The Big Picture
HAL 9000 in “2001: A Space Odyssey” is a complex A.I. with impact, reflecting today’s concerns about artificial intelligence.
The film’s portrayal of HAL as a menacing force plays on the blurred lines between morality and technology.
HAL’s actions in the film leave viewers questioning his motives and the implications of human-created artificial intelligence.
No other film explores the questions of life’s existence and the evolution of humankind quite like 2001: A Space Odyssey. Portraying the past, present, and future of life in every sense of the word from the perspective of the 1960s, Stanley Kubrick’s iconic feature naturally explores the rise of technology and includes one of the most impactful and unsettling portrayals of artificial intelligence in film history. This particular A.I., called HAL (voiced by Douglas Rain), is complex and threatening, not only because of its harmful behavior and actions in the film but also because of how this threat still endures to this day. With a lot of people’s lives being affected by the quick and recent rise of A.I., the HAL 9000 in 2001: A Space Odyssey hits closer to home than ever before.
2001: A Space Odyssey
After uncovering a mysterious artifact buried beneath the Lunar surface, a spacecraft is sent to Jupiter to find its origins: a spacecraft manned by two men and the supercomputer HAL 9000.
Release Date April 2, 1968
Director Stanley Kubrick
Cast Keir Dullea , Gary Lockwood , William Sylvester , Daniel Richter , Leonard Rossiter , Margaret Tyzack
Runtime 141
What Is ‘2001: A Space Odyssey’ About?
2001: A Space Odyssey follows life throughout millions of years, from prehistoric times to the 21st century. Throughout the film, a black monolith appears to seemingly cause or represent a significant point in evolution, whether it be the discovery of weapons or the beginning of space travel. The film moves coherently between different sequences, with the most notable being that of the space mission of Discovery One, a ship of five astronauts set to carry out an undisclosed mission regarding the planet Jupiter. Assisting the astronaut scientists is a sixth member of the crew: the HAL 9000, standing for a “heuristically-programmed algorithmic computer.” HAL is an A.I. computer with no physical body, but rather represented by an unwavering, watchful red light emitting from camera lenses placed around the ship.
Despite having no physical form, the computer is programmed to have a personality and can carry out most abilities of the human brain, but he can allegedly carry out these tasks faster and with more accuracy. Throughout his appearance in the film, HAL has regular discussions with the only two astronauts not in suspended animation, David Bowman (Keir Dullea) and Frank Poole (Gary Lockwood). He is even interviewed for a news story, describing his function as “foolproof and incapable of error,” which Bowman and Poole learn the hard way is not the case. Even when Bowman is asked by the interviewer whether HAL can actually feel anything, he answers that he acts like he can because he is programmed to do so. However, there is no certainty in if HAL experiences real emotion.
HAL 9000 Becomes a Terrifying Movie Villain
Image via Warner Bros.
The first hint of havoc arises when HAL questions Discovery One’s journey to Jupiter, saying that he notices oddities about their mission. During this conversation, the computer picks up an error in their system, stating that the men have 72 hours to fix the problem before the ship fails. Once Bowman and Poole find no issue with the ship’s functions, the scientists begin to question the true accuracy of the HAL 9000 technology. What makes this idea so anxiety-inducing is the fact that HAL is in control of all of Discovery One’s major functions. This means that the lives of the five scientists are all in the metaphorical hands of HAL, whether he correctly carries out his duties or not. Mission Control then confirms via a transmission that the A.I. is at fault, while HAL denies this and attributes the mistake to human error.
From here, things only get worse. Bowman and Poole attempt to have a private conversation away from HAL about the potential of disconnecting him, but he can read their lips and foil their plan. Once Poole leaves the ship to execute repairs, HAL takes control of one of the ship’s pods and disconnects his space suit from its oxygen supply, killing him. Bowman attempts to retrieve his body and returns to the ship, only to be denied re-entry by HAL after the computer kills the three remaining people aboard the ship. After finally making it inside the ship, Bowman disconnects HAL, despite the computer’s attempts to stop him with a last-ditch effort of singing “Daisy Bell” in a slow and distorted voice in one of the most haunting scenes in the film. Once the computer is disengaged, the truth behind the mission to Jupiter is finally revealed to Bowman, now the sole survivor of Discovery One.
The Film’s Stylistic Choices Make HAL Even Scarier
Image via MGM
What helps to make HAL’s appearance in the film so effective are the film’s artistic choices. Aside from establishing shots, almost every scene in Discovery One is without the classical music present throughout the film. Additionally, any visual of the HAL 9000 is an up-close, fish-eyed look into his red “eye,” staring back at the audience, with only static or white noise playing over it. This only emphasizes the fact that the astronauts (and the audience) are alone with HAL 80 million miles away from everyone else. There is no escaping.
This also reminds viewers that HAL is the one in control of everything as it was programmed, watching the men’s every move because he was told to do so. Nothing the men say matters because HAL is the one making the decisions, despite whether the talk of his accuracy is true or false. One scene even alludes to the idea that the perfect track record of the HAL 9000 computer series is really a lie when Bowman reminds Poole that no 9000 computer has ever been disconnected. Poole says to this, “No 9000 computer’s ever fouled up before,” to which Bowman responds with, “That’s not what I mean.” With this, Bowman most likely refers to the idea that no 9000 computer has ever let itself be disconnected, planting the seed for the computer’s deadly impact on the people aboard the ship. However, this would also imply that the creators of the HAL series, as well as those who employ them, have knowledge of the malfunctions and continue to put the lives of people in A.I.’s hands anyway. HAL did not need a physical form to be the tragic events’ driving force.
There is also the portrayal of HAL’s emotions. He initially questions the mission, seemingly out of panic. He also emotes a form of fear when he learns that the scientists may resort to disconnecting him, leading him to potentially act out for his own survival. However, there is also the fact that HAL wanted the ship to fail to find out what was causing the malfunction, without realizing that allowing the ship to fail would put everyone’s lives at risk. The use of both sides plays at the viewers’ own emotions and makes them question the emotional capabilities of HAL, as well as the morality of disconnecting/killing him.
HAL’s Motives and the Film’s Message Are Left up to Interpretation
Image via Warner Bros.
In a film that is notoriously ambiguous and often confusing, 2001: A Space Odyssey’s HAL is so terrifying because of the blurred lines surrounding his intentions, if there were any at all. Rather than painting artificial intelligence as pure evil, the film plays with the boundaries of morality and makes the audience think of HAL as a person and not a form of technology. The A.I. does not plead for his life as Bowman is disconnecting him but rather tries to get him to stop by suggesting he thinks rationally. This then descends into HAL repeatedly telling him “stop,” then saying that he “feels” his mind coming undone.
While he is the main antagonist of the film, it is not that simple. The computer’s actions and words leave much to the imagination when it comes to his motives. While this is the case in the film, Arthur C. Clarke’s book of the same name has some more answers. In the novel, the reason HAL malfunctions and begins to act out of violence is because he was programmed to simultaneously relay accurate information to the crew, and also keep confidential information regarding the mission from them. Similar to asking him to be in two places at once, HAL cannot be true to both of these orders, while a human would be able to either choose one or toe the line between the two by their own autonomy. The A.I. is forced to contradict his programmed functions and is led to commit atrocities rather than disobey the orders programmed into his being.
Why Did HAL Kill Everyone?
Image via Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
The film, on the other hand, is not that straightforward. The audience is left to speculate on what led HAL to kill almost every member aboard the ship. There is the possibility that since HAL was programmed to view himself as human, he valued his own life and acted out of self-preservation as any living person being targeted would. It could also be that HAL was aware that the next step in human evolution was on Jupiter, making him resentful of the mission and leading him to sabotage it. This theory has some potential because HAL was the thing standing in the way of the film’s ending. If HAL had succeeded in killing Bowman, he would not have made it to Jupiter and been reborn as the next-stage human being. The “Starchild” that Bowman becomes is speculated to be either divine or superhuman and would most likely eliminate the need for artificial intelligence. This could mean that if HAL did have that knowledge, he would have seen the mission of Discovery One as a threat.
There is also the idea that while HAL may speak and talk like a human, his preference and willingness to eliminate every human life on Discovery One to carry out the mission successfully is precisely what makes him inhuman. In HAL’s final moments, he states in his monotone voice, “I’m afraid.” Does he feel or has he been programmed to only say it? Is he evil or did he simply malfunction? Was he pleading for his life out of emotion or manipulation? Can HAL feel emotion or did he just know all the right things to say? Is he made to be human or a copy of one? Ultimately, these questions are what makes HAL so scary. While he is the villain, the existence of the technology makes viewers think philosophically about how far humankind has gone and whether something like the HAL series can be considered truly human. This alone is emphasized by the disturbing nature of HAL’s disconnection, as it is reminiscent of murder. While technology like the HAL 9000 can hold an enormous amount of control, it is those who have the power and create this technology that gives A.I. that much control, and who is also responsible for its outcome.
2001: A Space Odyssey is available to stream on Max in the U.S.
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