Beyond the Infinite
Stanley Kubrick’s “2001: A Space Odyssey
A. W. Awad
STANLEY KUBRICK IS THE GOAT.
He is one of my favourite filmmakers with a unique skill to leave his audience buzzing as they leave the cinema. His ability to masterfully create pieces of work that are distinct, unique and continue to remain relevant, still resonating with audiences today. Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey, released in 1968, is a masterpiece that remains one of the most influential and visually impressive science fiction films ever produced. It was made a year before man landed on the moon, and it indulges the audience in this world of space travel and in doing so navigates a profound exploration of evolution, artificial intelligence and the transcendent human desire for knowledge.
Kubrick splits the film into three sections.
Section I: The Dawn of Man
The film opens with hominids in a prehistoric African desert landscape. They encounter a mysterious dark monolith. The hominids reach out curiously, all touching the surface of the monolith. Later the leader is sitting near a pile of Ape bones, it picks up one of the ape bones and has a flashback to the monolith. The leader now uses this bone as a weapon; thus, man has tools.
Kubrick creates this atmosphere of curiosity and inquisitiveness within the hominids, communicating this fundamental aspect within humans and how it is the catalyst that drives us not only as a society but as a species.
In a following scene the leader throws his bone in the air, and it cuts to a space missile orbiting Earth.
[Bone (weapon) → Missile (weapon)]
Kubrick intentionally contrasts the initial minimalistic cinematography of the primordial setting to the extravagant colourful shots of the space to emphasise the monumental leap in human advancement establishing the transcendental human quest for knowledge and advancement, an ingenious setup to perpetuate his message throughout the rest of the film.
Section II: Jupiter Mission
Another monolith is found under the surface of the moon. Again the viewer is struck by this mysterious monolith which four million years later humans have again encountered. We feel this burning desire to know what this thing is and its purpose, thus the very premise of the film has been projected onto the viewer. The human desire for knowledge is so ubiquitous it transcends through the movie screen.
The audience is introduced to the spaceship Discovery One on its voyage to Jupiter, with astronauts Dr. Dave Bowman and Dr. Frank Poole. The spaceship is travelling to the last monolith, and we are introduced to the protagonist of this section, a totally psychologically balanced and definitely not murderous AI computer HAL 9000. As the mission begins to progress HAL begins to exhibit unusual behaviour. He eventually turns against the astronauts and shuts off Poole’s oxygen while he is outside the spacecraft killing him.
As Bowman attempts to deactivate HAL, HAL’s voice switches from authoritative and imposing to desperate and pleading, “Will you stop Dave?” HAL’s voice fragments and he shows signs of self-awareness as he reveals his fear of death “I can feel it, my mind is going.” In his final moments, HAL regresses to his earliest programming and sings “Daisy Bell” in a distorted slowing voice, evoking this strong sense of tragic innocence. This relapse to a childlike state, coupled with his plea for life, puts on display the complexity of his character. Kubrick’s formation of this AI as a character was truly the first of its kind, exploring an ethical concept that remains enduringly relevant today.
Section III: Jupiter and Beyond the Infinite
The last section is perhaps the most cryptic, but the most creative, and etches the film into history as a catalyst in the revolution of the visual language of sci-fi films, expanding cultural imagination of intergalactic space. Dave finds the third monolith floating around Jupiter and takes a pod to investigate and he is pulled into an absurd psychedelic dimension. He appears in a sterile, neoclassical bedroom that Kubrick describes as a “Human zoo.” He has been taken in by higher entities who have been placing these monoliths.
Bowman watches himself age until he is on his deathbed, reaching towards the monolith the same way the apes did. He transforms into a “Star child.” Kubrick explains his ending: “In a timeless state, his life passes from middle age to senescence to death. He is reborn, an enhanced being, a star child, an angel, a superman, if you like, and returns to earth prepared for the next leap forward of man’s evolutionary destiny.“
2001: A Space Odyssey is one of the great wonders of cinema. It takes steps beyond that of faux- philosophical titles and doesn’t feel the need to explain what is happening, leaving audiences questioning evolution, consciousness and our place in the universe.