#94 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)

Let me preface my thoughts on this movie by once again saying that I don't think I can fully appreciate this film without living through the 60s. Some movies are timeless classics that can be appreciated in any era (Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, 12 Angry Men, Psycho); some movies you need to understand what was going on in that era, and know how film was developing at the time.
The movie was boring. It was slow. It was incoherent.
I realize this came out a full decade before Star Wars, and a full year before we even landed on the moon. This movie was probably groundbreaking and unbelievable to watch with minds running wild to what the future held (it is less vector based than the movie would have you believe). The idea of having nearly no talking  must have also been huge. It makes you experience the film from a visual level. I found it stupid. With paintings, I appreciate trying something different to elicit emotion, but there is only so far you can go with art until it just gets stupid. When I was in New York, inside one of the museums was a grocery cart filled with trash bags and it was called art. That's stupid. 2001: A Space Odyssey is a grocery cart full of trash bags.
The beginning was 3 minutes of a black screen with music followed by people dressed in monkey suits hammering on for 20 minutes till a large slab of granite shows up. Then they would just show you shots of spaceships and space stations for the longest time. The only interesting part of the movie was Hal, the famous self-aware computer. Too bad they spent more time with monkeys. I have always been fascinated with us over teaching a computer to our own demise, which is why I loved the Terminator series. So far, all we have is Siri. I feel confident we are safe for now. I don't want to give away the ending, but I will say this. It is dumb. No, like really dumb. Like, the worst ending I have ever watched. Watch this movie just so you can understand how terrible of an ending it was. I get that the movie wants to leave us with more questions than answers, but the movie should leave me with more than just one question: "Huh?"
I think people are more obsessed with loving movies from famous directors like Kubrick, but then again, I really think it has a lot to do with not growing up in the 60s.
Side note about Kubrick, I had no idea who he was until this movie, and then I see two out of the last three movies I watched were by him as well. Weird.

"I am sorry, Dave. I am afraid I can't do that."

Have you seen this movie? What did you think?
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