211. 2001 - A Space Odyssey; movie review

2001 - A SPACE ODYSSEY
Cert U
134 mins
BBFC advice: Contains some mild horror

I still don't get it. Four years after I last watched Stanley Kubrick's acclaimed 2001 - A Space Odyssey, I gave it another go to mark its 50th anniversary.
I am still none the wiser and my opinions haven't changed since I wrote this in 2014...

This is not the first time I have tried 2001: A Space Odyssey and, therefore, not the first time I have wondered what the heck it was all about.
From the bizarre use of the music of Richard and Johann Strauss to the psychedelic ending, it left me utterly bamboozled.
Thus, I flicked around the internet to see if there was any help.
To no avail. It appears that writer Arthur C. Clarke and director Stanley Kubrick wanted to leave the film open to 'philosophical and allegorical interpretation'.
I haven't got a clue what the latter is and, therefore, have to accept that I am too thick to understand it.
Interestingly, when I posted about my bewilderment on Facebook, a surprising number of people responded in agreement. They didn't get it either.
Inevitably, it was a teacher who hailed it as 'brilliant' and an author who merely wrote 'oh, Neil'.
The film, for those who haven't seen it, is split into separate acts.
The first, represents men's earliest days as apes who make first tentative discoveries including how to use weapons.
But in the midst of the apes suddenly appears a rectangular monolith which appears to have special powers.
This monolith is seen again on an expedition to the moon and in a house on Jupiter (don't ask).
In between times, a scientist (William Sylvester) leads a secret mission and two astronauts (the aptly named Keir Dullea and Gary Lockwood) fall out with their on-board computer.
None of the above falls together in any discernible story and I was just left a bit annoyed that I had wasted two hours and 20 minutes of my life.

Reason to watch: It is meant to be a classic
Reasons to avoid: It makes no sense at all

Laughs: None
Jumps: None
Vomit: None
Nudity: None 
Overall rating: 3/10

Director quote - Stanley Kubrick: "The film becomes anything the viewer sees in it.  If the film stirs the emotions and penetrates the subconscious of the viewer, if it stimulates (however inchoately) his mythological and religious yearnings and impulses, then it has succeeded." Feel Guide

The big question - What's it all about?

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