My favorite movie -- courageous, delicate, crafted with care

Rating: 10/10 (8 August 2001)

I am very pleased to see that so many people don't like this movie. A good movie is well-liked by many. A great one takes chances, and generates deep admiration in some and frustration in others. Sure, many in today's audiences will find this movie too slow and hard to understand. That's how many found it in 1968, too! (Ask anyone who was around.) This isn't passive entertainment for the popcorn crowd, and if you think "The Matrix" is the apex of cinema, then maybe this will be too boring for you. That's perfectly okay! Kubrick made all of his films with meticulous attention to detail, and some with slow pacing that deliberately challenged movie house attention spans. I have always thought his goal in doing this was to rip the audience out of their preconceptions of how a movie should work so they could see his films for what they were. As for people that complain about this film being boring, slow, or obtuse; well, they should watch other movies. But please, use the vitriol sparingly! Many don't like Shakespeare, Van Gogh, Rachmaninoff, and e. e. cummings, but that doesn't mean they "suck" or produced "crap." I love this movie because of its determination to tell its own story in its own way, without regard for convention, which is awfully nice for a change. And to those who give up on this one after one viewing (especially if the one viewing is on video!), I can only encourage you to give it another try, and this time throw out your images of "Star Wars" and "The Matrix" and "Planet of the Apes" (all fine films) and give 2001 the attention it deserves. And if you still don't like it, then that's cool too. I like all kinds of movies, but this is the one that convinced me that movies were for grownups too, and that film is an art form that occasionally admits a view of genius. I think I'll go watch it right now!