Cinema Sunday: 2001: A Space Odyssey

 

Today's Cinema Sunday spotlight falls on 2001: A Space Odyssey, a 1968 science fiction film. I suppose I should start with the story of how I came to see this film for the first time.

My mom wanted to see it.  

The reason why was Elvis Presley.

In the 1970's, Elvis concerts would begin with a performance by the band and orchestra of "Thus Spach Zarathustra", otherwise known as the theme form 2001: A Space Odyssey.

Because of this connection, one night when a TV network showed 2001: A Space Odyssey, my mom wanted to see it.

This is what she saw. 

• A bunch of monkeys jumping around and screeching.
• A black slab of marble shows up.
• A monkey tosses a bone into the air.
• The bone morphs into a space station. 
• A black slab of marble shows up on the moon. 
• A space ship goes into space with two guys and a sinister computer.
• A giant black slab of marble is floating in space near Jupiter.
• One dude gets transported through space to an ornate hotel room where he lives along and ages into an old dude.
• And transforms into a giant glowing space baby approaching Earth. 

My mom's reaction? "What the hell was all that?"

I'm not entirely sure what she expected. Surely she wasn't expect Elvis Presley to show up.   

"Hello, ma'am! I'm Zeke Rokkit, an astronaut slash singer and I'm ready to go to big ol' Jupiter, thank you very much!"  

I know I didn't know what to expect from watching this movie with her. All I knew about space travel came from Star Trek.

This isn't Star Trek. 

OK, we know what it isn't. Do we know what it IS? 

Well, that's a tricky question. 

It is a movie that demands much from the viewer. Writer/director Stanley Kubrick is not ladling out easy answers.  Whole stretches of the movie occur sans any dialogue. This movies communicates primarily through visuals and music cues. 

What exactly is this movie trying to communicate?

Best I can tell is "We don't know nothing about nothing."  

• What are the monoliths?
• What is the alien intelligence behind them?
• Is that alien intelligence benign or malevolent? 

Nobody on screen knows and neither do we which adds to the uncertainty, wonder and fear that Kubrick seeks to engage is us.

The bulk of the movie, the actual "odyssey in space" if you will,  takes place on Discovery One, plunging through space to Jupiter. 

On the ship are two awake astronauts, Dave Bowman and Frank Poole, three more who are in suspended animation and a super smart artificial intelligence computer known as HAL.

HAL is supposed to be infallible. 

This will become a problem.

There is some exposition dialogue to brings us up to speed on how exactly space travel works and what a super duper computer HAL is.  HAL is never ever wrong. Never! 

Then HAL is wrong about something.

And that's when the murders begin.

The people in suspended animation? Dead!

Frank Poole? Dead! 

Dave Bowman? Not quite dead but...

Dave: Open the pod bay doors, HAL.

HAL: I'm sorry, Dave. I'm afraid I can't do that.

Not for lack of trying. 

Dave does get the upper hand and puts HAL out of commission for good.

It's really super sad as HAL slowly dies while singing to Dave. 

Damn, you can't help but feel sorry for that homicidal artificial intelligence.  

And poor Dave,devoid of even the company of a homicidal artificial intelligence, must now face all alone... the Infinite! 

One trippy light show, Dave winds up in a weird hotel room, ages, dies then metamorphosis into a giant space baby.

Which means... what?

Your guess is as good as mine.

Which is what Stanley Kubrick was shooting for. 

There is something out there.

We don't know what or it's intent.

Even if we meet alien life, that life may be so far beyond us, we may still not understand it.  

The ultimate mystery of the universe may remain a mystery, even if Zeke Rokkit, astronaut slash singer  jumps out into space to face that mystery head on.

Let's finish this off with the musical experience that set my mother on her own journey of deep space exploration back in the 1970's.