“Open the pod bay doors, HAL”
“I’m sorry Dave, I’m afraid I can’t do that.”
It has been fifty years since Stanley Kubrick’s 2001: Space Odyssey was first shown in 1968 and it has remained one of the most influential movies of all time. This movie would later give rise to some of the most well-known songs, movies, etc. across the globe. Examples of this include the hit song “Space Oddity” by David Bowie, or “Lower Your Eyes to Die with The Sun” by M83.
With one of the most iconic opening scenes Kubrick kicks off the story with movie techniques unlike any of the films in its time. With scenes from an ape throwing a bone up in the air, to a space station in orbit around the earth, Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey is a story that dives deep into some of humanities hardest questions, such as “what is the limit of human technology?”, or “what is the limits of human knowledge?”
The movie was based off the legendary science fiction writer, Arthur C. Clarke’s book, “The Sentinel.” “The Sentinel” is a story about an alien object buried millions of years ago under the moon’s surface, with the alien object than later warning other intelligent life forms in the universe of the existence of humanity. 2001: A Space Odyssey takes the audience on a journey through time and space challenging the current zeitgeists of humanity.
Kubrick never intended for the movie to be understood after the first viewing. The movie was cleverly filmed to make people think about difficult concepts, such as “can humanity create a ‘perfect’ machine? To quote from Kubrick, “A film is - or should be - more like music than like fiction. It should be a progression of moods and feelings. The theme, what's behind the emotion, the meaning, all that comes later?" As time goes on, the iconic supercomputer HAL, becomes more relevant in modern times, making us consider the motivations of an A.I. in the modern world as well as how the future of technology is perceived?
Whether you are looking for a story like Homer’s Odyssey, or a movie about technological evolution you won’t want to miss out on 2001: A Space Odyssey.