I'd rather kill you than let you kill me

Rating: 10/10 (8 April 2006)

"2001, A Space Odyssey", is Stanley Kubrick's Masterpiece in a list of masterpieces (Dr.Strangelove, Clockwork Orange, The Shining, Full Metal Jacket, Spartacus, Eyes Wide Shut, Lolita, etc.),which combined places him in the exalted role of "greatest filmmaker of all". This 2001 extended journey within man's existence, and into degrees of space, still seems to stand atop everything made in film history despite 37 years passing since it's release. It travels from the beginning of man's evolution through apes, to modern day space-walkers, in the blink of an ape-man's tool. And with the help of a silver monolith, possibly planted on Earth by ancient Alien visitants to trigger intellect in future humans, a trip that takes millions of years to evolve is unleashed. The apes learn about the use of power through weapons, how they can gain property, and how to kill their fellow creatures through violence. Thus four million evolutionary years later, and not that much wiser, the intellect that was released has brought them from apes to moon-dancers. Of course the astronauts are still eating slaughtered packaged meat as they ride to investigate another monolith that has been discovered buried on the moon. Things change . . . things stay the same.
Everything is brilliantly done up through the 2nd monolith's arrival, including wonderful choices and uses of music and silence, but the most interesting, calculating character in the movie is waiting to be introduced. The new monolith is pointing to Jupiter, and a human mission is sent to explore the giant planet under the supervision of Hal, an extremely intelligent computer who is put in charge of the entire expedition. While most of the spacemen are in a hibernated state, Hal interacts with the few that are awake (chrushing them at chess), as he runs the entire ship.
But . . . Hal begins to make mistakes, and here's where Kubrick combines inner and outer space and elevates his movie beyond simple adventure. The astronauts realize that Hal has to be shut off, and of course Hal (who is a monster at lip reading) realizes that they will try to do just that. He begins one by one to kill the astronauts air supply, rather than be put down himself . . . just as a logical egotistical mind, that is caught making mistakes by the inner man, will try to destroy a person's body and suppress the truth rather than allow itself to be quieted. It takes a man of immense will and a calm deliberate approach to dis-engage the ego in both spaceship and in a human being, and this role goes to Keir Dullea, the astronaut who both physically and symbolically breaks down the doors blocking the essence of the ship's mission, and man's mission into the future.
Once Hal is placed under control, the truth is revealed . . . and man's evolution rises into the next step and beyond . . . seemingly transcending both time and space.
When this movie was released it created much confusion and didn't get the critical acclaim it receives today. It's slowly unfolded into our consciousness because it's really the story of man's entire history and of our individual personal lives and dreams rolled into one......a work of genius, that continues to stand the immense test of time in an art medium that re-invents itself continually.
Hats off to you Stanley Kubrick.........a work unequaled.