2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY

I have been a fan of sci-fi books for as long as I can remember. I enjoyed dreaming about our vast galaxy, with its infinite, borderless blackness, and I believe there must be life on other planets. How egotistical it would be to think that our precious Earth was the only habitable piece of real estate capable of sustaining living organisms. I enjoyed hearing the phrase on TV or at the movies that “We are not alone.” I often imagined what it would feel like to meet an extraterrestrial. Would I be calm or scream in fright and run away? Who’s to say what anyone would do when faced with such an incredible situation? Secretly, though, I hoped I would be cool, open, and say the right things. 

In 1968, I was a sophomore in high school. I was 16, driving my first car, going to parties, jabbering on the phone for hours, and hanging with my friends. I thought I was wise and intelligent beyond my young years. I thought I knew it all (as most teens do) and that I could understand the meaning behind any book or movie presented to me. I was pretty cocky and full of myself. I was the first in my gang of friends who had wheels. I often had control over what we did on weekends. I was the one who suggested we all see the latest sci-fi movie. I knew I would be the one to explain it all after the lights came back on. After all, I was the oldest and very well-read for my age. How silly and naive was I?

I chose 2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY. It had an intriguing title since that was 39 years into the future, a lifetime away from the present. It sounded so futuristic, since it was happening a year after the turn of the century. It had to be amazing and uplifting. Wow, was I wrong. This is not to say it wasn’t amazing; it just wasn’t what any of us expected or could logically or emotionally wrap our small, inexperienced brains around. 

It was a confusing film. No one uttered a single word on screen until 25 minutes had passed. The music was strange and annoying, and it made us feel tense and on edge. It was long, moving very turtle-like, contained no real action, and had an intermission break without any music…just silence. It did have a brief verbal battle between a powerful computer, HAL 9000, and the spaceship’s commander, Dave Bowman, played by Keir Dullea. Their conversations were just strange at times, with HAL begging Dave not to shut him down and admitting he was scared. A computer with feelings? Unheard of in the 60’s. We all felt no empathy for the computer gone rogue. The weirdest of all had to be going from the opening ape skirmishes to the psychedelic, vibrant colors flashing across the screen at lightning speed and ending with the visualization of a newborn in the womb. WTF? 

I am sad to say that none of us got it, and we ended up discussing what we saw for hours. As I have aged and gained knowledge and insight, I have learned that this is exactly what producer, director, and writer Stanley Kubrick wanted to happen. He and co-author Arthur C. Clarke (a famous British science fiction novelist) expected. They wanted to provide no answers. They wanted their audiences to make their own decisions about their immense, epic story (In fact, at the premiere, a third of the audience walked out before intermission, including Rock Hudson). I should feel pretty good since my friends and I made it all the way, but it took years to put the chess pieces in the right order and discover a deeper appreciation for a film that was years ahead of its time and the world’s imagination. 

The Academy was not as Oscar generous with 2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY as the BAFTAs. 2001 was only awarded one Oscar for Best Visual and Special Effects. (It did receive nominations for writing, directing, and art direction.) The BAFTAs awarded 2001 with three statues for Best Art Direction, Cinematography, and Sound Track. The movie’s budget was $12 million and grossed $70 million, but only after it was rereleased during the 70’s. The drug generation discovered it and loved those flashy colors speeding into infinity. It took 18 months to create and put together the magic of the ships, planets, and endless space. 

Richard Strauss wrote the opening music for 2001. It is as recognizable even fifty years later. All anyone needs is the opening two notes, and you know the tympani will make its strong, booming entrance any second. It was ingenious to use the melodic BLUE DANUBE by Johann Strauss to underscore space travel and ship docking. It gave it an air of how easy and normal space exploration had become as opposed to the Jupiter expedition. Those background noises twisted my gut into knots that I thought would never end. 

The spaceship was majestic. The black-and-white decor served it well. It possessed a sense of wealth. Walking with or without gravity was magically created, especially when entering the circular corridor and turning upside down. Brilliant filming, although those slipper shoes have got to go. Food was a key element throughout each chapter. From the dawn of man eating raw meat, to the liquid meals, to the meat packets, and finally to an exquisitely prepared dinner, progress was evident in every frame. 

Kubrick (THE SHINING, FULL METAL JACKET, A CLOCKWORK ORANGE) was a strict taskmaster. He had dreamed of this film and was extremely intent on doing it his way. He had over 200 shots of celluloid that were never used. He destroyed all of the props and models when  2001 was completed. He was extremely possessive of his ideas and work. Crew members have said in later interviews that they would just wait to hear what Kubrick wanted in each scene and then do exactly what he demanded. He was not known for his collaboration. 

2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY is a true sci-fi classic that changed the filming techniques of this genre forever. It is one of the most influential films of all time, meditatively holding a mirror up to the folly and goodness of human nature. Its ambiguity was pure genius. It paved the way for shocking audiences with its controversial themes. The idea that a simple, benign-looking monolith could propel humanity toward a faster, more advanced future was utterly mind-boggling. And we, like puppets on a string, were led from each monolith to the next without a second thought. And where does God and the story of creation begin or end during the making of this movie? 2001 leaves audiences wondering how our species evolved. It gives bold credence to the theories of life on other planets. No wonder I could not grasp all of this at the ripe old age of 16. It truly demands more than one viewing, and amazingly, it is still as thought-provoking today as it was generations ago. 

2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY is available on HBO MAX.