The “best sci-fi ever”, which is also Tom Hanks’ favourite film, is now streaming on Apple TV and Prime Video. Stanley Kubrick’s film was celebrated for its pioneering visual effects, which earned him an Academy Award, and for exploring themes like artificial intelligence well ahead of its time.
The sci-fi masterpiece begins in prehistoric times as humans encounter a mysterious black monolith. Thousands of years later, astronauts are sent into space to investigate a similar four-million-year-old monolith. However, something goes horribly wrong as the machine controlling the ship heading for Jupiter, HAL 9000, starts to get drunk on power.
Astronaut Dave Bowman must outsmart HAL to continue the mission, leading to a mysterious and surreal journey through space.
The 1968 classic is a favourite of movie legend Tom Hanks, who told Letterboxd that 2001: A Space Odyssey has a permanent spot on his must-watch list.
He revealed: “Without a doubt, it remains 2001: A Space Odyssey. I still watch it a couple of times a year and I also go to it and just hit the main specific points.”
On Rotten Tomatoes, where it received an impressive 89% rating from 250,000 reviewers, viewers sang its praises.
One wrote: “I’m quite in awe right now. I’ll honestly say that this is one of the best films I’ve ever watched in my entire life.
“Oh gosh, the cinematography, the artistry, creativeness, the rawness, the idea of the universe and beyond the infinite, the visual effects, the impact, and the beauty of this film is out of this world!”
A second declared it the best sci-fi out there. They wrote: “A very philosophical (even if very slow) sci-fi film, and is probably the best sci-fi film there is, and definitely my second favorite film.”
However, they acknowledged it wouldn’t be a hit for everyone, with its slower pace and long periods without dialogue.
They added: “This is not a film you see every day, and this is a very, very weird and unconventional film and please note that kids will get bored and confused but this is still one of my all time favorites.”
Reviewer Alex Kane wrote: “2001 is sort of the holy grail of science-fiction films, both in terms of its cinematic experience and visual effects. Critics generally agree that it’s one of the all-time greats.”
The film is available to stream on Apple TV, or rent or buy on Prime Video.