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In Reply to: Re: 2001 -- A space Odyssey returns to DC posted by john dem on November 03, 2001 at 14:02:15:
Hi,
I have always loved ideas like that. I was a fan of scifi, hard, soft, Tolkein, almost all of it.....before 2001. When I first saw the movie, in a quite ordinary theater, I was thrilled. But the simple truth is this.....It is slow paced, some of it seems quite dated; and the subplot, you know the one, where our fate is determined by an alien race...all of these things no longer thrill me. I still like to watch parts of it; but I am unable to watch the whole thing. It's day has come, and gone.
2001 still stands up IMO. Beyond the premises of aliens, monoliths and suspended animation, pretty much all of the space travel/special effects in 2001 hold up to the realities of physics - which are as valid today as they were then.
Clarke was a scientist and a sci-fi writer - (Like Fred Hoyle I believe). He "invented" the theory of the geo-stationary orbit which makes stationary communications satellites possible - he had a cutting edge knowledge of the physics involved.
Most remarkable is that at the time, only a handfull of humans had ever been in space and the Apollo moon landing occurred after 2001 was in the can. Comparisons with Star Wars etc are pointless. None of their effects are remotely realistic. Fireballs do not occure in space, starfighters don't turn like F-14's. Gravity and the english language are not universal. When they talk on the phone they have normal communications, even though they are lightyears apart.What amazes me most, is that a 2001 scenario could still happen and if it did, it would happen much like Clarke/Kubrick foretold. The only major change is that no-one would be wearing stovepipe plaid suites on the space station :~)
BTW My wife and my sister both hate it. They both fall asleep in the exact same spot, when HAL first starts to show signs of losing it. I can watch it over and over.
Cheers
John K
Finally, someone with a brain!!!!!!!
He assumed the audience had an attention span that would allow them to sit quietly in a cinema and watch a film for about 2 hours- without furry little creatures, comic relief and things blowing up. And you are allowed to think while you are watching- the director doesn't have to hold you by the hand and walk you through each image."some of it seems quite dated"
No offence, but this is one of the most inane criticisms that could be levelled at any work- literature, cinema or music. Of course it is dated, but its modernity lies in its ideas- not in its Art Direction.
(Art Direction which is flawless in its execution - as are all of Kubrick's films, particularly Barry Lyndon,in this often overlooked aspect of cinema.)
Kubrick may have not been the greatest director of the 20th. century, but few today would rival his eye- his ability to direct an image, to deliver to an audience his exact vision, his ability to use the medium.
Nor are there many directors who are prepared to make films for adults (Magnolia comes to mind- I guess the same people who "don't get" 2001 are the same people who don't know what the frogs "mean"), nor are there any in Hollywood that could aspire to create a film with the impact and effect that 2001 had more than 30 years ago.
I thought it was funny as hell and not a bad way to end a dreary, but well-acted movie.
Rob CThe world was made for people not cursed with self-awareness
I have to disagree, oh Mutt of Maize,Magnolia stands as one of the most emotionally honest films to come out of Hollywood. Each shot was well crafted- a joy to watch a director use the lens rather than just shoot what the storyboard says- as most directors just do. I did not find it dreary in the least (and the acting was terrific- who'd have thought Cruise was so good)- it moved along at good pace and Anderson was not scared to play with the medium- the characters singing, the allegorical quiz show, the frogs from the sky. The frogs are just a device- a funny variation on the deux ex machina used in ancient plays. That night was a defining moment in the lives of the characters- and the frogs were there to prove it. Life is like that sometimes- frogs just happen.
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