2001: Filming the Future (Revised) [Paperback]

Piers Bizony (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 2000

First published in 1994, Piers Bizony's book has become the classic account of the making of Stanley Kubrick's seminal movie, 2001: A Space Odyssey. Hailed by Tom Hanks (in an unsolicited tribute) as "without question the best collection of not just information regarding the film, but also a chronicle of its inspiration", it has become the benchmark of writing about this cult movie.

Piers Bizony interviewed many members of the team who created 2001, including Arthur C. Clarke, who co-wrote the screenplay (with Stanley Kubrick), The special effects supervisor, technical advisors, production designers, model-makers, effects technicians, and contractors. 2001: Filming the Future gives a fascinating view of the making of one of the most obsessively detailed productions ever. Now, on the eve of 2001, midnight on December 31, 2000, Warner Bros. will release worldwide a new print of 2001: A Space Odyssey.

Filled with new material that came to light after first publication, the book includes interviews with actors Keir Dullea and Gary Lockwood, interviews with other actors, new material from effects supervisor Doug Trumbull, and additional illustrations to include newly discovered photographs of the main "Discovery" space model. Kubrick's career as a whole is summarized, with some notes about the last 10 years of his life. Sources and references are updated and relevant approved websites are listed to make this the ultimate sourcebook on 2001.

Product Details

• Paperback: 176 pages
• Publisher: Aurum Press; 2nd edition (November 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1854107062
• ISBN-13: 978-1854107060
• Product Dimensions: 10.3 x 9 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,398,915 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Should be on the shelf of every 2001 enthusiast, November 12, 2001

By 

"weirdo_87" (Rancho Cucamonga, CA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: 2001: Filming the Future (Revised) (Paperback)

Recently, while at a nearby book store, I picked up a copy of Piers Bizony's 2001: FILIMING THE FUTURE and decided to purchase it. It was not a bad choice. This is a very extensive book on the making of Stanley Kubrick's sci-fi masterpiece. There are dozens of photographs in both color and black and white that show images from the movie as well as a look at the making of it. There are sketches of the spacecraft in the movie, which were drawn up from film stills, as well as pre-production sketches of some of the earlier design models. There is also an interesting introduction by Arthur C. Clarke, who wrote the novel and co-wrote the screenplay. Finally, the text is well detailed and informative. For those of you who do not want to know how the groundbreaking special effects were made, stay away from this book! Model work, live action and stunt work formed the key elements of most of the visual effects work.

The book also discusses about how it was like to work with Stanley Kubrick. Most cast and crew admit that it was difficult but rewarding because Kubrick pushed them to their limit and made them work better. Kubrick did get mad at them, but he rarely yelled at them. He also got respect because he knew what he wanted and would not stop until he got it. Kubrick was also a perfectionist; after his work on Spartacus, he was determined to have full creative control over his movies and worked over every aspect of his films, demanding the absolute best from the people who worked for him. Stressful no doubt. But this is what made Kubrick one of the best and acclaimed filmmakers of all time. His genius and ambition shows in 2001: A Space Odyssey and this book is a superb tribute

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Do You Like The Future?, October 8, 2005

By 

John P Bernat (Kingsport, TN USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: 2001: Filming the Future (Revised) (Paperback)

This brilliant book's visuals alone make it worth adding to your collection of film books. Of course, Kubrick fans need it the most.

But what the book also speaks to, beyond Kubrick's compulsive fascination with technical accuracy in film, is how the effort in making this movie addressed our ambitions and fascinations in the 1960s. In a time where old social conventions were breaking down, right and left, 2001 spoke to a new optimism created by space exploration and its seemingly limitless potential.

"Capturing the imagination." Good movies achieve that goal, don't they? In this case, a fanatical dedication to research, and to placing on film the most accurate and, in a weird way, understated views of a human future in space, creating something really new in moviegoing experience.

In its time, that effort became quickly subsumed by two divergent audiences: people who wanted to enhance their drug experiences with visuals, and people who wanted to be in space. Of course, these audiences made the movie very, very successful.

Today, we have left this movie's technical accomplishments in the dust. We can depict space travel and its related phenomena (like weightlessness) in a relatively effortless way. Film special effects pour out, today, in ways not imagined in 1967. You could read this book as a quaint history tract in movemaking technics.

I read it beyond that, though. It spoke to the excitement and optimism with which many of us viewed our future. We ate this stuff up; we could sit through two reels of a spacecraft docking and think the time just flew by...

How do we feel about the future today? It is now highly unfashiomable to label yourself a "futurist" any more. It seems our future is all behind us now.

Thank God these things run in predictable cycles. Collective optimism about our future in space is just around the corner. I hope I live long enough to see and enjoy it...

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Essential for the Kubrick library, April 30, 2011

By 

Stop Motion Maniac "Elroy Jetson" (Toonville) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: 2001: Filming the Future (Revised) (Paperback)

2001 is one of my favorite films of all time and one of my favorite Kubrick films, and this is a worthy title for the library. Bizony does an excellent job of explaining the making of this epic film, and there many pictures from the fim, sets, and production. I do wish some of the images were larger and in color. There are quite a few color images, but there are quite a few black and white ones also. Highly recommended.