2001: A Space Odyssey

edited December 2008 in Chit chat
hello

have you ever wondered what this film was all about?.check this website i discovered:-

http://www.collativelearning.com/2001%20analysis%20new.html

thank you

colin
Post edited by ladderman on

Comments

  • edited November 2008
    ladderman wrote: »
    hello

    have you ever wondered what this film was all about?.check this website i discovered:-

    http://www.collativelearning.com/2001%20analysis%20new.html

    thank you

    colin

    the film is based on a sci fi book. the book is about a stargate and the wierd stuff at the end of the film is open to interpatation. apparently. :)
  • edited November 2008
    I heard Arthur C. Clark was a pedophile, this has never been confirmed, but often contested?
    Every night is curry night!
  • edited November 2008
    mile wrote: »
    the film is based on a sci fi book. the book is about a stargate and the wierd stuff at the end of the film is open to interpatation. apparently. :)

    That's not true... the story was co-written by Kubrick and Clarke for filming, and the book was written from the script.
  • ZupZup
    edited November 2008
    Did anyone actually read the book? 2010, 2061 or 3001?

    Act I: Evolution as planned by monoliths. The rise of monkeys.
    Act II: The discovery of the moon monolyth, the voyage to Saturn (later to Jupiter), and the [strike]bugs[/strike] features of [strike]Microsoft[/strike] HAL 9000.
    Act III: The allowance of a man in the olympus of the creators.

    Act I and Act III shows some similarities, because both depicts the manipulation of a being to a higher intelligence (but in later books it seems that Bowman is more a tool to study humans).

    Viewing the movie doesn't make sense (what did you smoke, Kubrick?), but the books are more understandable. The movie is a great show, but it doesn't tell me a story... Kubrick FAIL!!!
    I was there, too
    An' you know what they said?
    Well, some of it was true!
  • edited November 2008
    I heard Arthur C. Clark was a pedophile, this has never been confirmed, but often contested?

    So why bring it up?
  • edited November 2008
    Zup wrote: »
    Did anyone actually read the book? 2010, 2061 or 3001?

    Yup, read 'em all several times - ACC is/was one of my favourite authors.
    Zup wrote: »
    Viewing the movie doesn't make sense (what did you smoke, Kubrick?), but the books are more understandable. The movie is a great show, but it doesn't tell me a story... Kubrick FAIL!!!

    ACC was quoted many times as saying that if anyone understood what the hell was going on at the end of the film then Kubrick and himself had failed. As for the movie not making sense - what couldn't you understand up until the time Dave Bowman travels to become the starchild?
  • RNDRND
    edited November 2008
    watching 2010 further helps with the explanation.
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  • EdEd
    edited November 2008
    aowen wrote: »
    Overrated. Planet of the Apes was a better film and ACC has written better novels, e.g. Childhood's End.

    Admittedly, Planet of the Apes is a great film, but I wouldn't say 2001 was particularly overrated. But I've always found it interesting that Planet of The Apes won the best makeup Oscar in 1968, the same year 2001 was released. The reason that's usually cited for that is that a lot of Academy members didn't even realise the man-apes at the start of 2001 were actors, because the costumes, make-up and performances were so convincing.
  • edited November 2008
    Ed wrote: »
    The reason that's usually cited for that is that a lot of Academy members didn't even realise the man-apes at the start of 2001 were actors, because the costumes, make-up and performances were so convincing.

    Well they didn't fool me! ;) 2001 was a great film but I think I like the book better simply because I understood the context a bit better when reading it.

    Oh, and welcome back! :)
  • edited November 2008
    Vanamonde wrote: »
    So why bring it up?

    Curiousity, I guess.

    But really I suppose the only person who would ever know would be Arthur C. Clark, and he's dead, so nobody will ever really know now?

    I do seem to recall his wife threatening legal actions against a newpaper or magazine for the allegations a while back, can't really remember though.
    Every night is curry night!
  • edited November 2008
    I never make misteaks mistrakes misyales errurs — oh, sod it.
  • ZupZup
    edited November 2008
    Vampyre wrote: »
    ACC was quoted many times as saying that if anyone understood what the hell was going on at the end of the film then Kubrick and himself had failed. As for the movie not making sense - what couldn't you understand up until the time Dave Bowman travels to become the starchild?

    In the first part of the film (depiction of apes), it is not so clear that the monolyth is "improving" their brains. The trip to Jupiter is understandable, but the rising of Bowman is visually impressive... and that's all. Nodoby understood the ending.

    At least, it seems Katsumiro Otomo saw the film and understood the ending... the ending of Akira is as understandable as in 2001.
    I was there, too
    An' you know what they said?
    Well, some of it was true!
  • edited November 2008
    Zup wrote: »
    At least, it seems Katsumiro Otomo saw the film and understood the ending... the ending of Akira is as understandable as in 2001.

    Comic or movie?
    Every night is curry night!
  • edited November 2008
    Please please please, let some good boffins at the BEEB make a 2hour TV 'Fall of Moondust.'
  • edited November 2008
    That's not true... the story was co-written by Kubrick and Clarke for filming, and the book was written from the script.

    But it is based on a book: "The Sentinel".
    THE RETRO GAMER IRC CHATROOM. EVERY SUNDAY AT 9PM BST. LOG ON USING THE LINK BELOW:
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  • edited November 2008
    The Sentinel is a short story. Also the only thing nabbed from that short story for the film was the idea of an alien artifact sending out a signal when interfered with by humans.
  • edited November 2008
    Graz wrote: »
    Please please please, let some good boffins at the BEEB make a 2hour TV 'Fall of Moondust.'

    They did do an audio drama based on that book, sometimes crops up on BBC7.
  • ZupZup
    edited November 2008
    Comic or movie?

    Both, but in the movie is more evident.
    I was there, too
    An' you know what they said?
    Well, some of it was true!
  • edited November 2008
    Vanamonde wrote: »
    They did do an audio drama based on that book, sometimes crops up on BBC7.

    Yes, I recorded it when it was aired in the late 70s. Recently copied it to CD as the tape is bound to be wearing thin by now!
  • edited November 2008
    Zup wrote: »
    [strike]Microsoft[/strike] HAL 9000.

    IBM
    Graz wrote: »
    Please please please, let some good boffins at the BEEB make a 2hour TV 'Fall of Moondust.'

    Excellent book. As is Deep Range.
    Vanamonde wrote: »
    They did do an audio drama based on that book, sometimes crops up on BBC7.

    Oooh something to look out for! Can you rip the CD to 192 KBPS mp3 and email it to me?
  • edited November 2008
    dekh wrote: »
    IBM

    Gaaah, every time 2001 is mentioned this dumb urban myth gets dragged up yet again.

    Clarke pointed out numerous times that the HAL->IBM thing was an unfortunate coincidence, and a highly embarassing one, given all the help that IBM gave in the making of this movie; one which they would have corrected, if they'd spotted it in time.
    I never make misteaks mistrakes misyales errurs — oh, sod it.
  • edited November 2008
    Well, having followed the link to Wikipedia from your emaildiscussions post today, at least I now know it's only the second most ludicrous bit of wordplay connected to 2001...
    Wheat often uses anagrams as evidence to support his theories. For example, of the name Heywood R. Floyd, he writes "He suggests Helen - Helen of Troy. Wood suggests wooden horse - the Trojan Horse. And oy suggests Troy." Of the remaining letters, he suggests "Y is Spanish for and. R, F, and L, in turn, are in ReFLect." Finally, noting that D can stand for downfall, Wheat concludes that Floyd's name has a hidden meaning: "Helen and Wooden Horse Reflect Troy's Downfall".

    <timothy-spall>It's a blaitant clew!</timothy-spall>
  • edited November 2008
    You're right, this Wheat guy makes Cornishpasty sound positively sensible by comparison! :) Just goes to show that, with sufficient ingenuity, any words can be twisted to have whatever "meaning" anyone cares to assign.

    And anyway, to my mind it's far more significant that "The Towering Inferno" and "Millennium Dome" are anagrams of "Not worth fire engine" and "Need million, Mum" respectively. :D
    I never make misteaks mistrakes misyales errurs — oh, sod it.
  • edited November 2008
    dekh wrote: »
    IBM


    Oooh something to look out for! Can you rip the CD to 192 KBPS mp3 and email it to me?

    There's so many things I've promised Wossers and still haven't delivered! I'll put it on my list of things to do and let you know when I get round to it. Y'never know, y'may get lucky as I fancy giving it another listen myself very soon. :)
  • edited November 2008
    robert@fm wrote: »
    Gaaah, every time 2001 is mentioned this dumb urban myth gets dragged up yet again.

    Clarke pointed out numerous times that the HAL->IBM thing was an unfortunate coincidence, and a highly embarassing one, given all the help that IBM gave in the making of this movie; one which they would have corrected, if they'd spotted it in time.

    I very much doubt it was coincidence.

    http://tafkac.org/movies/HAL_wordplay_on_IBM.html

    Much more likely.
    Graz wrote: »
    There's so many things I've promised Wossers and still haven't delivered! I'll put it on my list of things to do and let you know when I get round to it. Y'never know, y'may get lucky as I fancy giving it another listen myself very soon. :)


    Heh, no worries at all. I didn't even know it existed :)
  • edited November 2008
    dekh wrote: »
    I very much doubt it was coincidence.

    http://tafkac.org/movies/HAL_wordplay_on_IBM.html

    Much more likely.

    Nah, some of those arguments are a bit crap...
    A pervasive story is that HAL was so-named to indicate that he was one step ahead of IBM. Alphabetically "H" "A" "L" precede "I" "B" "M" by one letter.

    Why yes, as long as you're prepared to stretch the word "ahead" to mean "behind" then that makes perfect sense... (Ok, you can fudge things by saying "precede". But when was the last time you saw someone decrementing a version number to make something sound "one step ahead"?)
    The chances of him randomly fastening on to the one name that mimics the worlds largest computer company are one in seventeen thousand.
    The *one* name? So if the computer had been called JCN, or IBN, or MBI, or IMB nobody would have made the connection? Or if it had been a similar variant on NCR or RCA, people wouldn't be saying "aha, in return for IBM's support on the film Kubrick and Clarke agreed to choose a name that poked fun at one of their competitors"? And never mind that all of those are crapper names for a computer than HAL, which kind of blows a hole in the assertion that he had seventeen thousand equally likely three-letter combinations to choose from.

    It's a coincidence dammit, and not even a particularly interesting one.
  • edited November 2008
    Clarke himself said that the HAL name being linked with IBM was a coincidence, and not a remarkable one at that.

    http://www.2001halslegacy.com/interviews/clarke.html

    Stork: But there was no computer in "The Sentinel", so you had to add that new character, HAL.

    Clarke: Of course the key person in the expedition was the computer HAL, who as everyone said is the only human character in the movie. HAL developed slowly. At one time we were going to have a female voice. Athena, I think was a suggested name. I don't know again when we changed to HAL. I've been trying for years to stamp out the legend that HAL was derived from IBM by the transmission of one letter. But, in fact, as I've said, in the book, HAL stands for Heuristic Algorithmic, H-A-L. And that means that it can work on a program's already set up, or it can look around for better solutions and you get the best of both worlds. So, that's how the name HAL originated."

    Stork: It was pointed out that HAL was just one letter off from IBM. What was the reaction when that was discovered?

    Clarke: I don't know who discovered that coincidence, which is not a really remarkable one. And I don't remember that Stanley ever commented on it. For some time we were a little embarrassed about it but I think now IBM is rather proud of the association.


    Personally, I choose to believe the author himself, as opposed to a very tenuous theory.
  • edited November 2008
    I like to think of the link as a nod to IBM.

    If it isn't, so what?

    It will be forever that in my mind.

    I thought that from the moment I heard the name, first time I saw the film.

    I also thought. "What a shit, tedious and pointless end." (To the film, the book does it much better.)
  • edited November 2008
    I have to admit to being a fan of Arthur C Clarke's works. A fantastic writer, mathematician and physicist.

    First story ACC story I read was 'A walk in the dark.' Have to admit I wonder if it was the inspiration for the film Pitch Black. Possibly just me. ;-)

    Recently, I read the 'The City and the Stars.' Just plain incredible. IMHO his best novel. :D
  • edited December 2008
    I prefer the short story 'Against the Fall of Night' that was later expanded into The City and the Stars.

    Oh and for me, 'The Fountains of Paradise' was ACC's last good novel.
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