Alex Garland

A fairly new filmmaker who has only directed a few films, Alex Garland’s small filmography has Kubrick written all over it. With films such as Ex Machina, which explores the possible dangers of the future of human evolution in artificial intelligence, and Annihilation, a philosophical science fiction film disguised as a simple alien thriller flick, 2001’s influence is clear, not only in the thematic concepts presented in both films but also in the visual cinematography (Bose).

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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For example, it is impossible not to notice the visual references to 2001 in the bright red and white color pallet of the walls and rooms in Ex Machina (Bose).

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Kubrick’s influence on Ex Machina most importantly however stems from the film's exploration of artificial intelligence, particularly in the idea of artificial intelligence rising above human intelligence, an idea straight from 2001 in its main antagonist HAL 9000. As Garland explains: “2001 just shows you the scale of the ideas you can get into in sci-fi if you want to … It has two massive things in it: an alien first encounter and probably the best, most involved and intelligent depiction of A.I. that’s ever been in a film or any kind of narrative” (Bose).

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Garland’s love for Kubrick has clearly not faded, as evidenced by his newest film Men, which has yet to be released. Just by the trailer alone, one can see the influence of Kubrick in the film’s use of color. Deep reds and greens are present all over the visual cinematography in Garland’s new psychological horror film, a clear visual reference to the horror of The Shining.

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