If you liked 2001 A Space Odyssey, then read 2010 Odyssey Two...a very worthy successor. One of the more intriguing science fiction novels I think one could imagine...yet conceivable!

I am writing a review for the movie under the book category because although I bought the DVD of the movie from Amazon years ago the DVD seems to be no longer available. I read the book too which is also good but I strongly recommend that you find the DVD too from somewhere and watch it.

If you watched 2001 A Space Odyssey and liked it you are very likely to like 2010 the year we make contact as well, which like 2001 is also based on the novel by Atrhur C. Clarke. If you haven't watched 2001 watch it before you watch 2010. Because the latter continues the Odyssey where 2001 left off. In fact the two movies can be seen as a single movie if watched in the proper sequence i.e. watch 2001 first and then watch 2010 a few days later. 2010 came out about 15 years after the movie 2001 was made in 1968. You can see my separate review for 2001 elsewhere.

2010 is not the type of science fiction for people interested in Alien and Star Wars type of space - horror movies. There are no monsters attacking human beings nor any warring spaceships blowing each other up by shooting lasers and missiles in 2010. It is not a horror nor Star Wars type of science fiction. On the other hand people who are interested in astronomy, extraterrestrial intelligence, science facts such as the General Theory of Relativity, the meaning of human existence in the universe are likely to enjoy the movie. Science fiction has to be beliavable to be of good quality. In this regard 2010 is of top quality. The viewer is not only entertained through high quality cinematography and acting but is also led to deep thinking about cosmology and philosophical matters metioned above. There is no need to be knowledgeable about astronomy nor physics to enjoy the movie. Curiosity about the subject matter is enough. The story is based on a sound knowledge of science facts about astronomy. The deceased science fiction author Arthur C. Clarke has written excellent novels by the same names and both movies are based on the novels 2001 and 2010 are equally good.

I also read the books by Arthur C. Clarke and I recommend that you read them as well. There are some differences in the stories in the books and in the movies but these are minor. I don't want to explain what happens in the movie 2010 because that would take away some of the excitement for the viewer if he / she knew what is going to happen in advance. There is a lot of mystery and suspense in the movie but as I said before no crap like in the space movies where aliens attack humans or space ships that shoot and blow each other to pieces.

Even though it was difficult to understand, "2001: A Space Odyssey" was a superb movie. It introduced many unusual twists on space flight, extra-terrestrial intelligence and the relationship between humans and intelligent machines. This book is a worthy extension of that story, answering many of the questions raised in "2001", yet generating many more in the process.
In this sequel, it is determined that the orbit of Discovery is decaying rapidly and the planned U. S. mission to the spacecraft will not arrive at Jupiter until Discovery has already made contact with the planet. Therefore, a joint U. S./Russian crew is placed aboard the Russian craft Leonov and they depart for Jupiter. The crew is well trained and they believe they are prepared for all eventualities.
A Chinese mission blasts off and by using all of their fuel, manage to arrive at Jupiter ahead of the Leonov. They then land on Europa in an attempt to refuel by tapping into the liquids under the ice. However, they are destroyed by an indigenous creature that is just following its' mindless phototropism.
The crew establishes contact with Discovery and is able to restart HAL. His bout of digital insanity is explained and the crew explores the vicinity of Jupiter, including the monolith. They learn very little about it until David Bowman reappears and tells them they must leave. Using Discovery as a booster, they are able to blast out of orbit and enter a course back to Earth. Once they have left, changes take place and they understand some of what the makers of the monoliths planned.
No one writes about enigmatic aliens and their artifacts better than Arthur Clarke. His style of prose is almost completely scientifically accurate and he somehow always manages to weave a tale that is complete, yet leaves undetermined loose ends. This is a quality and intellectually challenging sequel to the original story of 2001.

Another great read. Couldn't put it down. There are some continuity inconsistencies (in the 2001 the Discovery was abandoned at Saturn, but in 2010 it is found orbiting among the moons of Jupiter) but Clarke maintained that each of the four odyssey books takes place in a parallel, yet slightly different, universe.

Years ago I read 2001 and recently decided to re-read it and follow up with the rest of the series. 2010 does not follow exactly from 2001. I am not going to give anything away, but if you are a purist and want utter consistency you will be perturbed. The book is an easy read, the character development is pretty good, but what keeps your interest is the plot. Even as we approach 2010 you can't help but think what if...