2001: A Space Odyssey

Name: 2001: A Space Odyssey
Genre: Adventure, Sci-Fi, Mystery
Released: April 2, 1968
Duration: 141 min
Rating: 84
Cast: Gary Lockwood, Keir Dullea

1968

METASCORE

Universal acclaim based on 25 Critic Reviews

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USER SCORE

Universal acclaim based on 1307 Ratings

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8.2

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8.2	User Score Universal acclaim based on 1307 Ratings

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2001: A Space Odyssey

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Movie Details & Credits

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) | Release Date: April 2, 1968 | G

Starring: Gary Lockwood, Keir Dullea

Summary: 2001: A Space Odyssey is a countdown to tomorrow, a road map to human destiny, a quest for the infinite. To begin his voyage into the future, Kubrick visits our prehistoric ape-ancestry past, then leaps millenia (via one of the most mind-blowing jump cuts ever conceived) into colonized space, and ultimately whisks astronaut Bowman (Dullea)2001: A Space Odyssey is a countdown to tomorrow, a road map to human destiny, a quest for the infinite. To begin his voyage into the future, Kubrick visits our prehistoric ape-ancestry past, then leaps millenia (via one of the most mind-blowing jump cuts ever conceived) into colonized space, and ultimately whisks astronaut Bowman (Dullea) into uncharted realms of space, perhaps even into immortality. "Open the pod bay doors, HAL." Let the awe and mystery of a journey unlike any other begin. (Warner Bros.)… Expand

Director: Stanley Kubrick

Genre(s): Adventure, Sci-Fi, Mystery

Rating: G

Runtime: 141 min

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Metascore

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Critic Reviews

100

Scott Rosenberg

Beloved for many different reasons, including its scrupulous scientific accuracy, its vast reach from "The Dawn of Man" to the next stage of human evolution, its unrivaled integration of musical and visual composition, its daring paucity of dialogue and washes of silence, its astonishingly creative psychedelic sequence and its still-gorgeous pre-digital special effects. Read full review

100

John Mahoney

It is, as promised, "a majestic visual experience," quite unlike any film we have ever seen...These details are merely a means employed by Kubrick and his distinguished screenplay collaborator Arthur C. Clarke, to provoke the more limitless imaginings of the mind, to assault the viewer with tantalizing enigmas to force exploration of that personal universe in relation to time and space, meaning and potential. Read full review

100

Owen Gleiberman

Still the grandest of all science-fiction movies.

100

Dave Kehr

Fascinated by the technology of movies as much as by the technology of space—it presents film as a fabulous, exciting plaything, reviving Orson Welles's observation that a movie set is "the biggest electric train set a boy ever had." Read full review

100

Joshua Rothkopf

It remains as intelligent and provocative as ever, bearing years of conceptual dreaming. Read full review

Staff (Not Credited)

Like Space Odyssey itself, the ambiguous ending is at once appropriate and wrong. It guarantees that the film will arouse controversy, but it leaves doubt that the film makers themselves knew precisely what they were flying at. Still, no film to date has come remotely near Odyssey's depiction of the limitless beauty and terror of outer space. In this 2-hr. 40-min. movie, only 47 minutes are taken up with dialogue. The rest of the time is occupied with demanding, brilliant material for the eye and brain. Thus, though it may fail as drama, the movie succeeds as visual art and becomes another irritating, dazzling achievement of Stanley Kubrick, one of the most erratic and original talents in U.S. cinema. Read full review

Stephen Hunter

A crackpot Looney Tune, pretentious, abysmally slow, amateurishly acted and, above all, wrong. Read full review

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User Reviews

LanceRomance

Feb 1, 2011

The greatest epiphany? That the monolith represents the film screen itself, with its black rectangular appearance. And that the monolith is also depicted as the catalyst for change only encourages the notion that we actually evolve as we watch ourselves on the screen, and furthermore, BECOMEThe greatest epiphany? That the monolith represents the film screen itself, with its black rectangular appearance. And that the monolith is also depicted as the catalyst for change only encourages the notion that we actually evolve as we watch ourselves on the screen, and furthermore, BECOME what we see. And that's what 2001 is ultimately about; becoming. Constant becoming. Constant becoming through endless mediation. What will become of you when the credits finally roll? I, for one, became a pretentious film critic.… Expand

40 of 50 users found this helpful4010

Ziphias

Feb 20, 2021

The greatest film ever made. It tells a profound story of humanity and evolution. It completely blew me away on first watch and it was engaging all the way through. Even though I hate the word, this is a so-called masterpiece and perhaps the greatest of such.

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

cabrita

Jul 16, 2012

The film works as a transcendent of genre. It is a true art film! Space Odyssey attempts to give us a sense of awe through it's great audio visual experience. To quote Ebert loosely it works in a similar way as music!

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

joao1198pedro

Nov 20, 2013

some people nowadays would say that this movie is really boring and slow,i just say then because this movie is the best film that happens in the space of all time(and i guess it will stay in this post for a long time),it's just a great classic that influencesses this generation.

1 of 3 users found this helpful12

Onlyclassicvg1

Feb 18, 2021

2001: A Space Odyssey is a countdown to tomorrow, a road map to human destiny, a quest for the infinite. To begin his voyage into the future, Kubrick visits our prehistoric ape-ancestry past, then leaps millenia (via one of the most mind-blowing jump cuts ever conceived) into colonized2001: A Space Odyssey is a countdown to tomorrow, a road map to human destiny, a quest for the infinite. To begin his voyage into the future, Kubrick visits our prehistoric ape-ancestry past, then leaps millenia (via one of the most mind-blowing jump cuts ever conceived) into colonized space, and ultimately whisks astronaut Bowman (Dulle… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

CPD98

Jul 21, 2014

Que difícil es hacer una crítica de esta película... la odio y me gusta a la vez. Una película muy compleja, buena para la época en la que se hizo, ya que si la hubieran hecho el año pasado puede que le bajara dos o tres puntos. De Kubrick hay obras mejores pero esta al fin y al cabo es unaQue difícil es hacer una crítica de esta película... la odio y me gusta a la vez. Una película muy compleja, buena para la época en la que se hizo, ya que si la hubieran hecho el año pasado puede que le bajara dos o tres puntos. De Kubrick hay obras mejores pero esta al fin y al cabo es una buena película.… Expand

0 of 3 users found this helpful03

ThomasB.

Dec 28, 2008

The worst film I've ever seen. What does the film want to be? This is no art it's only crap. Please dont see this film, every euro you would spend on it is lost, lost, lost.

0 of 18 users found this helpful

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