I Bet You Didn't See... 2001: A Space Odyssey
- ibetyoudidnt
- 1 day ago
- 3 min read
It's the mid-1960's. Stanley Kubrick and Arthur C. Clarke have teamed up to co-write a Science Fiction film that Clarke was already working on.
It was going to be big and spectacular.
This is Kubrick we are talking about.
1968's 2001: A Space Odyssey is probably the greatest film ever made. It is weird, it is spectacular and it is huge. I'm not going to go through the story points, as it is well known, but the film is far more about the visuals and practical effects than the story.
Technically, and especially for the time, it is astounding what was done. Numerous cinematic norms were broken and the sets and techniques used are amazing. To name just a few...
The first three minutes (approximately) is just music. The screen is black. I had to check the TV was still working! We then get the MGM logo (not the real lion one). and no opening credits, which was virtually unheard of at the time.
There is no dialogue for around 25 minutes and 40 seconds. The dialogue is vague and fleeting, and this is same throughout the film.
There is no score to speak of. Just the classical music in between big scenes. 2001 was the first film to depict space travel as it really is. Silence in the exterior scenes and very little noise on the interior as well. You feel the loneliness and the underlying current of concern much more like this. And yet, the music used in the film is iconic and referenced in the same ways over and over - Also sprach Zarathustra during the "Dawn of Man" sequence often comes up in big or spoof scenes of rising and The Blue Danube is frequently used in floating or zero-gravity scenes, or even in scenes of relaxation, all because of 2001.
The final sequence of the film, the infamous light show and weird hotel sequence, can put a lot of people off. My research suggests it is a representation of the intentions of the book, but as the book came out after the film, you can understand why it is so divisive and weird. But it carries on the main reason why 2001: A Space Odyssey was voted as the top film in history in Sight & Sound's 2022 pole.
The technical aspects are incredible. Using Velcro boots to stay on the floor in zero gravity was ingenious, but so was sticking a pen to some glass in front of the camera to simulate it floating. You see multiple scenes of people walking up walls, upside down and at different angles in the same scenes, showing the ingenuity of Kubrick and his team to make it clear how things are different in space. You can click this link to an article by Science Friday, talking about how some of the costumes and sets were made. Then you have to technology - computers as tablets, space stations, video calls... all things predicted before they appeared, but not unreasonable to be considered at the time.
I would also like to know what others think of H.A.L. and his voice, the eeriness it creates and tension it builds, with the lack of emotion.
"Stop, Dave. Stop. Stop, Dave."
"I can't let you do that, Dave."
My one criticism of it is that I think it the ending will make more sense when people read the book. In my research for this blog, I have read a synopsis of the book (not something that bothers me before reading anything) and I understand the ending, although I think it is deliberately left ambiguous.
2001: A Space Odyssey is a film for academics to study and enjoy, for film buffs to love and discuss and for your average movie-goer to say "I saw it at..." whether they like or get it or not. It will never cease to amaze people, either by baffling their minds in how it was made or baffling them as to what they have just watched.
To me, it is probably the greatest technical film of all time, but also one of the weirdest films I have ever watched.
And it has an Intermission! That made me so happy!
Directed by: Stanley Kubrick
Based on: 2001: A Space Odyssey by Arthur C. Clarke
Starring: Keir Dullea, Gary Lockwood, Douglas Rain, William Sylvester
Released: 2 April 1968
Rating: 10/10
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