Past Film/Video | Classics

2001: A Space Odyssey

(Stanley Kubrick, 1968)

70MM Print

A figure in a yellow space suit stands in a tunnel with white panels.

Stanley Kubrick’s 1968 space epic continues to influence filmmakers, question technology, and visually dazzle audiences—especially when presented in 70mm.

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)

IMAGE CAPTION
2001: A Space Odyssey, courtesy of Warner Bros.

"Open the pod bay door, HAL."
2001: A Space Odyssey

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FILM/VIDEO PROGRAMS MADE POSSIBLE BY 
National Endowment for the Arts 
Ohio Humanities

ADDITIONAL SUPPORT PROVIDED BY 
Rohauer Collection Foundation

WEXNER CENTER PROGRAMS MADE POSSIBLE BY 
Ohio Department of Development

Greater Columbus Arts Council

The Wexner Family 
Institute of Museum and Library Services

Ohio Arts Council, with support from the National Endowment for the Arts 
CampusParc 
Nationwide Foundation 
Ohio State’s Global Arts + Humanities Discovery Theme 
The Columbus Foundation 
Axium Packaging 
Vorys, Sater, Seymour, and Pease

ADDITIONAL SUPPORT PROVIDED BY 
Mike and Paige Crane 
Nancy Kramer 
Ohio State Energy Partners 
Ohio History Fund/Ohio History Connection 
Larry and Donna James 
David Crane and Elizabeth Dang 
Bruce and Joy Soll 
Melissa Gilliam and William Grobman 
Rebecca Perry Damsen and Ben Towle 
Jones Day 
Alex and Renée Shumate

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Past Film/Video

2001: A Space Odyssey