Mesmerizing experience

Rating: 10/10 (19 August 2006)

(r#54)
Only Stanley Kubrick could create a film like 2001. It is unlike anything made before or after it and whether you like it or not, it is an unforgettable experience. I urge anyone who disliked this film to give it at least one more chance - I can honestly say that the film was way too far off the wall for me to appreciate it the first time I watched it.
2001 is overflowing with iconic images, from the opening scene accompanied by Richard Strauss' "Thus Spoke Zarathustra", to the bone being tossed into the air by the ape. It has become such a huge phenomenon that even today TV series, movies, parodies and comics continue to spoof it. It is impossible to hear The Blue Danube without associating it to Kubrick's masterpiece. And that is what it is, in every sense of the word: a masterpiece. Nothing is half-baked or average about 2001 - it is a work of enormous attention to detail and love for the art of movie-making itself. Although Kubrick continued to direct amazing movies like The Shining, A Clockwork Orange and Full Metal Jacket (which were all far more accessible movies) after 2001, he couldn't top this: his crowning achievement.
It's easy to see how viewers may be put off by 2001 - it doesn't follow the usual movie formula where the plot comes to a conclusion at the end. In fact, neither before nor after 2001 has a movie been made the same way. Plot line and characters are more or less redundant in this film: It's all in the images and music, and what it all means. I won't go into the point of 2001 since I haven't read the book and I think it is up to each viewer to decide for himself what it all means.
The movie jumps from the very dawn of man's use of weapons to a time when space is heavily trafficked, and continues to show us the fate of some unlucky astronauts at the hands of a super-intelligent computer called HAL-9000. I won't spoil what happens in the end but I will say that if you could see it coming, you must be some kind of super genius; as far as I'm concerned it is the single least predictable ending for a movie, ever.
Kubrick is the only director that I know of who has portrayed space in the most realistic way possible: vast, endless, dark, empty, and soundless. It's admirable that a director goes out of his way to make sure no sounds are heard in space, but rather than let this make the movie dreary and dull, Kubrick uses this to his advantage: the chilling silence of some scenes actually help build up the atmosphere in a way that no movie has done before. Some scenes are outright scary, working at an almost subconscious level. Kubrick has always been a master of creating moods and emotions with the viewer, and 2001 is the prime example of this: The climactic scene in the bathroom is unbelievably frightening, and Kubrick creates a sense of dread purely without monsters, murderers or loud music. It's amazing.
The movie is highly meditative and definitely not the one to watch if you want a loud, action-packed Star Wars-type adventure. The long periods of near-complete silence, the low-key dialogue, HAL's monotonous voice (a stroke of genius) and the scattered pieces of classical music set you in a state of complete relaxation and makes you think. I realize this is highly personal and will not work for all viewers.
The special effects are pitch-perfect, still as good today as they were almost 40 years ago. While the digital effects of the Star Wars prequels will be outdated in 10 years, 2001 will continue to stun people with its shockingly realistic and believable effects. Although I would have preferred Kubrick to win the Best Director Oscar for this (as well as many of his other films), the Best Effects award is completely deserved. 2001 still beats many of today's movies in terms of best effects.
If you've grown tired of mediocre movies, give 2001 another chance. At first viewing, I thought it was tiresome and drawn out. At second viewing, it was the most perfect movie ever made. If you're open minded, this is for you, if Pirates of the Caribbean is your favourite movie of all time, it's not - and I don't say this to insult fans of Pirates, I'm just saying that this film might not be up your alley.
I hope I don't sound too pretentious because I know how horrible many of 2001's rabid fans can be. I know for sure that it is not certain you'll enjoy 2001 - but I urge you to give it a chance. It is the ultimate acquired taste, and in my opinion, a masterpiece of epic proportions.