What was the movie 2001: A space Odyssey about?

Question

I just watched 2001 for the 1st time. I'm a little confused.. What was that black rectangle thing and it's really the end that had me scratching my head. Can anyone help?

Answer 1

Yes. The movie was about the evolution of humankind: from ape-like man to normal human to the star child at the end.



The black rectangular thing was The Monolith which taught a certain group of apes how to dominate the other groups thus winning the battle for superiority. It was likewise teaching Dave about his coming metamorphosis. It was showing different human experiences to Dave, namely that wonderful room from the 18th century etc. Dave will soon be able to flit from one world to another and the next step in human evolution will have begun.



The real problem is HAL. Ironically the computer proves to be more human than the astronauts and so even though HAL is a murderer gains our sympathy when Dave slowly starts to dismantle HAL's brain. "I'm afraid, Dave." & singing the song "Daisy, Bell." Why did HAL apparently go crazy and kill the other astronauts? That still puzzles me and I would be happy if anybody could answer that question. I think I have an answer but I would like it if someone else who has seen the film could answer it. In fact I will ask it and give the best answer 10 points.

Answer 2

FYI This explanation of the Black Monoliths comes from a conversation Arthur C. Clarke had on the air with Walter Cronkite the night of the 1969 moon landing.





The film is divided into four segments. Each segment contains a black monolith. The monoliths represent extra terrestrial contact.



(I) Dawn of Man: Man-Apes and the Teaching Machine

Ancestors of man (man-apes) are visited by an extra terrestrial monolith which teaches them to use a bone as a weapon (tool). They defeat the competing man-ape tribes, turn from being hunted into hunters (top of the food chain), and become the dominate species on earth. Jump cut to:



(II) 2001: Moon base - The Alarm Bell

An magnetic anomaly is found on the moon. After excavating the site of the anomaly, a black monolith is found. It has been buried there for thousands of years by some advanced civilization. It is waiting to be discovered by man; waiting for a time when man is advanced enough to find it (the fruit of the teaching machine.) When the first rays of sunlight in thousands of years hit the monolith an ear piercing signal is sent out. Its intent is to notify the advanced civilization that man has found the monolith and is coming.



(III) 2001: - The Star Gate - (Several months later aboard a space ship heading for Jupiter)

The alarm signal has been sent towards Jupiter but this information is so classified that no one, not even the crew knows about it. The exception is the HAL 9000 computer, which knows the real mission. (BTW if you change the initials by one letter of the alphabet H A L becomes I B M) HAL essentially has a nervous breakdown because of the stress related to secrecy. When the astronauts consider shutting down HAL, he decides the mission is too important to allow this to happens and tries to kill the crew. He fails and one astronaut, Dave Bowman, survives. When HAL is turned off, a video tape is played that reveals the real mission. Dave sets out in a small space craft to investigate. He finds another monolith, the Star Gate, floating in space. This sucks him in and he is sent into a wormhole to metaphorically meet his maker.



(IV) Somewhere in the Universe: The Star Child

The end of the movie represents man's next step in evolution, the Star Child. To be reborn one must die so there is a symbolic scene of Dave growing into an old man and dying. He meets his evolutionary "maker", another black monolith, which is symbolic of an advanced civilization. Just as the first contact changed man's evolution, so does the final one. He is reborn as a giant embryo, a Star Child, with the whole world (Earth) in his hands.



BTW Cronkite asked Clarke what the advanced civilization was like. He replied that to try and describe them would be like the man-ape trying to describe modern man. It was beyond his comprehension.



Reading the book will help answer other questions you might have about the movie.

Answer 3

somewhat, Harley is incorrect. those "contraptions" have been very simplistic fashions, particularly incorrect for the depiction of any variety of moon touchdown. The photographic technologies to falsify the moon landings did no longer exist at that element. I remember doing slightly "media" classes for my college degree approximately then, and lower back interior the early '80's. (1980's, this is) We used to shop away from and burn negatives onto the photograph paper, and stick 2 negatives into an enlarger to create photographs that did no longer otherwise exist. this is a much cry from on the instant's photoshop. NASA used an identical technique. I somewhat have a photo from a e book that i offered correct to the Apollo Landings. throughout between the landings, (i do no longer remember which one, yet i will seem it up) there grew to become right into a comet interior the sky.interior the e book, they have a photo of the earth, 0.5 illuminated, with the comet interior the background. The tail of the comet is pointed in the direction of the solar, i don't be attentive to ways that ought to take place, till some photograph technician that did no longer be attentive to lots approximately comets, positioned 2 negatives interior an identical enlarger physique. this is the type of falsification that NASA did. they won't falsify the landings, as a results of fact they did no longer have that skill. they might basically alter the photos that got here lower back from a actual moon touchdown. in case you do not have self assurance me, Harley, watch the Mythbusters, who did an entire practice on the landings, and concluded that we'd desire to have long previous there. I watched it, and it grew to become into actual. to respond to "Stayin' Alive", this action picture probable did no longer. NASA and it somewhat is making plans for the Moon landings prompted the action picture way greater effective than the action picture prompted NASA. The making plans for the Moon landings began lots previously than the making plans for the action picture.

Answer 4

=== two movies were like that === but 2001 was the first=== well the whole show it all about an on board computer, and as the show goes on and on the on board computer goes "NUTS" and takes over.

=== there was another show exactly like that later where these research scientists think that one of them is going nuts and killing them off and it is only at the very end do they discover that it is the "laboratory monkeys' that are locking them out and freezing them to death and etc etc etc. poetic and artistic license-- even with a "fur" suit at - 50 or - 70 PLUS the wind chill ( 60 mile an hour or more winds in a storm ) no monkey is stepping out side with out thermal underwear, snow mobile suit, parkas and as much other heavy clothing as possible , but it would be a dull television movie world without artistic and poetic license.

Answer 5

Umm I don't remember it exactly, but I believe the part at the end was supposed to represent the next step in evolution, which Kubrick suggested is a god-like state.

Answer 6

It's suppose to be a classic or something, but I didn't understand it either....:(