Right, might be being a bit controversial here, because I know a fair few people will probably quite like this. Just watched it again, having last watched it 20 years or something ago.
What a load of self indulgent, slow moving tosh. Yeah, it's a great story but he could have filmed it in about a quarter of the time. Just that whole sequence where he goes and gets his pal's body is ridiculous. I mean who wants to see five minutes of film of his face while he lines up to catch the body. I suppose it's meant to build tension, but I think it just built boredom. I had to hit fast forward...
Anyway, just thought I'd mention like...
The soundtrack is good and the VLM sequence is fun - just to end on a positive note.
film: 2001 a space oditty
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Are you driving home...
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film: 2001 a space oditty
"I may not have gone where I intended to go, but I think I have ended up where I needed to be."
For me, personally, it's one of the greatest films ever made. I do know a lot of people that quite hate it, but I found the movie one of complete genius. The film is really about (imo) humanity, the species, and more specifically our relationship not with each other, but with technology and environments. So it's very Ballardian in that sense. I never fully understood the metaphor of the obelisk (beyond the obvious alien/God thing), even after reading the subsequent novel. Maybe it simply denotes progress or something, not sure. The ending just screamed "drugs" to me. 
However, the rescue scene is not in fact about rescuing a colleague, but is more about grappling with technology (which in the end turns actively and passively hostile) and an environment we simply cannot deal with. The only way to articulate this fully is to labour the point that such a business is excruciatingly slow and difficult.
So I thought ramming this point home by offering the viewer virtually nothing was kinda interesting. And some of the cinematography throughout the film is plain beautiful in its dark symmetry.
In my view, that was compelling viewing.
However, the rescue scene is not in fact about rescuing a colleague, but is more about grappling with technology (which in the end turns actively and passively hostile) and an environment we simply cannot deal with. The only way to articulate this fully is to labour the point that such a business is excruciatingly slow and difficult.
So I thought ramming this point home by offering the viewer virtually nothing was kinda interesting. And some of the cinematography throughout the film is plain beautiful in its dark symmetry.In my view, that was compelling viewing.
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supermonkeyworld
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I always run bits of it in fast-forward mode, but then I do that with all of Kubrick's movies. This for me is the real joy of DVD - it means I can enjoy Kubrick. The film could easily be squeezed into two hours without losing a line of dialogue, and some scene are completely unnecessary.
The second scene always gripped me though. From the time you see the shuttle until just before the stripscan sequence, I'm there enjoying every moment. It's perfect.
The book was the first proper sci-fi book I ever read, and I've always loved it. I love it so much more than the film. It's better
Have you ever seen 2010? It's very different and very good. The shots of hulking space craft and lo-fi tech reminds me of Alien. Recommended.
The second scene always gripped me though. From the time you see the shuttle until just before the stripscan sequence, I'm there enjoying every moment. It's perfect.
The book was the first proper sci-fi book I ever read, and I've always loved it. I love it so much more than the film. It's better
Have you ever seen 2010? It's very different and very good. The shots of hulking space craft and lo-fi tech reminds me of Alien. Recommended.
