Why is "2001: A Space Odyssey" considered such a good movie?

[Lethologica]

Except that moment is meant to be a joke at Marky Mark's dad character's expense, like "haha, overbearing authority figure, our love is pure". It's a moment where we're supposed to be on the side of the guy with the card. It's only in the movie for that reason. It affects nothing else and if they had both been 19 they would of had to cut one joke.

Oh. Well, then scratch my charitable guess.

[Bohandas]

Except that moment is meant to be a joke at Marky Mark's dad character's expense, like "haha, overbearing authority figure, our love is pure". It's a moment where we're supposed to be on the side of the guy with the card. It's only in the movie for that reason. It affects nothing else and if they had both been 19 they would of had to cut one joke.

I haven't seen tne film but I think the authority figure being told off like that would be legitimate;y funny.

[Lethologica]

The scene is easy to find online. You can decide for yourself.

[Tyndmyr]

Apparently some people just need everything to be spelled out for them. Those people, like all people, aren't going to like certain movies.

Some people think the theatrical release of Blade Runner was the best one, and the director's cuts ruined it. Or vise versa. If you are one of those who needed to know Deckard was a replicant, you probably don't like 2001.

Nonsense. I liked the ambiguity, and hated having it spelled out. I dislike excessive narration.

I also dislike 2001.

There is a difference between ambiguity and a longass light show. The light show doesn't bring other possibilities and questions to mind. It's just a light show. "artistic", but not actually informative. The HAL substory, that was good. The rest of it, ehhhh.

[Bohandas]

There is a difference between ambiguity and a longass light show. The light show doesn't bring other possibilities and questions to mind. It's just a light show. "artistic", but not actually informative. The HAL substory, that was good. The rest of it, ehhhh.

Plus, even in the film Bowman explicitly says "It's full of stars" not "It's full of lava lamps and kaleidoscopes"

[Bohandas]

You know, you could probably make a good Lucky Charms commercial out of that ending...

"oh my god, it's full of stars..." and then the other marshmallow shapes appear as well, and we see him eating a bowl of them in the space hotel, and the sad thing is that if you haven't already read the book (to know what the real ending means) this would actually make a lot more sense as an ending

EDIT:
...And then a giant Lucky Charms box appears at the foot of his bed and we see the leprechaun staring down at the earth from space and it still makes more sense than the real ending

[nyjastul69]

You know, you could probably make a good Lucky Charms commercial out of that ending...

"oh my god, it's full of stars..." and then the other marshmallow shapes appear as well, and we see him eating a bowl of them in the space hotel, and the sad thing is that if you haven't already read the book (to know what the real ending means) this would actually make a lot more sense as an ending

EDIT:
...And then a giant Lucky Charms box appears at the foot of his bed and we see the leprechaun staring down at the earth from space and it still makes more sense than the real ending

I don't know that I agree with you, but I love that. Frickin 'illarious. Nice job.

When I first watched 2001 I didn't really get it. I was 12 or so. Years later, around adulthood, 20 or so, the movie had a whole different impact. It's a pretty creepy movie that has some fantastic moments. It has pacing issues IMO, but those don't really detract from overall experience for me. I think it's a landmark movie that everyone should see if for no other reason to say 'I don't like it'.

Edit to address Kubrick v. Bay: I've only seen a few Bay movies. I've also only seen a few of Kubrick's work. Pound for pound,as a director, Kubrick's far superior to Bay.

To whit, has Bay done anything that can compare, as a work of art, to what Kubrick did with Full Metal Jacket? I do not think so. As much as the song Lyla by Derek and the Dominos, is 2 songs in one, so is FMJ 2 movies in one. Until Bay makes something as awesome as FMJ, he pales in comparison.

[Donnadogsoth]

You know, you could probably make a good Lucky Charms commercial out of that ending...

"oh my god, it's full of stars..." and then the other marshmallow shapes appear as well, and we see him eating a bowl of them in the space hotel, and the sad thing is that if you haven't already read the book (to know what the real ending means) this would actually make a lot more sense as an ending

EDIT:
...And then a giant Lucky Charms box appears at the foot of his bed and we see the leprechaun staring down at the earth from space and it still makes more sense than the real ending

[snort]

You're a sinner. You're sinning against Kubrick.

As I wrote, the movie makes perfect sense when viewed as an allegory for human development, light show and all. Never read the book; don't care to.

[eggynack]

To whit, has Bay done anything that can compare, as a work of art, to what Kubrick did with Full Metal Jacket? I do not think so. As much as the song Lyla by Derek and the Dominos, is 2 songs in one, so is FMJ 2 movies in one. Until Bay makes something as awesome as FMJ, he pales in comparison.

A way stronger claim than that can be made. I haven't seen the worst of Kubrick, and neither have I seen the best of Bay, but consider that the worst rated Kubrick movie, as per Rotten Tomatoes, is Eyes Wide Shut with a 74, while the best rated Bay movie is The Rock with a 66. So, far from Bay reaching the peaks of Kubrick, he hasn't even reached the nadir. I'm not saying it's a perfect metric by any means, but it just goes to show the ridiculous gap that exists between these two film makers. Bay isn't in Kubrick's league at all. Hell, he's not even in the league below Kubrick, where above average directors go, or the league below that, where things are strictly average. He's hanging out at very much below average, hitting average at his peaks and falling to very bad at his valleys.

[Fawkes]

Especially once it starts rapping.

Yo, I'm HAL 9000 and I'm here to say,
I've been reading your lips in a major way!

[Calemyr]

A way stronger claim than that can be made. I haven't seen the worst of Kubrick, and neither have I seen the best of Bay, but consider that the worst rated Kubrick movie, as per Rotten Tomatoes, is Eyes Wide Shut with a 74, while the best rated Bay movie is The Rock with a 66. So, far from Bay reaching the peaks of Kubrick, he hasn't even reached the nadir. I'm not saying it's a perfect metric by any means, but it just goes to show the ridiculous gap that exists between these two film makers. Bay isn't in Kubrick's league at all. Hell, he's not even in the league below Kubrick, where above average directors go, or the league below that, where things are strictly average. He's hanging out at very much below average, hitting average at his peaks and falling to very bad at his valleys.

He, Uwe Boll, and M. Night Shyamalan run a poker table on that tier, in honor of Ed Wood.

[eggynack]

He, Uwe Boll, and M. Night Shyamalan run a poker table on that tier, in honor of Ed Wood.

Nah, Ed Wood is different. He had this beautiful and sincere love for the art of film, even if he didn't personally have immense talent for it. I still contend that Glen or Glenda is actually a good film.

Edit: I also really liked The Last Airbender, even if it's mostly in an ironical sense. Wound up watching it twice for the awesome humor value.

[Fawkes]

I don't think Shaymalan belongs at that same table, either. His lows are just as low as Bay and Boll, but M. Night at least has the capacity to make actual good movies. Unfortunately, he only made two and then just stopped.

And really, even when he makes a bad movie, he usually is at least making an attempt to make something artistic and interesting. A failed attempt, but an attempt nonetheless.

[eggynack]

I don't think Shaymalan belongs at that same table, either. His lows are just as low as Bay and Boll, but M. Night at least has the capacity to make actual good movies. Unfortunately, he only made two and then just stopped.

And really, even when he makes a bad movie, he usually is at least making an attempt to make something artistic and interesting. A failed attempt, but an attempt nonetheless.

Yeah, I was assuming it was referring to post-good Shaymalan. I dunno that I'd call Airbender a real artistic attempt though. Thing had its moments where you could see some theoretical intentionality, but mostly it was exposition and not paying off a live action water fish monster. And also showing a villain getting drowned by four anonymous water benders. I tend to draw a distinction between movies like Airbender, which I laugh at for its badness, and movies like The Room, which I laugh at but also think is just a genuinely great film. I must say, however, that I don't have much experience with Shyamalan, so he may have hit that kinda sincere attempt but mediocre film level in between his highs and lows.

[The Glyphstone]

For that matter, Bay himself doesn't fit in, because unlike some of the others, he's never made the (public) mistake of considering his own films to be good. He makes explosion-filled LCD shlock action flicks, that earn impossible amounts of money, and he's not the least bit ashamed of any of it.

Boll's the only one there who makes terrible films and thinks he's making art.

[Fawkes]

Yeah, I was assuming it was referring to post-good Shaymalan. I dunno that I'd call Airbender a real artistic attempt though. Thing had its moments where you could see some theoretical intentionality, but mostly it was exposition and not paying off a live action water fish monster. And also showing a villain getting drowned by four anonymous water benders. I tend to draw a distinction between movies like Airbender, which I laugh at for its badness, and movies like The Room, which I laugh at but also think is just a genuinely great film. I must say, however, that I don't have much experience with Shyamalan, so he may have hit that kinda sincere attempt but mediocre film level in between his highs and lows.

Yeah, I haven't seen Airbender, so I can't pass judgment, but the impression I got from reviews was that it was a real low-effort sellout moment for Shyamalan. Probably not a coincidence that it was the first movie he directed that was based off of someone else's story.

[Legato Endless]

For that matter, Bay himself doesn't fit in, because unlike some of the others, he's never made the (public) mistake of considering his own films to be good. He makes explosion-filled LCD shlock action flicks, that earn impossible amounts of money, and he's not the least bit ashamed of any of it.

Boll's the only one there who makes terrible films and thinks he's making art.

Even ignoring Bay's lack of pretension, his film's aren't that bad. Yeah, Michael Bay makes bombastic sexist genre trash, but his films don't actively assault your hope for the human race. Uwe Boll's peers are more on the line of Seltzer and Friedberg, Raja Gosnell and the folks we'd have all forgotten but for Mystery Science Theater 3000.

Edit for Typo

[Fawkes]

Even ignoring Bay's lack of pretension, his film's aren't that bad. Yeah, Michael Bay makes bombastic sexist genre trash, but his films don't actively assault your hope for the human race.

Counterpoint: Transformers 2.

[Bohandas]

Nah, Ed Wood is different. He had this beautiful and sincere love for the art of film, even if he didn't personally have immense talent for it. I still contend that Glen or Glenda is actually a good film.

You know, I wasn't going to bring this up but I think you all have forced me to, I think that Plan 9 From Outer Space actually makes a lot more sense than Kubrick's 2001. The whole thing actually makes perfect sense if you simply assume that the main alien antagonist is an incompetent who has gotten his position through cronyism or nepotism or something

[Razade]

You know, I wasn't going to bring this up but I think you all have forced me to, I think that Plan 9 From Outer Space actually makes a lot more sense than Kubrick's 2001. The whole thing actually makes perfect sense if you simply assume that the main alien antagonist is an incompetent who has gotten his position through cronyism or nepotism or something

Yeah, now you're just being absurd for the sake of it.

[eggynack]

You know, I wasn't going to bring this up but I think you all have forced me to, I think that Plan 9 From Outer Space actually makes a lot more sense than Kubrick's 2001. The whole thing actually makes perfect sense if you simply assume that the main alien antagonist is an incompetent who has gotten his position through cronyism or nepotism or something

I haven't seen Plan 9 in awhile, and I didn't watch it as closely as I'd like, but I wouldn't be surprised were that the case. Sensicalness isn't an especially great metric of quality, however. Most so bad it's good movies hold together rather well on a macro level, with issues mostly popping up in the form of weirdness in individual scenes. Like, you might question why the protagonists leave their worth-killing-for gas tank on the side of the road in Birdemic, but that doesn't make the movie hard to follow, and the result is that Birdemic is going to rank higher than the much superior, say, Exterminating Angel, or Eraserhead, in terms of ease of following. Y'know, movies that are great, but weird by intent.

[thatSeniorGuy]

As talk of Michael Bay has popped up, I'll leave this for your amusement (Bay and Kubrick pop up towards the end of the video).
ETA: lyrics not appropriate for work.

[zimmerwald1915]

Counterpoint: Transformers 2.

That movie exists solely to hang a Sword of Damocles over the WGA. The next time their contract comes up, all the Producers have to say is "Transformers 2," and they'll win every concession they've wanted for the past forty years.

[MLai]

Except that moment is meant to be a joke at Marky Mark's dad character's expense, like "haha, overbearing authority figure, our love is pure". It's a moment where we're supposed to be on the side of the guy with the card. It's only in the movie for that reason. It affects nothing else and if they had both been 19 they would of had to cut one joke.

Wait, y'all were being serious when you said the guy actually had a laminated card of this???

[Fawkes]

Wait, y'all were being serious when you said the guy actually had a laminated card of this???

See for yourself.

[nyjastul69]

A way stronger claim than that can be made. I haven't seen the worst of Kubrick, and neither have I seen the best of Bay, but consider that the worst rated Kubrick movie, as per Rotten Tomatoes, is Eyes Wide Shut with a 74, while the best rated Bay movie is The Rock with a 66. So, far from Bay reaching the peaks of Kubrick, he hasn't even reached the nadir. I'm not saying it's a perfect metric by any means, but it just goes to show the ridiculous gap that exists between these two film makers. Bay isn't in Kubrick's league at all. Hell, he's not even in the league below Kubrick, where above average directors go, or the league below that, where things are strictly average. He's hanging out at very much below average, hitting average at his peaks and falling to very bad at his valleys.

I'm not concerned with any Rotten Tomatoes metric. Well said though. To be fair to Bay, I generally use enjoy what he does. I love popcorn movies. I like shutting my brain off and watching explosions and such. Sometimes I want an 'art' movie, sometimes I wanna see bombastic explosions. I don't wanna come across as hating Bay. He definitely isn't Kubrick though.

[eggynack]

I'm not concerned with any Rotten Tomatoes metric. Well said though. To be fair to Bay, I generally use enjoy what he does. I love popcorn movies. I like shutting my brain off and watching explosions and such. Sometimes I want an 'art' movie, sometimes I wanna see bombastic explosions. I don't wanna come across as hating Bay. He definitely isn't Kubrick though.

I definitely don't think it tells you absolutely that all Kubrick movies are categorically better than all Bay movies. Not even sure that that's my personal opinion. Still, it implies how massive the gulf between the two directors is, and gives a general idea of what kinda comparisons you can make when looking at them. Because, while Rotten Tomatoes obviously doesn't prove that perfect inequality, what it does mean is that I could say, "All Kubrick movies are better than all Bay movies," and I'd have a leg to stand on in the argument. Not specifically because I could cite RT as a source, but just because that's where analysis could plausibly lead when you start with those numbers as a basis.

[MLai]

I don't wanna come across as hating Bay.

After what he's done to some of my childhood memories, and what he has said regarding how much he cares, and the attitude he has shown towards people who watch his movies (directly or through his work), I think it's perfectly fine to genuinely hate him.

And oh my god, it really is laminated.

[Tyndmyr]

For that matter, Bay himself doesn't fit in, because unlike some of the others, he's never made the (public) mistake of considering his own films to be good. He makes explosion-filled LCD shlock action flicks, that earn impossible amounts of money, and he's not the least bit ashamed of any of it.

Boll's the only one there who makes terrible films and thinks he's making art.

That's pretty fair. Not everyone gets to make the amazing art pieces. There's a market for people who just want to see explosions.

Nothing wrong with metaphorically making hamburgers at McDonalds, so long as you don't act like doing so makes you a gourmet chef.

[nyjastul69]

After what he's done to some of my childhood memories, and what he has said regarding how much he cares, and the attitude he has shown towards people who watch his movies (directly or through his work), I think it's perfectly fine to genuinely hate him.

And oh my god, it really is laminated.

The only thing I can do is agree. Oh my god, it really is laminated. That *is* some serious creepypasta. I haven't seen the movie , but I watched that (ob)scene.