>I really hated 2001, except for the 2nd act with HAL. All the rest of it just seemed so pretentious and devoid of story. I find it really cool that I have had

>I really hated 2001, except for the 2nd act with HAL. All the rest of it just seemed so pretentious and devoid of story. I find it really cool that I have had an opposite opinion on the movie. The me the second half was sort of incomprehensible and I never understood the message or point. I understand what happens, I just never understood why. The second half feels like a fever dream. The first half, while I agree doesn't have a conflict, is more of a spectacle. Everything from the set design, to all the outer space shots, to the focus on people living in Space is done with a lot more care than movies usually do. Space is usually "that stuff we did on Earth, but in low gravity!" - but I found the rotating / perspective shifted rooms really neat.