2001: A Space Odyssey was a great film to start off the semester. Its merging of the birth of technology and the evolution into the age of space travel added was able to illuminate the significance of technology in our lives. The way the shot of the bone being thrown up cuts to the space ship in the air was a very interesting message about how technology is an extension of man. Another interesting topic brought to light in 2001 is the concept of aritificial intelligence. This is done through HAL, the robot aboard the ship. HAL’s intelligence eventually leads him to murder some of the passengers aboard the ship.This choice by HAL at once shows the human characteristics taken on by the robot and the drastic differences.
HAL is shows very logical, formulaic thought in his murdering of the passengers – seeing them as merely malfunctioning units of the crew, but he is also very human in his use of deception and his recounting his life as her is shut down. Overall I enjoyed the message of the movie, although I wonder why every movie that focuses on technology must display it in a negative light.
