2001: A Space Odyssey: Great film, or greatest film?

[Destructionator XV]

The subject says it all. I love it, but not sure if it is the greatest film.

[Charon]

Movies fails compared to the book. More so than any other book to movie with the exception of Starship Troopers.

[B4UTRUST]

It's great in that it's classic Sci-fi. But honestly...it's slow. I mean come on...10 minutes of an orbiter manuvering. It bores me a lot of the time. It really does. Last time I watched it I ended up falling asleep.

[Stofsk]

I'm not sure I would call it the greatest film, but I do think it is great.

I prefer the film to the book, and goddammit Adam this should be in Science Fiction!

[Mayabird]

It's decent, but it could have gone without the acid trip at the end which made absolutely no sense. I read the book, and it all made perfect sense. Heck, the screaming monolith that they don't explain in the movie could have been explained, too. "We go to the moon. There's a monolith. It screams. Now, for no real reason, we're going to Jupiter." Even after reading the book and knowing what's going on, it still bothers me.

I didn't pick a choice because those things bother me too much. If I could cut those out and keep the hominids beating the shit out of each other and the HAL parts, I'd pick "great."

[Destructionator XV]

I prefer the film to the book, and goddammit Adam this should be in Science Fiction!

But it is a poll with a loaded question, and no body in the OP!

Well, since it is being productive, you are right.

More so than any other book to movie with the exception of Starship Troopers.

The Starship Troopers movie was great. Pure Paul Verhoeven gore, satire, and comedy. I rank it up with RoboCop, maybe even higher. I've never read the book though, so I can't comment on it.

I mean come on...10 minutes of an orbiter manuvering.

I didn't mind that, partially because I absolutely love the scene's musical score. IMO 2001 used sound, or lack of sound, extremely well throughout the whole thing.


I think the weakest part of the movie though is the stargate scene. That really could have been shortened, but the rest of it, I like it.

[Stofsk]

It's decent, but it could have gone without the acid trip at the end which made absolutely no sense. I read the book, and it all made perfect sense.

The acid trip was silly, but doesn't detract from my viewing of it. You go through that scene and you listen to that spine-tingling music and you get the feeling that something wrong is happening. It isn't supposed to make sense because what is essentially happening is Bowman is experiencing something abnormal (FTL IIRC). When he comes out of it, we have the final scene of the movie and we see him as he is, grow old and die, and then get reborn as that Space foetus... the implication being this is a quantum leap forward for man (in a way the discovery of the thigh bone was a quantum leap forward 3 million years ago). That was a very powerful end to the movie.

Heck, the screaming monolith that they don't explain in the movie could have been explained, too. "We go to the moon. There's a monolith. It screams. Now, for no real reason, we're going to Jupiter." Even after reading the book and knowing what's going on, it still bothers me.

It's been awhile since I saw the movie. I remember that scene though, again for being spooky and for the sense of danger and wrongness the monoliths represent. I liked how they got close to it and then it sent off it's signal.

I didn't pick a choice because those things bother me too much. If I could cut those out and keep the hominids beating the shit out of each other and the HAL parts, I'd pick "great."

There were two moments in the film that stand out for me. The first occurs at the very end of the hominid sequence, when they've 'discovered' the thigh bone and surmised that it can be used as an instrument of survial, and then an instrument of war. (when you see the fallen antelope who's skull no doubt had just been crushed, and the hominids are sitting around chowing down on a veritable feast than what they were used to previously; and then when the other tribe comes to pillage their water and they use their weapon to protect what's theirs)

Anyway, this scene is perhaps the most widely-acclaimed in the whole film: the hominid chucks the bone up and we see it go up, up, up - and then Kubrick immediately cuts to the weapon satellite in orbit, fast forwarding three million years of history, and in a masterful stroke he's just said something big about the human race.

The second scene for me is Bowman and HAL's confrontation. I particularly loved the part where David Bowman is in the pod and has no other recourse but to attempt entry into Discovery sans helmet. The desperation in that made the film for me. The shrill alarm that warns of the impending explosive bolts being used and then quick cut to the soundlessness of space - just brilliant. Then hearing HAL's pleading - "I know I've made some pretty poor decisions lately", " Dave, take a stress pill and let's talk this over" - as Bowman heads to turn him off. And I think the moment when Bowman is turning off HAL for good is also the only time we see him express emotion. One of the themes was how the inhuman was more human than the human - IE HAL has more personality than Bowman or Poole - and HAL's dying words are his fading memories.

Bah, it's a great film I say.

[Stofsk]

<stofsk>, you are right.

Word.

[Charon]

More so than any other book to movie with the exception of Starship Troopers.

The Starship Troopers movie was great. Pure Paul Verhoeven gore, satire, and comedy. I rank it up with RoboCop, maybe even higher. I've never read the book though, so I can't comment on it.

Starship Troopers is great for its satire, gore, and comedy. But it has about as much in common with the book as my penis has with a nuclear weapon.

For me, 2001 is cheapened by the fact that I'd had to have read the book before seeing the movie to make any sense out of some of the scenes.

Plus that acid trip just lasts WAY TOO FUCKING LONG!

[Stofsk]

Starship Troopers is great for its satire, gore, and comedy. But it has about as much in common with the book as my penis has with a nuclear weapon.

Exactly. In the book, the MI had a whole rack of penises to lob at enemies.

I'm sorry. Was that weak? It felt a little forced. I had to crack some kind of joke after reading your post but I think I may have blew it.

[Cynical Cat]

Overated.

The movie wastes huge stretches of time, especially with the ending. The good parts, the apes learning how to use weapons and the HAL bit are good, but they are good parts in an otherwise incoherent and dull movie.

[DesertFly]

Exactly. In the book, the MI had a whole rack of penises to lob at enemies.

I'm sorry. Was that weak? It felt a little forced. I had to crack some kind of joke after reading your post but I think I may have blew it.

No, no, I think it worked. Of course, it is three in the morning here, so take my endorsement with a grain of salt.

As to 2001, I'm going to have to agree that it's darn slow, and some of the design choices seem a little odd in our era of exciting ships screaming past and blowing up, but I think it works for that movie. Dunno, really, it's been so long since I've seen it that I don't really remember. Will have to watch it again sometime soon.

[Batman]

I'm with CC on 2001. Had it's good parts, but most of it was just dull, and the acid trip was unneccessary. Book's much better.
Starahip Troopers is a bad film all in and of itself but know imagine going to the theater expecting a halfay decend adaption of the book. The pain may nevver go away.

[SirNitram]

2001 the movie was a massive waste. It desperately needed an editor with a chainsaw, it included scenes which only work in book format or with narrator, and the 'acid trip' was a giant, steaming turd dropped on Clarke's actual finale. It was poorly done, and turns into more of a 'AI GONNA KILL US!' flick than the original story.

In short, I disliked this movie.

[LadyTevar]

It was a great film, but nowhere near the Greatest.

Especially since the part from the acid trip on had to be explained to me, having never read the book.

[frigidmagi]

Here's my thought on the matter. If you have to explain to me that a certain scene was a powerful moving scene... It wasn't a powerful moving scene for me. The movie needs work, that is all.

[Dark Silver]

Meh...I preferred the book...

[The Village Idiot]

I can appreciate the film, but as others have said, it moves WAY to slow some times. So I guess I can give it the Great Film title.