Second viewing; my previous viewing was in or after September 15 (part 1) and 16 (part 2), 1983, of a broadcast that was in pan-and-scan and dubbed in Portuguese, as I remember it.
Aliens visit Earth millions of years ago and influence the intellectual evolution of hominids through a rectangular object. In 2001, a similar object is discovered buried in the Moon. An expedition to Jupiter is undertaken in connection with the lunar monolith, the details of which are initially kept a secret from the crew. During the voyage, the onboard computer goes haywire.
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I've commented on the plot premises of this movie in my commentary on the novel. It's in Portuguese, but, shortly put, those premises are bunkum. Extraterrestrial visits, neurotic computers, wormhole traveling, resurrections. Pfft! That being said, it takes very little effort to put those problems aside or assume they are simply a means to telling a story that may be enjoyable. Of course, the technological depictions in the movie are quite impressive, though overly optimistic, considering the technological state we are at. As for the "meaning" of the movie: I see it as a sort of thematic sibling, or perhaps sequel, to Plan 9 from Outer Space (1959). The premise of both films is how extraterrestrial entities attempt to dominate the world, mainly out of a benign intention of saving humanity from itself, and employ the resurrected dead as their instrument. In 2001, which we might dub Plan 10, the resurrection of one single human is deemed to be sufficient, and the means are rather more convoluted than in Plan 9.
Some people might be interested in a different view by the very erudite Christopher Mulrooney (1956-2015).
Rating: 52 (up from 44)
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