Dec 6: 2001: A Space Odyssey

This film is about the Earth and about Space and about our past, present and future in a sense. It has some of the most memorable scenes and dialogue of any film, and was voted the best film of all time in the 2022 Sight and Sound Directors' Poll. It also scored highly in the main Sight and Sound poll.

A few years ago, I went to see a special anniversary screening in 70mm which followed Kubrick's very precise instructions for how the film should be screened with regards to lighting, intermission etc.

They are included below:

The Running time of 2001: A Space Odyssey is 2 hours 20 minutes, plus 10 minutes of OVERTURE, ENTRACTE and EXIT MUSIC.

Thus:-

FIRST HALF 1 hour 26 minutes PLUS 3 minutes OVERTURE music
SECOND HALF 54 minutes PLUS 2½ minutes ENTRACTE and 4½ minutes EXIT music

OPENING REEL 1AB
Play OVERTURE music (3 minutes) with full House lights on.
Dim House lights towards end of overture - allow for Censor certificate and open full screen on LION TRADE MARK

INTERMISSION is at end of Reel 6AB
Start closing curtain on INTERMISSION title . . . not before

SECOND HALF of picture opens at Reel 7AB

Play ENTRACTE music (2½ minutes)
Dim House lights and start curtain in good time to open full screen for first scene in reel.

CLOSING
THE END title is at the end of Reel 10AB

Start closing curtain on the last but one title "Made at MGM British Studios Ltd., Boreham Wood, England. Bring House lights up on THE END title and play EXIT music of 4½ minutes.

Thank you for your co-operation

METRO-GOLDWYN-MAYER

There are some specific scenes on earth, including the famous scene with the cavemen and bones after the arrival of the black monolith.

Here's the trailer:

A New Yorker piece on the making of the film.

The film builds to the Star Gate sequence, and the final scenes which have prompted lots of discussion over their meaning.