The Making of Stanley Kubrick’s '2001: A Space Odyssey'

by Piers Bizony, M/M (Paris)

The ultimate trip: Science fiction's greatest masterpiece explored in depth In March 1964, Stanley Kubrick decided that his next project would be to make the proverbial good science-fiction movie. Fifty years after the film's conception, TASCHEN looks back at the process of making the most important science-fiction film of all time. Though 2001 has arguably spawned more critical texts and scholarly analyses than any other film, this publication marks the first time that a truly exhaustive book has been devoted to it. TASCHEN readers enjoyed a sampling of previously unseen 2001 material in The Stanley Kubrick Archives; this four-volume set revisits the subject, exploring in great depth every aspect of the film and its making: the groundbreaking technical effects, the extraordinary set designs, and the fascinating collaboration between Kubrick and Arthur C. Clarke. Made in exclusive collaboration with the Kubrick estate and Warner Brothers, this copiously illustrated work features hundreds of unique 2001-related documents, concept artworks, and superb behind-the-scenes photographs from the Kubrick Archives most of which have never been published before as well as exclusive material from co-screenwriter Arthur C. Clarke s archives. The Making of Stanley Kubrick s '2001: A Space Odyssey' is a landmark book for film fans and a celebration of technical special-effects innovation before the digital age, conceived by the very designers of TASCHEN's instant collectible Stanley Kubrick's Napoleon: The Greatest Movie Never Made. The Making of Stanley Kubrick's '2001. A Space Odyssey' Four volumes contained in a monolith-shaped case, designed by M/M Paris: Volume 1: Film stills Volume 2: Behind the scenes (including new interviews with lead actors, senior production designers, and key special-effects experts) Volume 3: Facsimile of original screenplay Volume 4: Facsimile of original 1965 production notes Limited to a total of 1,000 copies: Art Edition No 1-500 (Art Edition A and B) and Collector's Edition No. 501-1,500"

Genres: Film, Art, Media Tie In, Nonfiction, Science, Space, Design

562 pages, Hardcover

First published July 1, 2014

About the author

Piers Bizony is a science journalist and space historian who writes for magazines such as Focus and Wired as well as the Independent. His award-winning book on Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey was described as 'full of sparkling enthusiasm' by the New Scientist and 'excellent, in every way worthy of Kubrick's original precision-crafted vision' by the Evening Standard.

Reviews

[Andrew · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is both an amazing and infuriating book at the same time.

The amazing part is how much information it contains especially when you consider it was printed in 2015 and is about a film from the early 60s. The fact someone has collected and preserved this information is amazing.

Then there is the amazing construction of the book - yes it has been made in the shape of the monolith (more on that in a second) but the fact it contains over 500 pages - which many multiple fold pages (not just bi-fold pages) securely and safely. It has a separate binding to the cover where the spine is attached to a flexible inner cover. It is nothing less than what you would expect from the publisher Tashen.

Then there is the infuriating part- and yes its the construction of the book. The pages read in such a manner it like reading the worlds thickest wine list with many of the exquisite artwork lost to the centre fold. The fact of the size and sheer beauty of the book makes me terrified to want to force the spine to view them.

In short this is an incredible book that is more style that substance which is both a shame and an incredible feat consider how MUCH material there is here.

That said the text is actually I find easier to read in this format and what material is here. Reading this book it feels as fresh as it was documenting a film made only yesterday. For a true 2001 fan this book is a must however be patient and understanding when you get frustrated at trying to look at the artwork.

I think if I had paid full price for this I would feel very disappointed (as it was I paid less than a 1/3) so I am not marking it down to harshly. The book though is impressive all the way up to specially commissioned designed embossed in to the front cover (not easily seen in the stock image above). Now on to Harry Lange files.

[Gary · Rating 5 out of 5]

With one exception (see final sentences) I really can't say enough great things about this book, it's *the* ultimate book for 2001 obsessives such as myself. Absolutely *loaded* with previously unpublished pictures and rarely printed interviews. Very highly recommended for Kubrick fans and cinephiles. Now the sole criticism, although the novelty of printing the book in a format with identical ratios as the emblematic monoliths is fun, it doesn't do justice to the gorgeous photographs and necessitates many awkward-to-read gatefolds. One almost wishes for a second edition in conventional (big!) coffee table format to do full justice to the amazing pictures. Nevertheless, highly, highly recommended.

[Kamakana · Rating 5 out of 5]

if you like this review i now have website: www.michaelkamakana.com

110516: excellent source for everything about a favourite film, that i have seen many times, have on dvd, have read the book. only problem might be the format: it is a heavy book, it follows the dimensions of the famous monolith (1X4X9), but i have a club chair so just propped it up on one arm to read. great details, interviews, commentary, history. and lots of images, full-length, fold-out, of both movie and production. if you love this film, you want this book...

more
2001: A Space Odyssey
The Making of Kubrick's 2001
2001: A Space Odyssey
Space Odyssey: Stanley Kubrick, Arthur C. Clarke, and the Making of a Masterpiece
The Lost Worlds of 2001

[Adam Mills · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a highly detailed account of the making of arguably the best science fiction film ever made. It includes many stunning behind the scenes photographs and lengthy discussions about how the special effects were achieved and the story line developed and refined. It is easy to overlook the fact today that the film was made without any use of CGI techniques. It also includes an essay on the probability of the existence of extra terrestrial life and also our potential encounter with it.
The format of the book is unique, possibly reflecting the film's Cinerama format, which does make it a little difficult to hold whilst reading but it is well worth the extra effort of manual dexterity.

[Mark · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautiful, comprehensive book on the making of the film. Packed with previously-unseen illustrations and photographs. The only negatives are the shape and layout of the book, which make it difficult to handle and read properly.

[Sebastian · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm a big fan of Stanley Kubrick, a big fan of 2001: A Space Odyssey and generally a big fan of books out of the Taschen publishing house. I am willing to pay good money for books from this publisher because they are invariably originally and well researched and contain material you cannot find anywhere else.

This book, however, is, pardon my french, an abomination. How they could believe a 16,9 x 37,8 cm format would be appropriate for a book that is made up mostly of pictures is beyond me. For every picture that spans both pages you loose 20 percent because it crosses the binding and more often than not, the item of interest is right in the center of the picture.

This is easily the worst book I have in my collection in terms of layout. Even if the book was only text, this format would not be good. I have quite a few books from the publisher and for every picture-heavy book, they chose a different format which suits it much better (case study houses, kubrick archives e.g.).

The texts are well written, they give a good deal of insight for the die-hard fan of 2001. If you expect a making-of book that explains every technique how this masterpiece was filmed, you may be a little disappointed. Some things, the ape costumes, the centrifuge, the ship models to name but a few are well explained, but the books also delves deep into the motivation of Stanley Kubrick and Arthur C. Clarke.

The content is worth four stars, but the abysmal layout kicks it down to two. Hopefully, if the book ever gets released again, they will fix this.

[Peter Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was halfway through this book when I finally realized that the rectangular shape of the book was supposed to be an homage to the monolith in the movie. Which is appropriate because I've seen this movie multiple times and I feel like I only understood small parts of it many years after my first viewing. There's an old interview in here with Kubrick where he lays the plot out which removed any mystery for me, but really the appeal of the book is the description of the creation and production of this classic. There's less text than there are pictures of props, sets, production design documents and behind-the-scenes photos. That's probably 75% of the book. Then I'd say 10% is about the reaction when it came out. The other 15% is about subsequent efforts at space exploration and the possibility of alien life which I found a bit of a tangent, but understandable considering the film's influence. But this is a very worthy read if you have any interest in the making of this film at all.

[AFan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dopo aver letto recensioni caustiche e verificato tramite video e foto la natura decisamente para-libresca di questo ennesimo volume che Taschen dedica all'opera kubrickiana (e stavolta al film che ne rappresenta il vertice mitopoietico), ho deciso alla fine di procurarmene una copia, trovando parziali conferme alle mie impressioni indirette. Proprio come il film della cui lavorazione vorrebbe essere il resconto scritto e illustrato, il volume non è stato concepito per essere letto o maneggiato come un libro tradizionale, ma come un'esperienza tattile e visiva tesa a trascendere i limiti sensoriali di una semplice sessione di lettura o consultazione. Monolitico, interattivo ed enigmatico quanto basta per essere l'ideale emanazione del capolavoro che nelle intenzioni del regista doveva "colpire lo spettatore con la stessa intensità non verbale di un brano musicale o un dipinto".

[Chris · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a fairly exhaustive look at the making of 2001 all the way from the initial meetings between Stanley Kubrick and Arthur C. Clarke all the way through production and the film's lasting impact.

The vertical aspect of the book was difficult to get used to. I thought it worked well for the many fold-out sections, giving us a nice array of concept and photographs, but there were times when simply holding the book in a comfortable manner was beyond me. Some of the images, like the instructions for the zero G toilet were unreadable because the majority of the content was lost to the spine.

Aside from the technical issues it's a fantastic book and I recommend it to any fans of Kubrick, Clarke or their amazing collaboration.

[DrEdward44]

Pure magic of film that once existed; 2001: A Space Odyssey could never be made the same way today. As film editor Ray Lovejoy stated, he thought of all this as “movie-making at its most romantic, with big sets, big stages, lots of activity, massive lighting rigs, tracking shots—just completely sensational. Today, obviously, a lot of that wouldn’t exist. There’d be computer-generated backgrounds, and you’d sit at a table and punch a few buttons, and away it goes. It’s not the same, and not so convincing on screen. You can always tell it’s not real. In 2001, you are absolutely convinced because, in a sense, it was real. Everything was right there in front of the cameras.” A part of filmmaking that is completely gone.

[Rick Castañeda · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is maybe the best book I’ve ever read about a film. It is by far the most well-researched and wide-reaching, touching on the history of visual effects, the space program, the existence of aliens, and philosophy. About halfway through I realized that the images on the cover spell out “2001” and it wasn’t until the end that I realized the book itself was in the shape of a monolith. I suppose I’m somewhat oblivious to those kinds of things.

If I ever write a book about something I will aspire to cover the same amount of research the author here managed to conquer. I expected to skim all the writing in this book and ended up reading it word for word.

[Gianfranco Gentile · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nearly as challenging, dense, beautiful, hypnotic and awe inspiring as the cinematic masterpiece it is dedicated to. This is without doubt the ultimate publication for the die-hard 2001 fan. Piers Bizony, M/M Paris and TASCHEN deserve grrat praise for such an extraordinary achievement of both content and form.

[Kats · Rating 4 out of 5]

why would they choose this format that cuts images down the book's spine???

[Willy Boy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very good, but pales next to the Jerome Agel book. Sticks to the main routes. Readers new to the subject can probably add a star. Nicely illustrated.

[Karlton · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a beautiful book.

[Filippo Dalmonego · Rating 4 out of 5]

Per chi ama 2001 è fantastico, nonostante il formato che non sia il migliore per vedere le immagini

[Nick Van · Rating 5 out of 5]

A superb book, highly detailed and informative. The portrait orientation isn’t optimal, but it doesn’t take away from the experience.

[Ron August · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you liked the Movie....what went into making it an equal at minimum. Kubrick a classic genius.

[Sam Coomber · Rating 4 out of 5]

Epic very comprehensive. Love you Stanley 🙏🙏

[Don · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great read as long as you don't mind holding up a literal monolith the whole time!!!

[Tim Weiss · Rating 5 out of 5]

"The most terrifying fact about the universe is not that it is hostile, but that it is indifferent; but if we can come to terms with this, and accept the challenges of life within the boundaries of death, then our existence can have genuine meaning. However vast the darkness, we must supply our own light."

[reherrma · Rating 4 out of 5]

Im Zuge der Lektüre von "The Stanley Kubrick Archives" habe ich mir auch Piers Bizony's "The Making of Stanley Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey" angeschafft. Der voluminöse Bildband, der durch sein ungewöhnliches Format in kein Bücherregal zu passen scheint, zeigt sehr, sehr ausführlich die Entstehungsgeschichte des (meiner Meinung nach) besten Films aller Zeiten. Wer Kubrick kennt, ist von seiner schier manisch akribischen Arbeit nicht sehr überrascht ,obwohl bei 2001 seine Detailgenauigkeit ins Unermessliche gegangen ist.
Wer mehr über den Film und Kubrick als Mensch erfahren möchte, kommt an diesen Band nicht heran, das Buch ist sehr schön aufgemacht, die Bilder (dessen Seiten z.T. aufklappbar sind) sind opulent und von sehr guter Qualität.
Der Band spart auch nicht mit Aufnahmen von Requisiten und Hintergrundmaterial zum Dreh, auch die Entstehungsgeschichten, z.B. von HAL oder den Monolythen, wurden detailreich erzählt und es kommen viele Geschichten ans Licht, die man bisher nicht gehört hat.
Der augenfälligste Gag des Buches ist das Format. Wenn man es aufstellt hat man das Gefühl, man hat den schwarzen Monolythen vor sich, man ist geneigt, den Finger über ihn streichen zu lassen und man wartet auf den Knochen, der sich in ein Raumschiff verwandelt...
Ein schöner, prächtiger und teurer Band...

[Martin · Rating 3 out of 5]

One of the greatest book fails of all time. Because of its 'monolith' shape it's like being forced to watch a glorious widescreen film while lying on your side. Everything horizontal has been turned vertical and there's no escaping it. Beautiful cosmic vistas have dirty great fold lines through them, one must fold pages to read them, one fold, two folds, three folds! It's so sad this idea got through the powers that be. The sad thing is the book still could've been a monolith shape but the content should've been printed horizontally. The amazing content deserves it.

[Norman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Can anyone tell me why, oh why, Taschen built such a cumbersome book? The content is faultless, but the physical nature of this, yes, I know, monolith, was the worst book I have handled! Hard work! Such a shame as the detail of the filming and the sociological commentaries were brilliant! If you want to see and read about what pieces of the epic film were ditched, this is the book. If you want some thinking on Kubrick the man and Doctor Strangelove, this is the book. If you want an explanation of the specila effects with images showing how it was done, this is the book.
BUT if you don't want aching wrists from carrying and manipulating this tome.......

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is literally a monolith of a book, doesn't even fit on the library shelf. I found it on the floor underneath the reserves and felt an overwhelming urge to hop on my knuckles and hit something with a bone. OK. I'm kidding, but it sure is big! Both in content and size. There's everything you could possibly want to know about 2001, minutia of details complimented by gorgeous photography. I am enlightened as to the pure obsessive genius of Kubrick and how he made what is one of my favorite movies of all time. I agree though with others, that the photography suffers from the format.

[Joan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Stunning book, in an unusual format that requires patience and a large table! A heavy-weight book as well! Pages unfold to reveal beautiful art work or photos from the filming. A wonderful book for anyone who loves this film.

[Jose Gonzalez · Rating 4 out of 5]

This film is always going to be one of the most ambitios journeys ever experience.