2010: The Year We Make Contact Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.5
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		2.0
Overall		4.0

2010: The Year We Make Contact Blu-ray Movie Review

My God, it's full of celebrities!

Reviewed by Ben Williams April 20, 2009

Stanley Kubrick's landmark film, 2001: A Space Odyssey, remains one of the most heralded films of all time. It's groundbreaking special effects, abstract storytelling, lush score and vivid 70mm photography set new standards in filmmaking upon its release in 1968. Kubrick's collaborator on the film, legendary science fiction author Arthur C. Clarke, went on to write a number of sequels to the film and his accompanying novel. 2010, the story's first sequel, found its way into theaters in 1984, as the creative brainchild of multi-talented filmmaker Peter Hyams. Hyams served as the film's editor, director, cinematographer and screenwriter, working with a creative autonomy reminiscent of Kubrick's. While the film has a very different tone from 2001, 2010 is a fitting and worthwhile sequel that manages to answer some of the perplexing questions proposed in Kubrick's masterpiece.

I think we're going to need a bigger ship...

Taking place nine years after the events of 2001: A Space Odyssey, 2010: The Year We Make Contact finds the first film's Dr. Heywood Floyd (Roy Scheider) living in a state of regret over the fate of the USS Discovery, its crew and the ship's doomed mission to Jupiter. The world has since become entangled in political tensions as the United States and Soviet Union teeter on the edge of nuclear conflict. The mysterious black monolith seen in 2001 remains a mystery to scientists on Earth, as does the nature of the Discovery's HAL 9000 supercomputer malfunction; a malfunction with murderous consequences. Dr. Floyd is given the opportunity to participate in a joint US / Soviet mission to investigate the mystery, but political tensions threaten its success. When all hope of success seems lost, a spectral Dave Bowman (Keir Dullea) begins to appear to members of the crew. Bowman carries a message for humanity, but will humanity destroy itself before it's received?

2010 is nothing like 2001, so it's almost unfair to make comparisons between the two films. 2010 is a much more straightforward movie, as it answers questions, tells a liner story and utilizes a traditional narrative structure. Those seeking the poetic filmmaking of 2001 will be disappointed. That's a shame, though, as 2010 is a fantastic piece of science fiction that is unafraid to present big ideas and answer important questions.

One of the finest aspects of 2010 lies in its realism and attention to detail. Space travel is depicted as being relatively routine, though still not without risks. My favorite scene in the film revolves around the Soviet vessel that carries Dr. Floyd and the multi-national crew to Jupiter, as they work to complete a complex sling-shot manoeuvre required gain acceleration for their trip. The film pauses for this sequence, highlighting the terror that each character experiences, before focusing on Dr. Floyd's own reaction to the frightening events. It's a surprisingly warm-hearted and thrilling scene, that instills a great amount of humanity into an occasionally cold and scientific film.

2010 will always be compared to its predecessor; that's the unfortunate reality that has kept 2010 from finding a larger audience amongst fans of the science fiction genre. The film is surprisingly revealing, features excellent performances and relatively solid special effects. Anyone who was enticed by the mystery and beauty of 2001, will surely find 2010 to be thoroughly enjoyable. 2010 is highly recommended.

2010: The Year We Make Contact Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in 1080p in its original theatrical aspect ratio of 2.40:1, 2010 arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Warner Brothers and their typical VC-1 encoding practices. The film is a difficult one to gauge in high definition, as many scenes are inconsistent and display signs of sloppiness in how the film's master was assembled. Take for example the text that appears over the first 5 minutes of the film, explaining the events of 2001. The sequence features floating text that shakes and moves around on screen, though not by design. While one can hardly expect for Warner to do an optical restoration on 2010 and then sell it at such a low price, most viewers would probably pay a few dollars more for a Blu-ray version that eliminated problems of this kind. It's not a fatal flaw in the transfer, but it does come across as careless.

2010 does, in general, look quite good, for the remainder of the film. It's a dark movie with plenty of space scenes and shadowy interiors; the encode performs well in these challenging scenes. I didn't detect an abundance of digital anomalies, something I had been worried about given the title's slapdash pricing. Color reproduction is accurate, though slightly muted and contrast is consistent and pleasing throughout the presentation. All told, 2010 is a nicely presented Blu-ray that will surely satisfy those who have been craving the film in high definition.

2010: The Year We Make Contact Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Warner has, fortunately, opted for the full lossless 5.1 Dolby TrueHD experience with 2010; it's a decision that allows the film's unique soundtrack to have considerable amount of additional breathing room, while highlighting its once groundbreaking sound design. I found this action-packed and eerily effective track to be far more involving than any previous version of the film I'd ever experienced.

Despite containing a large number of what could be considered more action packed sequences, 2010 is a very dialogue heavy film. Lossless encoding has benefitted this aspect of the presentation by allowing these dialogue passages to proceed without the usual problems of under-annunciation and breakup, that are all too often present in lossy encodes. Of course, the film also features a number of stellar sequences featuring a good amount of ambient and direction surround information. While laser battles aren't on the menu, plenty of aural tension is built through the use of discreet effects that highlight the perils of space travel. It all makes for an effective and enjoyable experience that surpasses previous versions of the film. Recommended!

2010: The Year We Make Contact Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Here's what's included:

- "2010: The Odyssey Continues"
- Theatrical Trailer

There's not much to really get too excited about with this thin selection of extras included on the Blu-ray edition of 2010. There's a fairly in-depth documentary tacked onto the set, in addition to a the film's theatrical trailer. This documentary appears, at first, to be presented in high definition, though, upon further investigation is actually standard definition that has been stretched to fit the screen. Regardless, it's an informative and well put together featurette that's worth investigating. The film's theatrical trailer is also presented in stretched standard definition. That's it! Warner seems committed to releasing bare-bones catalog titles on Blu-ray as of late, so fans of supplements shouldn't expect much from the studio on these kinds of titles.

2010: The Year We Make Contact Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

2010: The Year We Make Contact is a thought-provoking and well-made science fiction film. The picture never tries to outclass or outdo its predecessor and creates a subtle and intricate world of its own. Warner has given the film a pleasing and film-like video encode that perfectly accompanies its once groundbreaking audio. While the included supplements leave a lot to be desired, the overall package presents this excellent film at a level of quality that it has never enjoyed on home video. 2010 is highly recommended!