2001 space odyssey - The movie

[El Che]

IMO one of the best movies ever. For one thing its the only movie I can remember where you dont hear explosions in space :P But, possibly, like all works of art it has multiple, conflicting, interpretations. I`m a bit cynical when it comes to most abstract "art" but I`ve no doubt there is some intrinsic value in the movie. The simple fact that it puts people thinking and talking to each other is a nice contrast. However I´m still not happy about those parts of the movie I can`t fully understand , even though I`ve given the matter much thought...

What do you think the movie is about?

What does the monolith represents/is?

Can you explain the last part of the movie (after HAL is shut down and the surving crew member goes through some kind of warp)?

[buteo]

cool subject El Che, Im glad you brought up 2001 because Ive never really talked about it after I saw it...

To give my opinion...

I think the movie is about the unknown magic of the universe, and is also about the extent and potential of human knowledge and intelligence.
I think the director, like you said, made this movie so that people would think of humanity and the Earth in a more universal context, which is a great thing. Big positive changes can come from having that perspective.

The monolith, oh shit, I've had questions about that ever since I first saw it. What effect did it have on people and animals? I can't remember. I remember one scene though, about some men in space suits going to look at the monolith on some planet and they all get this buzzing noise in their ears and they buckle over and I think they die. Am I right or wrong on this? And I vaguely remember the apes at the beginning of the movie hooting and hollering around the monolith when it appeared on Earth.

Maybe it represents something like a God, an order to the universe that is made out of, or creates, the raw elements that all matter is made of.

What the relationship between HAL and the monolith is though.....is far from where I am right now.


My best guess for the last part of the movie when the guy is travelling through the lights is that his body has died but his spirit has reached a location where it can travel boundlessly into space and see different constellations, stars, and perhaps even figure out the mathematics behind the order/non-order, creation and growth of the universe. I believe his warp represents the gaining of knowledge that which we are so far from (or maybe we're really close, or only separated from it by death, who knows). But anyway, the warp might be the ENLIGHTENMENT...when our atoms once again get returned to the primal force that drives this cycle along.

[anti machine]

I've been a huge fan of this movie for a long time. It is truly life-changing. Kubrick, unfortunately, chooses not to divuldge any answers in his movies. In order to understand the movie 2001, you must read the book by Arthur C. Clarke, which I highly recomend.

"The monolith, oh shit, I've had questions about that ever since I first saw it. What effect did it have on people and animals? I can't remember. I remember one scene though, about some men in space suits going to look at the monolith on some planet and they all get this buzzing noise in their ears and they buckle over and I think they die. Am I right or wrong on this? And I vaguely remember the apes at the beginning of the movie hooting and hollering around the monolith when it appeared on Earth.

Maybe it represents something like a God, an order to the universe that is made out of, or creates, the raw elements that all matter is made of."


The monolith is a computerized device with many functions. It triggers evolution (the monkeys), acts as a communication device, and is used to discover information about the environment where it is located. It is a tool of extra-terrestrials, far more advanced than the human race. They are a god-like figure, aiding humanity and, in the end, setting up a contact in a setting (the hotel room at the end) that is recognizable to Dave. They transform Dave into one of them, a star-child, free from worry and an earthly body. Dave is in paradise in the end.

Read the book, all the answers are there. It's almost as if Kubrick is promoting the book in the unanswered questions he left in the movie.

[El Che]

aint machine hands me all the answers on a platter. I`m not sure how I feel about that.

After seeing the movie I knew it had Arthur C. Clarke written all over it. To me, the movie seemed, at least in part, to be about inteligence. What the monolith was I couldn`t say, but I rejected the God theory. This because it seemed too mediocre an explanation. So perhaps the monolith was nature. After all inteligence is one of the great wonders of nature, second only to life its self. Maybe the monolith was a symbolic fiction representing points in time where thresholds had been crossed. The idea seemed interesting but I knew it didn`t explain everything. The last part of the movie I could make nothing of.

My conclusion now is that maybe Kubrick`s greatest achivement was not providing answers. And I dont say that because I dont like the answers.

[anti machine]

dude, sorry if I ruined it for you. That wasn't my intention. I guess I got too excited. Kubrick does the same thing in CLOCKWORK ORANGE, giving you the basic story and the details but the motives and answers are left to the viewers interpretation. Perhaps this is why he is hailed as one of the greatest directors of all time. Rest in peace, Stanley.