7.05.2010

182: 2001: A Space Odyssey

2001: A Space Odyssey (PG) - 1968 - Runtime: 141 minutes
Starring: Gary Lockwood, Keir Dullea
Director: Stanley Kubrick

Kubrick has had quite an amazing career. Most of his movies are considered classics and he's always referenced as inspiration to most modern filmmakers. And I completely understand. He has a mastery over the camera - he knows how to shoot a movie perfectly and distill the images and sounds on the screen into something more than a movie - he's creating an experience. It never more true than his possible magnum opus: 2001: A Space Odyssey. It's truly a masterpiece in film and such a great tale of mankind on a such a large scale. All that praise may sound a bit too dramatic, but the movie hit me pretty profoundly. It will probably take a couple more viewings to truly appreciate it, but the movie nevertheless is gripping on first viewing.

The story follows mankind - from simple apes to space colonizing astronauts. The main theme of the movie is evolution and this is represented by a big, black obelisk that pushes man to the next stage in evolution. All of this is shown and not really told. That's the beauty of the movie - there's more to show than tell and Kubrick does it so well. Like all of his movies, the look is just perfect, from the round space station and the running track to the hallucinating and colorful space (and time?) travel. The computer Hal is possibly the most vicious and delightful villain that doesn't have a face.

I really don't know what else to say, just that you need to see this movie if you haven't. It's so iconic and epic that you might not get it at first, but I know I'll be going back to this classic very soon!

Rating: Own It!

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