Contemplation on the fate of mankind-2001 A Space Odyssey

Marley 2021-10-13 13:05:30

"2001 Space Odyssey" (Chinese translation for "2001 Space Odyssey"), as a classic in film history, has been discussed and analyzed countless times. Here, I do not intend to give a detailed explanation of the original intentions of the screenwriter Arthur Clarke and director Stanley Kubrick-this kind of explanation is completely futile in the face of such a film that is almost completely open to the audience.

At the beginning of the film, the uncivilized apes feed on insects and berries, as well as food for beasts. But after the mysterious black stone appeared, everything changed: at the beginning of the film, the ape man who looked up at the starry sky came into contact with the black stone, so he gained the ability to use tools to hunt other animals. When his group learned to use tools, they regained the stolen water source by killing the same kind. The ape-man in ecstasy threw the bone into the sky, a tool of the same kind of killing, and this bone was replaced by a spaceship of the same shape through a classic montage lens.

The second appearance of Blackstone was on the moon. At this time, human beings have the ability to enter space. The blood-drinking apes are already eating space food gracefully, but the hypocritical greetings between the Americans and the Russians in the space capsule, Flo Dr. Eid’s domineering and bossy presided over the meeting still make people think of the ape who smashed the bone stick on the head of the same kind for the puddle-Dr. Freud’s actions and the first confrontation when he discovered Blackstone The ape-man of Blackstone is no different to illustrate this point.

During the journey to Jupiter, the program entered before departure caused the computer HAL9000 to crash, and finally took action to get rid of the crew. The result of this action was that the captain destroyed the logical unit of HAL, that is, killed the human computer. After that, Black Stone passed silently in space and appeared in front of the captain.

The appearance of Black Stone brings a special effect of magnificent and incomprehensible things: dreamlike light rushes from the dark universe, bringing the captain into an incredible time and space. Since then, the captain has been aging, and he was in a rococo-style bedroom. The dying captain reached out to Blackstone and became a space baby with the help of Blackstone: without the help of any tools, he freely shuttled through space. , Looking down on the earth from the universe, the movie ends.

There is almost no plot and dialogue in the whole film. In this regard, the film is completely open to the audience-but the film still makes inductive thinking.

The most eye-catching symbol is the black stone. The four appearances of the black stone are completely critical to the film. Each time brings a huge turn: under the guidance of the black stone, the apes learn to use tools, which is to complete the transition from animal to human. A leap between; the appearance of Blackstone on the moon leads to a journey of Jupiter; Blackstone guides the captain through space; Blackstone helps the captain evolve into a space baby. What is Blackstone? This seems to be the first question asked by the film, but it has not been answered. In fact, this question does not need to be answered. "2001 Space Odyssey" is essentially about human history and thinking about the future. Blackstone, as the trigger of the transition, can be interpreted as God, super technology, genetic mutations, and even humans' own desire for evolution. But in any case, in the face of the fate of mankind, this key can only be suspended. The essence of the film lies in the fate of mankind.

The film begins with apes, experiences humans, and finally reaches a space baby. This process contains the fundamental symbol of the film: Nietzsche's superman doctrine. The soundtrack used Richard Strauss’ “Also Spracht Zarathustra” (Richard Strauss “Also Spracht Zarathustra”)-this music was composed for Nietzsche’s “Zaratuss Says” Yes, from this perspective, it can be understood that the result of human evolution is a space baby: "Superman" is a "wise child".

In the era of the apes, tools not only brought peaceful labor, but also brought killing and competition. From the bones in the hands of the apes to the spaceships, even the HAL is just a humanized tool, and the space baby just doesn’t need it. Life that can travel through the universe with tools, so that Nietzsche's superman doctrine has completely gone to space. After that, where is the destiny of mankind going? Is it complete transcendence or eternal reincarnation? The film did not give an exact answer-all of this was reopened to the audience to create.

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Extended Reading
  • Grayson 2022-03-23 09:01:02

    The 50th anniversary 70mm restored version is said to be the closest to the restored version that premiered in 1968. Kubrick's daughter is here, and the surviving main producer is also here. Sweet tea and other celebrities came to be the audience. Debussy Hall at the Cannes Film Festival. #有生之年#

  • Javon 2022-03-22 09:01:02

    Reading the original author of the novel must understand that the true achievements of this film are not in the many advantages, but in the absence of shortcomings.

2001: A Space Odyssey quotes

  • Elena: Oh, we're going home. We have just spent three months calibrating the new antennae at Tchalinko... And what about you?

    Dr. Floyd: I'm just on my way up to Clavius.

  • Interviewer: [recorded broadcast on the BBC news] The crew of Discovery One consists of five men and one of the latest generation of the HAL-9000 computers. Three of the five men were put aboard asleep, or to be more precise a state of hibernation. They were Dr. Charles Hunter, Dr. Jack Kimball and Dr. Victor Kaminsky. We spoke with mission commander Dr. David Bowman and his deputy, Dr. Frank Poole. Well, good afternoon gentlemen, how is everything going?