Color In A Space Odyssey

Color plays an important role in 2001: A Space Odyssey, there are many points in the film that use color as a catalyst for events to come, or to foreshadow a point in the film. Specifically, each appearance of the large black monolith, the “eye” of the H.A.L. 9000 computer, and the sequence of lights David Bowman experienced after entering the monolith orbiting Jupiter. In the opening scenes with the apes, after the monolith appears and they investigate it the camera shifts upwards pointing up its face as the sun crests over the top of the monolith. This creates a clash between light and dark and an emphasis on the sky, and more specifically the sun which bursts over the top of the monolith with an intense bright color as opposed to the dark

Through the events that took place upon the ship as H.A.L. began to kill the crew members, his eye was often in the shot and seemed to be always present and always watching like when the two astronauts were talking against H.A.L. in the space probe. Upon H.A.L.’s termination David Bowman entered the systems mainframe which was entirely red, this coincides with his red camera lens confirming that the distinguished red color foreshadowed its evil intentions. Lastly, as David Bowman enters the monolith orbiting Jupiter he is met with a ferocious blast of many colors which seem to be flying past him at high speeds. This goes on for a few minutes occasionally flashing back to Bowman who seems to be extremely disoriented. This scene is important because it signifies Bowman’s transcendence through the vibrant colors of the monolith into the bleak plain white room he ages and dies in, only to be reborn as the star child. The rapid change from the many colors of the monolith to the white room also play an importance to emphasize the change that has just and is about to take place to Bowman as he is to become the next form of humanity as the celestial star