Review of 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968) by Cody P — 26 Jan 2016

2001: A Space Odyssy is an epic space drama, it's the only other movie I've seen that was helmed by Stanley Kubrick, the other one being The Shining, and it's the hardest movie I've ever had to review.

Firstly, this movie's runtime is brutal. The pacing is definitely not meant for the average movie-goer. Even I had a hard time getting used to it. Don't get me wrong, I love dialogue and visual driven movies. It's good to drag out a scene if it works, but there were a couble of scenes or shots that just seemed to go on forever and it's hard to focus when a scene, especially in the first third of the film, doesn't initially grasp you. However, the scenes that did work, REALLY worked. Stanley Kubrick is the master of atmosphere, and there are few movies that can match how huge and tense the atmostphere was in this movie. That plus the score and the cinematography give the entirety of the movie a consant sense of discomfit and fear. And the special effects are absolutely gorgeous, especially for the time this movie was released. There wasn't a moment where I didn't believe this movie took place in space, or that they were in 0 gravity, or that they were on a space station using real space equipment. Thanks to the restricions of practical effects, everything looked real and functional.

Now, while the movie did have an unmerciful runtime, it was obviously meant to feel like a long, epic space drama. This is the first movie where I experienced an overture, which is basically a blank screen with build up music that is placed in the opening of the film and after the intermission. I really liked this, actually, it felt like I was watching a REAL event, a REAL film, with overtures and intermissions and stuff. I'm not sure I understand the point of an intermissin, as it only last about 15 seconds, but it was still neat to see a legitimate film legitimately use it. I'd say the use of these tools, while it legitamized the movie, also hurt it in the long run. In the end it felt like I'd watched two different movies. I felt like this movie could have easily been a two parter, but it's ultimately better as a single movie because it all comes together to make for a pretty insane ending. And honestly, the overall arch and the ending felt a little preachy, and quite pretentious. I'm not a huge fan of endings that are left open to interpretation. Ambiguity is one thing, the ending to 2001: A Space Odyssy is something else entirely.

I don't have much to say about the characters, with the exception of HAL9000. HAL9000 is the AI computer controlling the space station the main characters are aboard, and honestly this movie could have just revolved around this character and been just as good, if not better. I love when AI goes bad in science fiction, and HAL9000 is the super computer every movie lover refers to when talking about evil AI, for a good reason. I don't know who voiced HAL, but he sounds like a freaking computer, it's so creepy. And in the end you actually feel sad for HAL. It really feels like he knows what he's doing wrong, but he's scared for his life, so you can only feel sad when his plans are foiled, mostly because of his very eery dialogue. Other than HAL9000, though, the characters are really nothing great. Their mission is interesting enough, but they're not really given any real character development, and the dialogue most of the time is pretty stiff.

2001: A Space Odyssy is a movie made for movie enthusiasts. If you're passionate about movies like I am, this is a beautiful work of art that deserves studying. It may be long, and sometimes boring, but it has weight. It's a movie that makes you think during and keeps you asking afterwards. It's definitely not for the popcorn crowd, but if you have some downtime and you're looking for a classic to add to your library, this is the event movie of a generation. 8/10.