2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)

Director: Stanley Kubrick Cinematographer: Geoffrey Unsworth

Remarkably once labelled as dull, unimaginative and lacking dramatic appeal, Kubrick’s grand science fiction spectacle took four years to prepare and used special effects, particularly in depicting space flight, that were without precedent in the industry. The film, which follows a voyage to Jupiter with the sentient computer HAL after the discovery of a mysterious black monolith, deals with themes of existentialism, human evolution, technology, artificial intelligence, and the existence of extraterrestrial life. With the hypnotic imagery, scientific realism and Kubrick’s elaborate use of music, 2001 is now acclaimed as visionary cinema. Even watching it fifty years after its original release, you are provided with a visual and technical quality that’s still without equal in the history of film. Stuart B

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Buy or Rent (watch online)
2001: The Making of a Myth (Buy or Rent, watch online)
BD/4K Ultra HD [Blu-ray]
Blu-ray
Space Odyssey: Stanley Kubrick, Arthur C. Clarke, and the Making of a Masterpiece (kindle)
Stanley Kubrick Triple Feature (2001: A Space Odyssey / A Clockwork Orange / The Shining) [Blu-ray]

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Lists:

• No. 1 on ThePendragonSociety’s 1000 Greatest Films (2019)
• No. 2 on Sight and Sound Directors Poll Top 100 Films (2012)
• No. 6 on Sight and Sound’s Critics Poll Top 250 films of all-time (2012)
• No. 1 on The Moving Art Film Journal’s 100 Greatest Movies of All Time (2010)
• No. 15 on  AFI’s 100 Years, 100 Movies (2007)
• No. 19 on the Motion Picture Editors Guild’s 75 best-edited films of all time (2012)
• No. 1 on the Online Film Critics Society’s Greatest Sci-Fi Films of All Time (2002)
• No. 1 science fiction film on AFI’s 10 Top 10 (2008)
• No. 40 on AFI’s 100 Years, 100 Thrills (2001)
• No. 47 on AFI’s 100 Years…100 Cheers (2006)
• No. 78 “Open the pod bay doors, HAL.”  AFI’s 100 Years, 100 Quotes (2005)

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One of the most ambiguous parts of the film is the meaning of the monolith and multiple interpretations have been examined in the critical reception of the film. In Arthur C. Clarke’s short story, ‘The Sentinal’ (which inspired the film) the monolith is a tool created by an alien race that has been through many stages of evolution, moving from organic form to bio-mechanical, and finally achieving a state of pure energy. These aliens travel the cosmos assisting lesser species to take evolutionary steps. However, several critics have noted that the differences between the story and film mean that this can only be seen as one interpretation. Others have proposed  a variety of allegorical meanings.

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CAST