5. The Characters Have No Development
This is another criticism that I have heard many times. The usual complaint is that the A.I., HAL 9000, is more human than the actual human characters. Once again, this is something that Kubrick did on purpose that makes the film a success even if people didn't like it. If a film succeeds to convey the direction of it's director or main creative force than it is a success whether an audience finds anything to enjoy in it or not. One of the main themes in 2001 is the duality of organic life vs. artificial life, which is demonstrated through Dave's struggle with shutting down HAL 9000 and HAL 9000 murdering the remaining crew of the Discovery. Kubrick sought to make the human characters cold and unfeeling so the fake human, HAL 9000, would be accentuated in order to make him a more compelling villain and justify the theme of man vs. machine in a more pronounced manner.