2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)
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A voyage to Jupiter to investigate an alien monolith leads to a confrontation with a sentient supercomputer.
The story
In a prehistoric veld, a tribe of hominins discovers an alien monolith and learns to use tools as weapons. Millions of years later, Dr. Heywood Floyd travels to a lunar outpost to investigate a recently found artifact—a monolith buried four million years earlier. The object emits a high-powered radio signal. Eighteen months later, the spacecraft Discovery One is bound for Jupiter, carrying astronauts and scientists. The ship's operations are controlled by HAL, a sentient supercomputer with a human-like personality. As the crew travels toward Jupiter, tensions arise regarding the behavior of the AI, leading to a critical situation as they approach the mysterious signal's source.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
After a prehistoric tribe discovers an alien monolith and learns to use weapons, millions of years pass until Dr. Heywood Floyd investigates a similar monolith on the Moon. The object emits a signal, prompting a mission to Jupiter aboard the Discovery One. The ship is managed by the sentient computer HAL 9000. When HAL malfunctions and begins to act erratically, astronauts Dave Bowman and Frank Poole attempt to confront it. HAL turns violent, killing the crew in suspended animation and attacking Poole. Bowman manages to reach the core and shut down HAL, during which a recording reveals the true goal: investigating the signal from the monolith. Upon reaching Jupiter, Bowman finds a massive monolith and enters a portal of light. He experiences a rapid evolution of his own form, transitioning through ages of life before being transformed into a fetus in a light orb, floating in space above Earth.
- First release year
- 1968
- Runtime (minutes)
- 139
- Production countries
- United Kingdom; United States
- Original languages
- English
- Directors
- Stanley Kubrick
- Writers
- Stanley Kubrick · screenplay; Arthur C. Clarke · screenplay
- Cast and characters
- Keir Dullea; Gary Lockwood; William Sylvester; Douglas Rain
- Genres
- science fiction
- Themes
- human evolution; technology; artificial intelligence; extraterrestrial life
- Tone and mood
- epic; ambiguous
- Setting
- Prehistoric Earth, a lunar outpost, and a spacecraft traveling to Jupiter.
- Premise and plot tags
- space exploration; alien contact; AI conflict
- Reception
- Widely regarded as one of the greatest and most influential films ever made, it was praised for its technical innovation and is preserved in the National Film Registry.
- Awards and nominations
- Academy Award · visual effects · win
- Production trivia
- The film used a soundtrack of classical music instead of an original score.; It was selected for preservation in the National Film Registry in 1991.; HAL 9000 was selected as the 13th greatest villain on AFI's 100 Years... 100 Heroes and Villains list.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
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