2010: The Year We Make Contact

2010: The Year We Make Contact is a 1984 science fiction film written, produced, shot and directed by Peter Hyams. It is a sequel to Stanley Kubrick's 1968 film 2001: A Space Odyssey and is based on Arthur C. Clarke's 1982 sequel novel, 2010: Odyssey Two. The film stars Roy Scheider (replacing William Sylvester), Helen Mirren, Bob Balaban and John Lithgow, along with Keir Dullea and Douglas Rain of the cast of the previous film.

Plot
Brave explorers are headed for the far reaches of the galaxy in the continuation of the story that began with "2001: A Space Odyssey." Their destination is Jupiter, where the Russian and American astronauts will conduct their investigation. Drs. Heywood Floyd (Roy Scheider), Walter Curnow (John Lithgow) and R. Chandra (Bob Balaban), along with shipmates Tanya (Helen Mirren) and Dave (Keir Dullea), aim to uncover what led to disaster for the deceased astronauts who preceded them.

Why It Rocks

 * 1) It is a great follow-up of the first film.
 * 2) The idea of a joint U.S.-Soviet expedition is sent to Jupiter to learn what happened to the Discovery, and H.A.L. is very original, like the first film.
 * 3) Many of the actors' performance are great, including Roy Scheider, Helen Mirren, Bob Balaban and John Lithgow, Keir Dullea and Douglas Rain.
 * 4) Like the first film, the cinematography is breathtaking and the camera angles are still stunning, even for 1980s standards.
 * 5) Lots of heartwarming moment like how Bowman commands Hal to repeatedly broadcast a final message to Earth: "ALL THESE WORLDS ARE YOURS EXCEPT EUROPA ATTEMPT NO LANDING THERE USE THEM TOGETHER USE THEM IN PEACE".
 * 6) HAL-9000 is still a awesome antagonist who is restarted by his creator, Dr. Chandra, who arrives on the Soviet spaceship Leonov.
 * 7) It has amazing grasp of the source material to the novel.
 * 8) The ending is great where the new star's miraculous appearance inspires the American and Soviet leaders to seek peace. Europa gradually transforms from an icy wasteland to a humid jungle covered with plant life. A Monolith stands in a swamp, waiting for intelligent life forms to evolve.
 * 9) Amazing soundtrack that is performed by David Shire.

The Only Bad Quality

 * 1) Despite being great follow-up of the first film, releasing the film 16 years after the first film is almost too late for a sequel. As a result, the idea for a sequel was basically stale (through it is very original).

Reception
2010: The Year We Make Contact was generally positive. It holds a 66% "Fresh" rating with an average score of 5.78/10 on Rotten Tomatoes, based on 35 reviews. The critical consensus reads, "2010 struggles to escape from the shadow of its monolithic predecessor, but offers brainy adventure in a more straightforward voyage through the cosmos.". Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 53 out of 100, based on 15 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".

Trailer
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