Science fiction productions don’t come better than 2001: A Space Odyssey. Premiering in 1968, the flick is a triumph all around and a perfect introduction to Stanley Kubrick’s oeuvre.
Steven Spielberg accurately described it as the “big bang” of the post-Golden Age era, while George Lucas labeled it “hugely inspirational,” adding that Kubrick was “the filmmaker’s filmmaker.” Martin Scorsese proudly included it among his cherished films of all time and Sydney Pollack called it “groundbreaking.” William Friedkin gave an opinion too, calling it “the grandfather of all such films,” whereas Ridley Scott declared that no one could match what Kubrick had done.
It isn’t by accident or luck that the film sparkles with entrancing touches of serendipity. Kubrick snatched renowned sci-fi author Arthur C. Clarke for screenplay duties. The two crafted the saga together, based on multiple short stories written by the author, with most of the inspiration coming from “The Sentinel.” Kubrick then moved to on-set responsibilities, creating a film that was so complex that there are now more than a dozen different interpretations of it.
Interestingly, after he was done shooting, he demanded that all the props be destroyed. This was a surprising move, in an era where it was common to share props and stock footage, but Kubrick had his reasons.
2001: A Space Odyssey Has an A.I. Villain… and More
There is a debate about which Hollywood production pioneered the “big bad computer” concept, but 2001: A Space Odyssey is generally thought of as the first mainstream movie about evil A.I.Way before computers became an essential part of life, the film held everyone spellbound and made them scared about what would happen when the machines became advanced.
In it, a group of astronauts heads to Jupiter on the Discovery One spacecraft, after a monolith from the moon sends a signal to the massive planet, suggesting extraterrestrial activity. The spacecraft is shown to be powered by HAL 9000, a computer with a human-like personality. When HAL reports the failure of an antenna device, the crew argues there is nothing wrong and concludes that the report is a result of machine error. Surprisingly, HAL tables a retort, insisting on human error. Concerned, the astronauts consider switching the machine off. Big mistake.
Even though the astronauts discuss their plan far away from HAL, the machine does some lip-reading and figures out what they are up to. It thus plots to kill them one by one, believing that they are the ones in the wrong and that their planned actions will compromise the mission.
Watching the movie transcend dated elements to channel the full horror of this predicament is a pleasant experience. Overall, the A.I. storyline is good enough and most directors would have left it there and called it a day. However, Kubrick ends the film with an ambiguous final act that adds real weight to what just transpired.
The sequence in which the protagonist David discovers yet another monolith on Jupiter feels like the perfect close to a movie that explores deep scientific and moral complexities. Shortly after, the astronaut is pulled into a vortex of light and sees various bizarre astronomical phenomena and unusual landscapes filled with colors. He then finds himself in a neoclassical room where he sees visions of himself as an old man. As he lies in bed, he tries to touch the monolith and becomes a baby. The movie then ends with a shot of the child floating above Planet Earth.
Kubrick Didn’t Want His Props Exploited by Other Filmmakers
Ultimately, 2001: A Space Odyssey registers due to Kubrick’s delicately drawn characters and nimbly constructed screenplay, along with a knockout performance from Douglas Rain as the voice of HAL 9000. Still, it’s the visuals and costume designs that stun the most, and it wasn’t easy to create them. Ever the meticulous perfectionist, Kubrick hired architects, model makers, boat builders, painters, furniture designers, and sculptors to make his vision a reality. Harry Lange and Frederick Ordway (heads of a space consultancy), were even tasked with making the spacecraft.
In the end, everything felt so realistic that there was never any other contender for the Oscar for Best Visual Effects. And the appreciation kept growing, with the Apollo 8 crew studying the movie’s spaceflight before their actual mission. It is such realism that led to the moon-landing conspiracy, where it’s argued that the Apollo 11 moon landing never happened, and that it was all filmed by Kubrick.
Today, many of the film’s props remain iconic. There’s the rotating Space Station V, the Newspad (an iPad-like device that preceded Apple’s tablet), and HAL 9000 itself. Given how much work he had put in, Kubrick insisted that everything be destroyed immediately after the production phase was over. He simply didn’t want his work to be exploited by filmmakers looking to copy what he did.
In addition to that, Kubrick didn’t want anyone to profit from selling any of the items. His concern was undoubtedly petty, but it was legitimate too, since the sets of sci-fi movies at the time were often plundered. Take Fred M Wilcox’s 1956’s gem Forbidden Planet. Props from the movie were heavily abused. For example, Robby the Robot appeared in more than five productions, namely Lost in Space, Columbo, The Man from U.N.C.L.E., The Twilight Zone, and The Addams Family.
The Plan Kinda Backfired
Every restricted thing always ends up somewhere, so Stanley Kubrick’s “none of you can have it” approach only worked partially. A 2001 spacesuit backpack found its way onto “Close Up,” an episode of the Gerry Anderson series UFO. Besides that, Watto’s junkyard in Star Wars: The Phantom Menace has an EVA pod from 2001: A Space Odyssey.
By destroying the props, Kubrick triggered interest in what was left.According to Far Out Magazine, an auction house sold the original shuttle model from the film for $344,000 in 2015. However, it ended up in good hands. It was purchased by the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures. The Deutsches Filminstitut & Filmmuseum is also said to own a model of the Star Child, a spacesuit, a monkey costume, storyboards, contact sheets, and test footage of the Stargate sequence.
Besides that, one of HAL’s eyepieces is owned by the author of the book Hal’s Legacy, David G. Stork. Other props like the futuristic watch crafted by US watchmaking company Hamilton, and the red Djinn chair from the Space Station V’s travel lounges also survived.
Kubrick’s and 2001’s Legacies Remain Intact
On a positive note, Stanley Kubrick’s biggest fear never became a reality. None of his props ended up in the hands of less-skilled filmmakers. UFO and The Phantom Menace are all decent productions made by talented people. The former was created by Gerry Anderson, who pioneered “Supermarionation” (the use of marionette puppets containing electric parts) and is considered one of the best British sci-fi shows of all time. The latter, though not one of the must-see Star Wars films, was carefully crafted by the able hands of George Lucas.
2001: A Space Odyssey
is available to stream in the US on Max.