Yes, 2001 was a great movie, but it was very unappreciated because it doesn't have all the crap that keeps dumb people's attention. A great movie if you actually want to do some thinking when you watch a film.
As for comedies, how do modern ones even compare to Robinhood: Men in Tights and Tommy boy? The only genre that I think has improved since the 80's is Science Fiction only because of our greater graphics capabilities, but still, I can't remember the last Sci Fi movie that actually stimulated my brain.