Summary
Stanley Kubrick’s2001: A Space Odysseyis one of the most influential sci-fi movies ever made, so it’s no surprise that many other classics of the genre have taken inspiration from it.Stanley Kubrick’s masterpiecerepresented a massive leap forward in terms of the technical side of sci-fi filmmaking, but it has also influenced the kinds of themes and stories that sci-fi movies attempt to tackle.
So many images from2001: A Space Odysseyare now iconic - the towering monoliths, HAL’s intense red light, the kaleidoscopic space vortex - because they provide more questions than answers. Many sci-fi movies from the 1950s and 1960s traded in cheap thrills, but2001opened the door to abstract stories about humanity’s place in the universe and the deep isolation of the future we find ourselves living in. Over 50 years later,2001continues to shape the genre.
From the very first shot of George Lucas' originalStar Warsmovie, right after the iconic text crawl, the influence of2001: A Space Odysseycan be seen as a hulking spaceship silently drifts into view. John Williams' classical-inspired score is another nod to Kubrick’s influence.Star Warsimmediately conveys a sense of grand sci-fi spectacle to fit the story’s epic scale, just like2001: A Space Odyssey.
The clean white interiors of the Galactic Empire spaceships and the franchise’s depictions of balletic movements in the black abyss of space are both extensions of Kubrick’s ideas.
As theStar Warsfranchise has evolved over the years, it has developed its own distinctive visual language, but it retains a lot of its original inspiration. The clean white interiors of the Galactic Empire spaceships and the franchise’s depictions of balletic movements in the black abyss of space are both extensions of Kubrick’s ideas.Star Warswould probably have looked completely different without this influence.
Arrivalfollows a linguist who gets brought in by the US military to decode the language of a species of mysterious aliens who make their way to Earth without warning. As she gradually begins to communicate with them, she starts to see the universe differently. This reflects the way that humanity makes a startling discovery on the moon and ventures out in search of answers in 2001: A Space Odyssey.
The most obvious allusion to Kubrick’s work is in the design ofArrival’s spaceships. The featureless ships rise vertically toward the sky.
Arrival’s non-linear timelineis perfectly suited to the movie’s mind-bending narrative.Just like2001: A Space Odyssey,the movie takes a more abstract turn in its third act. The most obvious allusion to Kubrick’s work, however, is in the design ofArrival’s spaceships. The featureless ships rise vertically toward the sky. This evokes the dark obelisks of2001: A Space Odyssey,especially since their presence ushers in a new dawn for humanity.
Christopher Nolan has praised2001: A Space Odysseybefore, and it’s clear to see how it has impacted his own work as a director. The revolving corridor scene inInceptionand the abstract interpretations of quantum concepts inOppenheimerboth seem inspired by Kubrick’s vision, butInterstellarcontains many such tributes. The design of the ships and the space travel scenes wouldn’t look the same without the influence of2001.
Interstellar’s references to2001: A Space Odysseyare more than skin deep.
Interstellar’s references to2001: A Space Odysseyare more than skin deep. The idea of humanity reaching up toward the stars in search of the next phase of progress has become an increasingly common theme after2001.The eye-popping tesseract scene seems to be a variation of Dave traveling through the vortex, with the same bright lights, exciting music, and a new understanding of spacetime waiting for the character waiting on the other side.
Contactstars Jodie Foster as a scientist who discovers a radio signal sent from deep space. The signal provides the schematics for a strange machine, and eventually the scientist gets to travel inside the machine to visit the extraterrestrials who designed it. The crew ofContactwatched2001: A Space Odysseyfor inspiration during the movie’s production, and its influence is everywhere.
The crew ofContactwatched2001: A Space Odysseyfor inspiration during the movie’s production, and its influence is everywhere.
Contactmakes particularly strong allusions to2001: A Space Odysseyin its third act, as the scientist goes on a mind-bending journey to meet with a form of higher intelligence. This reflects Dave’s journey, and his eventual arrival in the bedroom prison where he spends the rest of his life.Contactborrows some of2001: A Space Odyssey’s visual tricks, but it also has a similarly thought-provoking exploration of man’s place in the universe.
Andrei Tartakovsky’s Soviet sci-fi masterpiece was released 4 years after2001: A Space Odyssey,and it seeks to address some of the flaws that Tartakovsky perceived in Kubrick’s work. According to Tartakovksy, Western sci-fi at the time was too obsessed with technology and scientific theory, but it didn’t address anything about the human condition. If2001: A Space Odysseyis designed to make the audience think,Solarisis meant to make them feel.
If2001: A Space Odysseyis designed to make the audience think,Solarisis meant to make them feel.
Despite Tartakovsky’s disdain for parts of2001: A Space Odyssey,it’s hard to ignore some of the similarities shared betweenSolarisand Kubrick’s movie.Both plots feature isolated, melancholic space explorers, and both go about their business at a slow, deliberate pace.Solariscan’t rival the visual splendor of2001,but whenever it comes close, it usually seems inspired by Kubrick’s work.
WALL-EwasPixar’s first sci-fi movie, and the studio looked to the visual language of2001: A Space Odysseyas a blueprint for how to make a fittingly spectacular feast for the senses. Director Andrew Stanton creates a clear distinction between the scenes which show WALL-E on Earth and those which take place in outer space. Like in2001,Earth is relatively fast-paced and a little messy.
Director Andrew Stanton creates a clear distinction between the scenes which show WALL-E on Earth and those which take place in outer space.
WALL-Epresents a much friendlier and more human-friendly view of artificial intelligence than2001does.WALL-Ecan be seen as the complete opposite to HAL,in the sense that his emotions sometimes get in the way of his objectives. The movie contrasts his character with an unmistakable parody of HAL. The ship’s autopilot system, AUTO, even has the same bright red pulsing eye.
2001: A Space Odysseyhad an immense impact when it was first released because it looked so different from other sci-fi movies of the 1950s and 1960s. A combination of creative camera tricks and some clever practical effects sold the image of intergalactic travel and zero-gravity movement. It’s all but impossible to create the same kind of powerful impact in the era of green screen and CGI, butGravitywas another game-changer when it came out in 2013.
It’s all but impossible to create the same kind of powerful impact in the era of green screen and CGI, butGravitywas another game-changer when it came out in 2013.
Gravityuses many of the same techniques as2001,especially in the way Alfonso Cuarón frames his protagonist against the callous void of space. However, the movie’s use of a revolutionary mechanical rig to make it look as if Sandra Bullock is suspended in outer space is wholly original. This continues the spirit of2001, and it is just as perplexing to see on the big screen.
The design of the Nostromo is clearly inspired by the clean style of the craft in2001: A Space Odyssey, although there are some dark corners of the expansive ship which seem completely detached. Far from the pristine crew quarters where most of the action takes place, there are cavernous rooms with dangling chains and dripping water. This industrial appearance is at odds with2001, but it does reflect the movie’s idea that space travel could become mundane in the near-future.
2001: A Space Odyssey’s biggest influence onAlienrelates to Scott’s exploration of artificial intelligence.
2001: A Space Odyssey’s biggest influence onAlienrelates to Scott’s exploration of artificial intelligence. Ash is revealed to be a humanoid android, who, like HAL, is willing to discard human life if it stands in the way of his mission.TheAlienfranchisehas similar characters in other movies, andRidley Scott returns to the idea of artificial life in his other sci-fi classic,Blade Runner.
Rather than following humanity’s exploration of space,Close Encounters of the Third Kindis about extraterrestrial life coming to Earth. As he does inE.T. the Extra-Terrestrial,Steven Spielberg presents a hopeful portrait of first contact. The director has spoken at length about his admiration for2001: A Space Odyssey,and he has proven over the years thathe is one of very few directors who can match Kubrick’s scale and spectacle.
The third act ofClose Encounters of the Third Kindfeatures a surreal show of colors and lights as the aliens try to communicate with humans
The third act ofClose Encounters of the Third Kindfeatures a surreal show of colors and lights as the aliens try to communicate with humans using the medium of song. This is more grounded than Dave’s journey through the vortex in2001: A Space Odyssey,but both scenes use an overwhelming assault on the senses to symbolize humanity’s graduation to a higher plane of understanding.
2001: A Space Odysseystarts on Earth, before moving to the dark side of the moon and then Jupiter.Ad Astrafollows a similar trajectory, but its final destination is near Neptune instead. This isn’t the only similarity between the plots of the two movies, sinceAd Astraalso features an astronaut making the last leg of his journey aloneafter his crew are killed before they reach their destination.
Ad Astrais a mash-up ofHeart of Darknessand2001: A Space Odyssey.
Ad Astrais a sci-fi retelling of Joseph Conrad’s novella,Heart of Darkness, but it would be more accurate to describe it as a mash-up ofHeart of Darknessand2001: A Space Odyssey.Visually,Ad Astraborrows heavily from Kubrick’s movie. AlthoughAd Astrahas plenty of its own ideas to add to the sci-fi, especially in its wild action scenes, it’s the moments of quiet solitude that resemble2001: A Space Odyssey.
2001: A Space Odyssey
Cast
2001: A Space Odyssey is one of Stanley Kubrick’s most well-known films. A science-fiction epic, the film tells the story of the journey of Discovery One, a spacecraft operated by a group of scientists, astronauts, and a sentient computer, on a mission to Jupiter to investigate a mysterious monolith. Considered one of the greatest films ever made, Kubrick combines sparse dialogue with the heavy use of scoring and ambiguous imagery to create something that eschews conventional filmmaking.
