2001: A Space Odyssey
Stanley Kubrick’s 1968 space epic continues to influence filmmakers, question technology, and visually dazzle audiences—especially when presented in 70mm.
Film/Video Theater
If there was ever a film that demands to be seen on the big screen it is Stanley Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey. Written by Kubrick and sci-fi titan Arthur C. Clarke, the film is a genuine visual tour de force unlike anything seen in movies before or since—especially when screened in stunning 70mm as in this presentation that’s free for Ohio State students.
Both slyly comic and truly chilling, 2001 is also notable for the way its nominal stars (Keir Dullea, Gary Lockwood) are utterly upstaged by the selfless, ever-obliging, ultimately tragic HAL, perhaps the first cinematic villain to demonstrate the dangers of artificial intelligence. Visual effects artist Douglas Trumbull set a standard in this picture that influenced countless sci-fi films ever since. In 2022, the film finished first in Sight & Sound’s once-per-decade worldwide poll of filmmakers to determine the greatest films ever made. (141 mins., 70mm)
