Yes, a Masterpiece

Rating: 10/10 (29 August 2001)

There are very few films in my opinion that merit recognition for being a Masterpiece of the medium, and this is it. I would say arguably one of the 10 greatest films that have been made, up there with _The Godfather_, _Schindler's List_, and a few others. And if there were any one film that I had to rate as my #1 favorite at this point, this one would be it.
It is NOT, however, recommended for anyone and everyone; even a masterpiece needs a receptive audience for it to be truly enjoyed, and shouldn't be forced on anyone. (Somehow I can't get into an Akira Kurosawa epic, but maybe in time.) It IS slow-paced, and it IS enigmatic. For many movie-viewers nowadays, that just isn't their thing. This is a science-fiction film, but you won't see the Discovery spacecraft make the jump to light speed, or maneuver swiftly through the asteroid belt. The sequences involving things floating around in space are often accompanied by silence, rather than exciting background music. And some movie-viewers just can't STAND not having their senses bombarded in the ways that please them. To an appropriately trained mind, however, the movie is a feast.
The one thing that probably COULD be done better today with more modern special effects is the Star Gate sequence. But one thing that impressed me most about this as well as much of the rest of the movie -- and I'll even limit my remarks about what makes this film so enjoyable to me to this alone -- is the way in which Kubrick uses music to accentuate the effect of the imagery. Every music piece seems perfectly selected for its use; from the triumphant fanfare of Richard Strauss's _Also Sprach Zarathustra_, to the the choreography of the spaceships to Johann Strauss's _Blue Danube Waltz_, to the creepy cacophany of voices of Ligeti's _Requiem_ accompanying the monolith, to the weeping tone of the _Gayenne Ballet Suite_ accompanying the languid movements of the Discovery, and last but not least, the eerie aural orgasm of Ligeti's _Atmospheres_ accompanying Bowman's journey beyond the infinite, Kubrick finely crafts imagery and sound to coalesce into a beauteous blend.
I have Kubrick to thank for turning me on to the sounds of Ligeti -- as there may be no other filmmakers who could integrate such sounds in such an appropriate and classy way into the main scenes of their films. (I hadn't even yet mentioned the nearly indescribable sounds of Ligeti's _Lux Aeterna_ accompanying the moonscape shuttle.)
The only thing I can say by way of disappointment is that I have yet to see this on the big screen in theaters; let's just hope that the appropriate powers that be see fit to place this back on the large screen, if not in the year 2001 as it obviously should be, sometime very SOON.
This is one of the few films to which I am absolutely honored to give a full 10 out of 10. Thank you, Stanley.