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I've never seen … 2001: A Space Odyssey

Continuing our series in which writers fess up to – and rectify – gaps in their film education, Cath Clarke on whether Kubrick’s space epic stands up

I’ve never seen 2001: A Space Odyssey. There, I’ve said it. It wasn’t easy. When your job is writing about films, not having watched Stanley Kubrick’s space epic is like being a taxi driver who hasn’t passed the driving test. It’s a basic qualification. Because 2001 is officially a masterpiece: number six on Sight & Sound’s list of greatest movies; the best sci-fi ever made according to Time Out and the Guardian. It’s one of those films that movie lovers all seem to have watched at an impressionable age. Christopher Nolan has spoken about going with his dad when he was seven to see a rerelease in Leicester Square.

I’m not sure how I didn’t see it growing up. My dad is a film buff who adores Kubrick and never bothered too much about age certificates and ratings. We first watched The Shining together when I was 10 or 11. In my early teens, I was obsessed with Full Metal Jacket. Then came A Clockwork Orange and Dr Strangelove. I never got on with Lolita but I’m in heaven with Barry Lyndon. I’m a big Kubrick fan, I’ve even read the biography his chauffeur wrote.

Related: 2001: A Space Odyssey: the best sci-fi and fantasy film of all time

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