2001: A Space Odyssey

I remember seeing 2001: A Space Odyssey, the 1968 science fiction film directed by Stanley Kubrick, in the theater and being blown away by it. I was a big science fiction fan and had read the book. Later, before we married, The Husband and I saw it together, and he was totally non-plussed. We've always wondered if the difference in our responses was because he had not read the book.

Veoh has this film available for viewing online, but you have to download their player. The Cinemated Man has it online at BlipTV:


trailer:


The New York Times is not enthusiastic. Roger Ebert says, "Nearly 30 years after it was made, it has not dated in any important detail". Moria says its "scope is the widest of any science-fiction film". Slant Magazine describes it as

a four-part, totally immersive, altogether operatic experience that defies traditional expectations in its abandonment of the common narrative form, in essence returning cinema to its roots of pure audio/visual augmentation.

Variety concludes:

But "2001" is not a cinematic landmark. It compares with, but does not best, previous efforts at science fiction; lacking the humanity of "Forbidden Planet," the imagination of "Things to Come" and the simplicity of "Of Stars and Men," it actually belongs to the technically-slick group previously dominated by George Pal and the Japanese.