“A Space Odyssey” Is a Cult Film Directed by Stanley Kubrick

Running head: A SPACE ODYSSEY 1

A SPACE ODYSSEY 6

A Space Odyssey
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Contextual Information
In the course of selecting a suitable movie that will fit the various categories of division I have settled on one that I am sure would definitely capture the attention of anyone who is lucky enough for the screens to go up in their presence. The movie is one that has taken a lot of human creativity because apart from the story line the movie stands out because it displays the use of technology that is way beyond our abilities (Stanley Kubrick, 2008). It is very important that people note and respect the heights the makers of this movie went to see to it that it is a success. I have chosen the movie A Space Odyssey which was produced by the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer-Inc. The most notable characters in the movie include Keir Dullea staged as David Bowman, Gary Lockwood as Frank Poole, William Sylvester as Dr. Heywood Floyd, Daniel Ritcher as Moonwatcher and Leonardo Rossiter as Smyslov. The main figure behind the success of the film outside the cast was Stanley Kubrick who directed the movie with the aid of Derek Cracknell. Stanley Kubrick also wrote the movie scripts with the aid of Arthur C. Clarke. The movie was also produced under the individual supervision of Stanley Kubrick as the producer and Victor Lyndon as the associate producer (Stanley Kubrick, 2008).
The roles of the cast were designed and matched according to how Kubrick desired and according to the areas the cast perfected. The cast was supposed to keenly follow the script and no get out of the cortex contained in the script as this would lead to the complete failure of engagement of the flow in the film. The film was released in 1968 and it runs for 160 minutes which is two hours and forty minutes (Stanley Kubrick, 2008). The film falls under the class of science fiction movies otherwise referred to as Sci-Fi. The reason for this classification is that the film used a lot of imagination especially in the field of science. It came up with ideas of space stations that could accommodate human beings for a long time an idea that was practically not possible at the time. The film displayed high levels of technology most of which had not and is yet to be put to practical use (Stanley Kubrick, 2008).
Plot
The film is set in a storyline where a colony of peaceful vegetarian apes arises as a species whose impact is felt based on their influence and they find a glowing black monolith standing amongst them. After they cautiously approach the monolith the apes become carnivores (Stanley Kubrick, 2008). They become considerably intelligent at least intelligent enough to use bones as weapons and as tools. After four million years since these events a monolith is discovered below the lunar surface and Dr. Heywood Floyd an American scientist visits the moon to investigate about it. It is noted that the monolith emits a sound that it aims towards Jupiter and the American government launches a huge space ship on a 9 month half billion mile journey. There are five people on board three of whom are in stasis like chambers and a computer known as Hal (Stanley Kubrick, 2008).
Hal predicts the failure of one of Discovery’s main antennas and Bowman moves out to go and replace it. However, the prediction was wrong and while he is outside, Hal causes the death of Poole and he terminates the life support systems of the other three astronauts (Kubrick, & Clarke, 1968). Bowman returns to the emergency entry and puts Hal in manual systems and then proceeds with his journey and then he comes across another monolith one of Jupiter’s moons. He suddenly gets into a state where there are constant lights flashing all over before he comes to a standstill (Kubrick, & Clarke, 1968). He wakes up in a bed beside a monolith and moves on towards the monolith. Upon touching it, it is not clear what happens because he resurfaces as a fetus in earth’s outer space.
Aesthetic Choices
The film was produced under quality technology;
· Miseen scene- the quality of lighting, sound, and the setting of the frame composure. The cast was well groomed as per the events and the background setting of the film. They were dressed in space suits while on board the Discovery thus were adequately dressed (Leonard, 2011).
· Editing- This was a tough section because it involved a lot of critical and creative thinking but the film still met the standards of the time.
· Technology-The film came up with a lot of fictional technology like the computer Hal but it still served its purpose (Leonard, 2011). The spaceship was made to seem very superior and space efficient which is something that has not yet been achieved by mankind to date.
Social and Personal Impact
The film had a very heavy impact on the society at that time because it indicated the existence of extraterrestrial life forms. To some people, this was exciting news and they anticipated to learn more about these life forms. However, it also led to the engendering of fear in other people and contributed to pressure being built upon the government to disclose any information concerning extraterrestrial (Kubrick, & Clarke, 1968). On the other hand, the society inspired this movie because of the thirst for knowledge it had got after the landing of the first man on the moon. They got excited and wanted to see more of space and that was easier and cheaper in movies like A space odyssey (Kubrick, & Clarke, 1968).
Reflection
The movie can be used as a source of knowledge and can inspire the development of ideas in space exploration but should also be a warning on interference with anything from or in outer space. This creates a state where using reviews we can now understand the field of thought of the film creators and understand what they intended to bring out (Leonard, 2011). I have acquired skills that will help me understand movies in a deeper school of thought and that will enable me to be attentive to the information provided in the movie.

References
Stanley Kubrick., (2008). Stanley Kubrick : Essays on His Films and Legacy. Jefferson, N.C.: McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers.
Leonard, G. (2011). Technically Human: Kubrick’s Monolith and Heidegger’s Propriative Event. Film Criticism, 36(1), 44-67.
Kubrick, S., & Clarke, A. C. (1968). 2001: A space odyssey : screenplay.