A review of Stanley Kubrick and Arthur C. Clarke's 1968 cult classic sci-fi film, "2001: A Space Odyssey."
Cave people find an alien monolith, which gives man the knowledge to create tools and evolve into our future selves. Jump forward to the future and we find ourselves travelling through space to uncover a monolith buried on the moon. It kills the expedition crew. A few years later, a second more advanced expedition is sent to discover what happened to the lost crew. A crew of five scientists (three in hibernation vessels) is sent on a ship piloted by HAL 9000, a super computer that is supposedly infallible. However, things go awry when HAL malfunctions and we find out the intent of the monolith.
This is considered a true classic and one of the greatest sci-fi films ever made, but this is a matter of opinion, understanding, and preference. Other viewers disagree and find it to be dull, boring, slow-paced, and confusing. Like abstract art, different viewers will leave with different meanings and give more weight to differing values within the film and others will leave with a feeling of uncertainty about what many of the elements in the film really mean. No matter the opinions of others, "2001" is still worth a view by any fan of sci-fi or filmmaker because it is considered a masterpiece of cinematography, which is why it won Oscar, ten other awards, and received six nominations.
"2001" is directed by the legendary Stanley Kubrick and the screenplay is written by himself and the prolific sci-fi author, Arthur C. Clarke. The story is based on Arthur C. Clarke's short story, "The Sentinel." One point to remember is that the written story, as most written to film adaptations often do, greatly elaborates on the details of many points of the story seen in its cinematic form. It is best to read the story to understand the movie's true intents.
While "2001" has a lot to say about life, evolution, and society, Kubrick chose to use a minimalistic approach to the amount of dialogue. There is no dialogue during the first nearly twenty minutes. Instead, Kubrick relies on beautifully shot scenes and great orchestral music to create a rich ambient atmosphere and a sense of things much bigger than man, the Earth, and our solar system - a space odyssey in every sense. This is where "2001" truly excels, especially for a 1968 film, and why it has garnered such a cult status.
The artwork and special effects look phenomenal even by today's standards. The ships and everything look so real. Some of the ships' inner workings are real pieces of equipment, especially built for the movie. With an estimated budget of $10,500,000, it was worth every penny. Many new techniques were created during the making of the film; some of which were used in later films, such as "Star Wars."
Once we reach space and the characters can talk, everything is keep to a minimal and spoken calmly. The computer, HAL 9000, talks a bit on the second mission. He talks very calmly, which only adds to his "evil," darker side, if one calls it that. None of the actors stand out as especially exceptional except for Douglas Rain, the voice of HAL 9000. Rain's voice is definitely memorable.
Aside from the beautiful images that inspire awe, Kubrick also creates a dark and isolated atmosphere for the astronauts, not unlike that of the Overlook Hotel in "The Shining," which creates the same feeling of being snowbound during the winter. This is somewhat of a horror aspect to the film - one that is felt more than seen. This, added to HAL going haywire while speaking calmly, is enough to inspire sadness for the crew and HAL and this gives ways to a feeling of a lack of control that can be terrifying.
Most of the story is straightforward up until the last quarter. Then it goes off the deep-end into an abyss of confusion. Watching it a few times will alleviate some of the perplexing aspects. Reading the written story will explain most of it.
Despite the somewhat abstract aspects, slow pace, and negative comments by others, "2001" is a cult classic that deserves at least one viewing. If you go into it with an open-mind and not expect too much, you should leave the movie with something new.
