2010, Peter Hyams 1984 sequel to Stanley Kubrick's classic 2001 A Space Odessey, is either a dumbed down, cynical cash in of the original movie, or a clever sequel and intelligent science fiction thriller in it's own right. Being a fan of Hyams work (Capricorn One, Outland, Timecop) I fall into the latter camp.
It's a far more accessable tale than the more art house and profound Kubrick take on author Arthur C Clarke's material, which has as much to do with it's eccectic cast as Hyams assured direction. Roy Scheider might be playing a top scientist but he's been one of the most charismatic and likable leading men in movies (why the hell wasn't he a bigger star?) He's got great support from a cast of character actors as diverse as John Lithgow, Bob Balaban and Helen Mirren as the Russian Cosmonaut Captain.
Although it's a little dated in terms of look (did computer screens really look that huge?) and story (it's has a familar Cold War plotline mimicing the Cuban Missile Crisis) it's an involving narrative that weaves the enigmatic purpose of the Monolith, the mystery concerning the killer natutre of the HAL 9000 computer and the conflicted nature of human society.
As with a Peter Hyams movies it looks a million dollars thanks to some glourious photography by Hyams himself, some realistic yet futuristic set designs and some career best stuff from Richard Edlund's effects house. Yes it might not leave as much of the subtext to the imagination as Kubrick did, but it's still a facintating exploration of the solar system, the nature of God and mankind's place in the universe.
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