Budapest Classic Film Marathon 2024: 2001: A Space Odyssey

Director: Stanley Kubrick

Screenplay by Arthur C. Clarke, Stanley Kubrick
Director of photography: Geoffrey Unsworth
Cast: Keir Dullea, Gary Lockwood, William Sylvester

Future of the Past

Introduction by: Gábor Képes, writer, museologist, executive director of the Neumann Society

When the conversation turns to sci-fi, the following image invariably leaps into the mind of every film buff: the image of a shinbone spinning in the air and the stunning opening of Richard Strauss’ Also sprach Zarathustra. Few genres are as defined by a single film as the sci-fi genre is by Stanley Kubrick’s enigmatic masterpiece. It is hard to pinpoint what 2001: A Space Odyssey is about. While Arthur C. Clarke’s novel, written after the film, provides clarification and insight, the film remains intriguing precisely because it takes on new meanings with each viewing. It poses the fundamental questions of sci-fi in such a way that, despite being one of the genre’s first works, still manages to synthesize them. Even today, more than 50 years after its release, it remains relevant today, particularly because of the issues it raises about AI. In the film’s space scenes, the music of one of Hungary’s greatest composers, György Ligeti, can be heard.

Supporting film: Animated Ads 1. (12)
in Hungarian with English subtitules, 8 min

Schmoll Symphony (dir: Félix Kassowitz, Gyula Macskássy, György Szénásy, 1939, 2’)
Zeus Incognito (dir: Félix Kassowitz, Gyula Macskássy, György Szénásy, 1939, 1’)
From Evening to Morning (dir: Gyula Macskássy, György Szénásy, 1942, 1’)
Lucky Jim (dir: Gyula Macskássy, György Szénásy, 1942, 2’)
Light (dir: Gyula Macskássy, György Szénásy, 1942, 1’)
Martians (dir: Gyula Macskássy, 1955, 3’)

More information about the Budapest Classic Film Marathon's program in Uránia >>