2010: The Year We Make Contact Chad'z rating: ***1/2 (out of 4 = very good) 1984, PG, 116 minutes [1 hour, 56 minutes] [science fiction] starring: Roy Scheider (Dr. Heywood Floyd), John Lithgow (Walter Curnow), Bob Balaban (Dr. Chandra), Helen Mirren (Tanya Kirbuk), written, produced, and directed by Peter Hyams, based on the novel by Arthur C. Clarke.
It's impossible to discuss Peter Hyams' "2010: The Year We Make Contact" without comparing it to its predecessor, Stanley Kubrick's "2001: A Space Odyssey." This film incorporates many of the essential elements of the original, but it is not the brilliant philosophical allegory of its counterpart, nor does it try to be. However, it does succeed in taking a mainstream approach to the "invisible forces" that make these stories what they are.
The story takes place nine years after The Jupiter Mission. Dr. Heywood Floyd (Scheider) is approached by a Russian diplomat who tells him they are going to investigate the U.S.S. Discovery-1 and the mysterious monolith still orbiting Jupiter. An intense cold war exists between the two nations and the film does a fine job of dropping the appropriate hints to add detail. Floyd knows it will be difficult to convince both governments, and especially his own family, of the benefits that could result from teamwork. Needless to say, Floyd, along with Walter Curnow (Lithgow), the engineer of the Discovery, and Dr. Chandra (Balaban), the designer and programmer of HAL 9000, convince the government and hitch a ride with the Russians aboard their ship The Leinov.
Most of the first and second acts are spent defining mood. Much like "2001," it is dark and technical but more modern which makes the story easier to follow. Although Hyams' modernism clashes with Kubrick's nearly cubist design, the film is able to present the older elements in a new light, and thus they synchronize well.
The bulk of the film does not have a specific plot to it but many interesting events take place. For example, when Floyd and the Russian captain, Tanya Kirbuk (Mirren), send a probe to explore what they believe to be life forming on the surface of Europa, it is flung into space like a baseball being hit out of a ballpark. Later, the same thing occurs when a probe (manned by a likable character) is sent to investigate the huge monolith.
Dave Bowman's (Keir Dullea) transformation at the end of "2001" was so enigmatic it seemed to have a supernatural presence. The way in which this film returns to his character and his symbolism is done in such an strange manner it's so moving it's scary (I'm getting goosebumps just writing this). Bowman appears to both his ex-wife and Dr. Floyd and tells them "something wonderful" is going to happen.
A war has broken out on Earth between America and Russia, so the crew is ordered to separate. Meanwhile, the monolith has multiplied itself millions of times over on Jupiter and the crews must defy their orders and work together while at the same put their trust in HAL, who it seems could just as easily malfunction as he did nine years prior. The last few scenes are basically routine suspense but at least it's plausible. The ending itself is strange, but certainly original.
Although "2010: The Year We Make Contact" doesn't have the genius "2001," it provides for a pretty good message about the pettiness of man and makes for a good, original sci-fi story.
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