Review: ‘The Film Vault’ 2001: A Space Odyssey 4K UHD Limited Edition
4K UHD & Blu-ray: 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)
Wave 2 of Warner Brothers “Film Vault” series of releases is here, consisting of Jaws, Apollo 13, The Shawshank Redemption and 2001: A Space Odyssey.
It was an absolute pleasure to review Goodfellas from Wave 1 and also make an unboxing video of it too, so I was delighted when 2001 arrived here at 60MW Towers.
2001 is a movie so iconic that Barbie, one of the biggest box office hits of 2023 so far, payed homage to it right from its opening scene…how many young viewers sat in the cinema noticed that one!?
A slow paced and convoluted narrative spanning across 2 and a half hours and with an ambiguous ending to cap it all off, 2001 has split viewers since it was first released over 50 years ago.
However, despite not caring for it too much when I first watched it many years ago on VHS, I’ve appreciated it more on every subsequent viewing, culminating in my most enjoyable watch yet on this new 4K UHD release.
Co-writer/director Stanley Kubrick has crafted a cinematic masterpiece that was way ahead of its time, with himself and co-writer Arthur C. Clarke pre-empting the likes of flat screen monitors, space stations, video calls and artificial intelligence, all encased within a visually stunning experience that belies its age.
There is no point in trying to write a synopsis of everything involved as it is far better to experience this journey with no prior knowledge if you haven’t seen it before…which will immediately have you wanting to watch it again to try and put all the pieces together to try and work out what it all means.
Warner Brothers have once again knocked it out of the park as far as the packaging and special features are concerned (both digital and physical), so please pour yourself a drink and watch my unboxing video below to see what is included, with all of these “Film Vault” releases being to such a high standard.
The 4K image renders the deep blacks of space in a way that I’d never seen in this movie before, heightening the tension and solitude of those shots , while also making the bright white of the space stations interior even more clinical.
Another superb release which whets the appetite to see what will be in wave 4.
Featured In Pack
- NEW KEY ART by Matt Ferguson & Florey from Vice Press
- ACETATE O-RING – Removes for type-free display of your key art
- Exclusive individually-numbered CRYSTAL DISPLAY PLAQUE
- Rigid clamshell box with MAGNETIC CLOSURE
- 7 replica LOBBY CARDS – with added film quotes
- Double-sided reproductions of original THEATRICAL POSTERS
- Poster of the NEW KEY ART
- Feature film on 4K-UHD and Special Features on BLU-RAY
On Disc Special Features
- Commentary by Keir Dullea and Gary Lockwood
- Channel Four Documentary 2001: The Making of a Myth
- 4 Insightful Featurettes: Standing on the Shoulders of Kubrick: The Legacy of 2001, Vision of a Future Passed: The Prophecy of 2001, 2001: A Space Odyssey – A Look Behind the Future and What Is Out There?
- 2001: FX and Early Conceptual Artwork
- Look: Stanley Kubrick!
- Audio-Only Bonus: 1966 Kubrick Interview Conducted by Jeremy Bernstein
- Theatrical Trailer
Review by Dave from a Film Vault set kindly supplied by Warner Brothers via Fetch Publicity.
