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Bowie's Space Oddity: Kubrick's Film Inspiration
22 Feb
Summary
- David Bowie's 'Space Oddity' was inspired by Kubrick's '2001: A Space Odyssey'.
- The song's astronaut Major Tom faces isolation after being stranded in space.
- Bowie found it amusing the BBC used his song during the Apollo 11 Moon landing broadcast.
David Bowie's celebrated 1969 hit, "Space Oddity," was significantly influenced by Stanley Kubrick's ambitious science-fiction film "2001: A Space Odyssey," released the year prior. Bowie himself stated in a 2003 interview that the film's convincing depiction of space travel, rather than the contemporary excitement surrounding the Apollo 11 Moon landing, was the primary muse for his song.
The song's protagonist, Major Tom, experiences profound isolation after his ship malfunctions, leaving him stranded and disconnected from Earth. This theme of loneliness echoes the melancholic fate of astronaut David Bowman in "2001: A Space Odyssey," who is transformed into a solitary "star child." Bowie found it amusing that the BBC utilized "Space Oddity" during their broadcast of the Moon landing, given the song's narrative of an astronaut lost among the stars.
Despite the BBC's unintentional thematic juxtaposition, "Space Oddity" became indelibly linked with humanity's burgeoning fascination with space travel in the 20th century. Similar to "2001: A Space Odyssey," Bowie's song captured the public imagination, solidifying its place as a defining cultural artifact of the era.
