In 2001: A Space Odyssey the appearance of a black obelisk turns apes into tool users in a rather violent way. Victor imagines an alternate spark of inspiration – a 2×4 LEGO brick! Confronted by this mysterious object, would the apes be inspired to use their newfound reasoning for creative pursuits instead of aggression? Or is the evolution of the stud-shooter inevitable? Victor’s model is a clever tribute to the classic Kubrick film with an upscaled brick looking suitably imposing against a studless sky. Of course, this isn’t the first time we’ve seen a toy swapped into the iconic scene (Hi, Barbie!).
Tag Archives: Stanley Kubrick
Well, he’s not called Stanley Ku-BRICK for nothing, I suppose...
Take a look through Shannon Sproule‘s Flickr photos, and you’ll see his interest in toys extends beyond the plastic bricks we cover on this website. He may not be the most prolific builder, but he’s a skilled toy photographer. What that does mean is that whenever his LEGO gets put in front of the camera, the results are stunning. Best of all? He’s also got a keen eye for retro sci-fi styling! Take a look at his latest scene. It’s a hotel room with a robot concierge, which sounds fairly innocuous. But the framing, the lighting (I love the backlit anti-studs above the bed!) and the positioning of the figures give this a real sense of foreboding. It doesn’t help that the concierge is keen to point out the escape routes in the caption. If you mixed The Shining and 2001: A Space Odyssey into a film, I bet this is what the poster outside the cinema would look like. Stanley Kubrick would be proud!