2001 : Space Odyssey is a science fiction film produced and directed by Steven Kubrik. This movie is considered one of the best and influential movies ever made. In 2010, it was named the greatest film of all time by The Moving Arts Film Journal. There were three sections in the movie, the dawn of man kind, the Jupiter mission and then finally Jupiter and beyond the infinite. The sections of the movie were clearly cut out and spaced with a transition of black screen, music and the title of the next section. This helped us to understand and clears up a lot of the confusing surrounding what each scene is about. The movie implies many advancements in technology throughout the film. The most obvious example of that is when the black monolith appeared when the monkeys awoken. Seemingly influenced by the monolith, they discovered how to use a bone as a weapon.
Everything is done for a purpose
Every scene, every act is done for a purpose, either to be referenced later or to prove a point. The article “How to Enjoy 2001- Space Odyssey” said it perfectly. Even though the audience might think Frank’s breathing in the pod scene is irritating and repetitive, they would later learn that all of the noise was used to contrast with the silence created by the impact of the pod hitting Frank and in the end killing him. The film also had a unique cinematographic style. It mainly focus on one specific target and the background fits into it. This made some scenes aesthetically pleasing to the audience as well as let the audience focus on the important part of a shot.
The movie lets you imagine and work out what is happening on the screen then just simply telling you
One of the most obvious scene that proves this point incredibly well is when Frank and Dave were talking in the Pod. They were discussing if they should shut HAL down due to its thinking. They thought they could not be heard as they tested it by yelling HAL’s name and it not responding. As they started talking, the camera zooms in on HAL’s eyes and then Frank and Dave’s mouth implying that HAL is capable of lip reading. The film also shows that HAL knew what they are talking about by trying to eliminate the crew members. Throughout the film, it does a lot of showing but never a lot talking. From the very first scene with the monkeys implying that the black monolith led them to technological advances to the very end with Dave going through a wormhole then turning into a star child showing our place in the universe. Kubbrik opened our imaginations by not directly telling you what is going on.
The films visual effects were great considering the time the movie came out
Seeing that the movie came out in 1968 might have shocked a lot of you like it shocked me. After seeing the movie then the release date, I was truly impressed with the visual effects of the movie especially the scenes nearing the end of the movie with Dave travelling through the wormhole and seeing all kinds or colour and landscapes. Even if they did not have the technology to do somethings, they still found other ways of displaying things such as the humorous scene with the monkeys screaming at each other. They might not have the technology to create CGI monkeys so they bypasses this by putting humans in monkey suits. It is truly amazing to see all the detail in the spaceships and the insane imagery of the star child and the wormhole being created at such an early time.
