I've always known about this Stanley Kubrick movie for practically my whole life, but have been living long enough under a rock to not actually see it until now. I had watched it a month or two ago, but it was on very late at 11 PM which caused me to fall asleep midway through. I may have been able to stay awake longer if it weren't for its hypnotic effect.

It deserves no less acclaim from what it already has. Kubrick and Clarke managed to pull off a deeply intelligent, surreal, and incredibly thought-provoking science fiction experience unlike any other. Within the first 20 minutes of watching one may think it's simply another science fiction flick about what the seemingly unreachable future would be like. But this is only a mere sideshow from what the movie's truly about--human error and development, extraterrestrial life, the universe and what it may or may not mean, death and, debatably, God. However, the final judgment and meanings (or lack thereof) of 2001 are subjective and differ from person to person. There is no right or wrong interpretation of this movie, and I am very glad Kubrick and Clarke never succumbed to the groping demand of "what exactly is it about?"

If its vast scope already wasn't enough then the style of which the movie was filmed in asserts its rightful place as a true classic--most of the movie doesn't use very much dialogue; there is absolutely no sound when in outer space (save for what the astronauts hear within their helmets, as opposed to movies like Star Wars); great visual effects, classical music perfectly accompanying several scenes (I especially like this as I am an admirer of classical music) and uses much symbolism which forces the viewer to think and be very patient. I've noticed that the majority of American movie-goers usually demand fast-paced action and excitement to keep them interested, though I don't entirely blame those people. The movie crawls at a snail's pace, but this isn't necessarily a bad thing.

Now that Stanley Kubrick has convinced me he is the director everyone says he is, this further boosts my hope for A Clockwork Orange. The book was incredible and leaving it in Kubrick's hands seems like the perfect choice. Unfortunately Blockbuster nor Disc Replay has it at the moment, so I'll just wait for now.

My dad's got Dr. Strangelove lying about his stack of movies someplace in the house, so I think I'll watch that tomorrow night.

Also, for those who missed the previous post: Upcoming books by James Kennedy and China Miéville [link]