In the comments section, please post as many (at least one) questions you have regarding 2001. (These questions could be about the story, symbolism, special effects, mis en scene, cinematography, characterization, what the hell was that, etc.)
Interested in some extra credit? Take at look at this old entry I made on the pacing of 2001, and make a comment.
How did they make/create the prehistoric men?
ReplyDeleteHow exactly did they get that woman to walk right up the wall, and what the hell was up with the three and a half minutes of nothing but electronic not-really-music?
ReplyDeleteAlso was there some symbolism involved with the monolith that's just whistling over my head, or is it really just a giand monolith in the middle of nowhere, that appears to have been planted there by aliens or something, for no apparent reason, having no meaning whatsoever?
What was with the monolith? Like, was there some symbolism in it that just went right over my head, or was the monolith just some huge, black, monolith, in the middle of nowhere, serving no apparent purpose, with no meaning behind it whatsoever?
ReplyDeleteHow did they make some of the special effects and backgrounds without the use of green screens?
ReplyDeleteSo i get that the early men were actors, but how did they create the protruding snouts/mouths?
ReplyDeleteHow did they create the small people in the control rooms with the pilots and control personnel clearly visible?
How are the images of space so clear? as they didn't film in space or have camera powerful enough to take those kinds of pictures?
Who brought the monolith to the area where the prehistoric men were living? Was it from humans in the future? Or was it from aliens?
ReplyDeleteAlso, how were they able to have the flight attendant walk on the ceiling?
How did the monolith reach the area where the caveman were? What is the monolith?How were there caveman in earth?
ReplyDeleteWhat connection is there between the cavemen and the people in the spaceship?
ReplyDeleteWhat is the significance of the monolith?
How were the filmmakers able to combine actors in cavemen costumes with real animals like the tiger?
Why was there a five minute introduction of a black screen and only music?
ReplyDeleteHow come the servicewoman needs 'anti-gravity' but the captain can walk freely about the cabins?
What was the purpose behind the 5 minute introduction of a blank screen and odd music?
ReplyDeleteWhy did the spaceship attendant need special 'anti-gravity stick shoes' but the captain and just about everyone else was able to walk about freely?
What was the purpose of the whole prehistoric man part? I mean it jumped from monkeys hitting things with bones to people in space with zerp gravity toilets so I'm a bit confused.
ReplyDeleteRachel Reid - All the adults are dancers, actors, or mimes in costumes. There are two babies that are actual baby chimps.
ReplyDeleteMargaret Tojo - "How exactly did they get that woman to walk right up the wall?"
ReplyDeleteThe built the entire set so it would slowly spin. The camera was fixed to the wall, so while it appeared that she was walking up the wall, in fact she was walking straight and the wall turned around her.
"What the hell was up with the three and a half minutes of nothing but electronic not-really-music?"
Just getting you in the mood. They played it when the movie first opened, then dropped it when it went into general release. It was not included on the VHS, either. It wasn't until the DVD was released that it was put back in.
The monolith - the answer to that question is still to come.
Paul - "How did they make some of the special effects and backgrounds without the use of green screens?"
ReplyDeleteVia a technique called 'front projection.' Big, giant screens were set up behind the actors, and the backgrounds were projected onto them. Unlike a green screen at the time, the final effect is bright and vibrant.
Andrew - "So i get that the early men were actors, but how did they create the protruding snouts/mouths?"
ReplyDeleteProsthetics. I'm guessing with mechanical devices to make them move.
"How did they create the small people in the control rooms with the pilots and control personnel clearly visible?"
front projection on the model
"How are the images of space so clear? as they didn't film in space or have camera powerful enough to take those kinds of pictures?"
Multiple takes with the same roll of film. First the model lit, then the model unlit with the background stars lit, then the front projection of the characters in the windows. Three takes with one roll of film.
Julie and Ruby and Tanya - See above.
Tanya - I'm thinking it was just a trained cheetah.
Jin - "Why was there a five minute introduction of a black screen and only music?"
See above.
"How come the servicewoman needs 'anti-gravity' but the captain can walk freely about the cabins?" I'm not sure which shot you're talking about. I do know that on the space station, the entire station spins, creating centripetal force, pusing the people outward, towards the 'floor.'
Taylor - That connect is yet to come. I will say this, for your journal I asked you guys to consider what the 'monolith' has done for prehistoric man. Consider this - before the monolith, they had never seen straight lines, right angles, or smooth surfaces. These are not natural shapes. It got the ape-men...thinking! It made them...wonder! It created a spark called...imagination! The next shot, an ape-man is...inventing! He is thinking and, for the first time ever, creating a tool. The monolith is the reason for human evolution. In a very indirect way, it's how we got into space. And look at the image match - the bone flying through space and then...direct cut...a similarly shaped space craft. They are both tools created by man, and the space craft could not exist without the bone/club.
ReplyDeleteBy the way, how did you like the roughly 10,000 year flash forward?
Where ARE those Ape-like things? Are they in the place that the guy is traveling or what? I'm so confused.
ReplyDeleteTara - the Ape things are cave men from tens of thousands of years ago. When the caveman threw the bone in the air, then we flash forwarded to the "future" - the late part of the 1900s (remember, this film was made in 1968). The men are headed towards Jupiter. We'll find out why soon. All of this is connected, even though we don't know how, yet:
ReplyDelete1. the cave men finding the monolith
2. the discovery of a similar (same?) monolith on the moon
3. the radio-signal sound sent out by the monolith
4. the journey to Jupiter where, we'll discover soon, the radio signal was targeted
How are special effects made without any technology such as a green screen and new "hi-tech" devices (photoshop, director, etc.
ReplyDeleteAllen - Read above. I've answered a few special effects questions. If you have any more specific questions, let me know.
ReplyDeleteWhat does the monolith represent. Is it like magical or is it some sort of God cause i keeps apearing with weird music, and doing weird stuff.
ReplyDeleteAdam - That's one I can't answer for you.
ReplyDelete