A hopeful vision for the future of Humanity

Rating: 10/10 (29 September 1999)

This film more than any other I have ever watched, has left an indelible impression upon my soul. Everything about '2001:A Space Odyssey', from every tiny nuance of realistic detail, to the overall sweepingly majestic epic wonder of the whole, holds endless fascination and emotion for me. A true masterpiece of pacing and plot development (yes there is one!), perhaps only a visionary of cinema, that Stanley Kubrick undoubtedly was (R.I.P. much missed Droogie), could have done justice to the grandeur of Arthur C. Clarke's novel. The entire film unfolds slowly like an archetypal dream; lucid, intensely emotional, at times overwhelmingly so (this film has brought tears of wonderment to my eyes many times), and of course utterly perplexing. Although the character development is left to a minimum, I think this is what makes the story so compelling. The human drama, as real as it is from the point of view of the various protagonists, is merely a backdrop against which is set the slow contemplation of Humanity's place in the Cosmic Scheme. Personally I see in the character of HAL the embodiment of human reason and its ultimately fallable attempts to fathom the unknown depths of reality. We make the assumption that the world is ultimately rational, but perhaps this is not so, and our little islands of certainty are merely transient truths, that are but insignificant dim reflections of a greater Reality. The rebirth as a StarChild to my mind represents the next stage of human evolution, necessary for us to fully comprehend both ourselves and the Universe. The use of 'Also Sprach Zarathustra' as the main theme music, complements perfectly the Nietzchian idea that humanity is but a bridge between animal and beyond human.
Highly recommended for anyone, whether you like science-fiction movies or not.