Maybe some clues (no spoilers)

Rating: 10/10 (21 March 2002)

What a fantastic film! I wished I could have seen this film when it came out, what an experience this would have been.
I'm not sure I can add something worthwhile to the large number of very fine comments about 2001 present on this site. To those confused, disappointed or angry about the film I'd encourage them to read a number of those comments until they can get some explanation or maybe an echo of their own feeling. Anyway, here goes:
Yes there is a story (and a great one at that) in this film, yes you do have to look for it a little, sure it is not spoon-fed to you like modern Hollywood films tend to do, but it's not hard really, and why should all films be the same? Don't you find it nice to be challenged?
No it's *not* slow. The more I watch it (I've seen it 3 times) the more things and meaning I find in it, the more time I have to think about what I'm seeing. Isn't that nice for a change?
Say that you were looking at some distant galaxy full of stars through the eyepiece of a telescope, would you expect it to dance before your eyes for your entertainment? yet wouldn't there be a deep mystery in that sight? would you not find yourself in awe of this fantastic object? wouldn't you ask yourself if intelligent beings lived out there millions of light years away? How could we contact them? What would they look like? what if they had a civilization that would be so far advanced that we would be like insects are to us, what would they do to us? Would they be benign or hostile?
Well you can't expect an intelligent film like `2001' to provide you with detailed answers to these questions. If it did it would be trite and contrived and `2001' would be mere entertainment. If that is what you are looking for in a sci-fi movie you can watch Star Wars or Star Trek, where aliens are just as silly and lost in their wan little lives as we are. No, in `2001' we have real aliens, and they have a plan for us. Can we hope to understand them? maybe.
The real force of `2001' is that it does not feed you a stupid answer to life and everything, and that it tries to get you to think. There are very few things in real life like that. This is also an incredibly optimistic film, I always feel elated after viewing it, and in awe of what my fellow humans can do sometimes.
You may not like this film, and that's fine and that's your privilege. Isn't the world sometimes great because it is so diverse?
PS: I liked Star Wars & Star Trek too.