Review of 2001 A Space Odyssey: Collector`s Box Set

Introduction

I don`t think this film needs any introduction, so I`m pretty much going to dispense with one. Similarly I`m not going to talk too much about the film itself, as there has been so much written by so many about 2001 that it would probably fill several hundred books. 2001 is a true classic, a groundbreaking science fiction film without which we would not have had so many of today`s modern sci-fi classics.

It`s another example of those films that we just don`t make any more, and wouldn`t be allowed to make any more. If you took this film to a modern studio, it would be a very, very brave one that would make it. They certainly wouldn`t be impressed by the total lack of dialogue in the opening 20 minutes!

Video

So let`s get on with the important stuff about the disc. The picture is presented as a 2.20:1 anamorphic transfer (you don`t see many of those) and is utterly, utterly stunning. For a film made over 30 years ago this transfer almost defies belief. Colours are excellent and black levels are also very good, which is obviously very important with the amount of shots of space involved in this film.

The stunning visuals of the film are served brilliantly by this transfer.

Audio

To back up that reference quality image, we have a DD5.1 soundtrack so that we can listen to "The Blue Danube" by Johann Strauss and "Thus Sprach Zarathrusta" by Richard Strauss in full Dolby Digital glory. Many people cannot hear these pieces of music without thinking of 2001, and they send a chill down your spine when played loud at home.

However, unlike the picture the sound is not without its flaws, with some very noticable hiss during certain scenes of dialogue, and also with some of the music. During the long periods of silence however, the hiss is not present. A shame that the sound is not perfect, but it`s still very good and adds so much to the film.

Features

As far as the disc itself goes, we only get the original trailer presented to us. However, in this collector`s box set you will also find a soundtrack CD, a booklet which runs to 14 pages and reveals intersting information about the film, and a 70mm film frame (senitype).

You may perhaps expect more from a "collector`s box set", and you might just be right.

Conclusion

Like I said in the introduction, I`m not going to get into long discussions about the film. All I will say is that 2001 is a total classic and definitely one of the best films I have ever seen. The film has been parodied by so many, and the dialogue sampled by people for use on their computers, and even used in songs.

This collector`s box set features a DVD with an absolutely stunning picture, good sound and a poor showing in the extras department. The CD soundtrack, booklet and senitype add some value, but not enough to justify the high price tag. I`m not going to mark the disc down for this, but I would add that it doesn`t seem to be value for money.

Serious fans might be able to justify forking out for this one, but you`d probably be well advised to save your money for the disc-only release which is due later this year.