of himself. He walks forward, one foot in front of the other. He plods! The film plods too. It is slow and fascinating and the music is good and it is a pretty film and I like it.
Maybe sometimes when you really like something you can just say: try it
