«Dune» director Denis Villeneuve named the cult movie that still gives him chills

The opening scene of the famous 1968 film still impresses the blockbuster director.

Director Denis Villeneuve, who created the sci-fi blockbusters «Arrival» and «Dune», has admitted that watching «A Space Odyssey 2001» as a child made an indelible impression on him. The artist spoke about this during the BAFTA Awards ceremony (via Fandomwire).

«One of the first movies I saw at a young age that I shouldn’t have seen — this is probably the beginning “Space Odyssey 2001”. In a way, it was one of the best gifts I’ve ever received, because the trauma of watching the opening scene with the monkey still gives me shivers,» the director says.

In «A Space Odyssey 2001» (1968), director Stanley Kubrick unfolds the story of human evolution: from the dawn of civilization to future space travel. The film begins with a scene in which primitive apes discover a mysterious black monolith that changes the course of their development. Then the action shifts to 2001, when humanity discovers a similar object on the Moon. This discovery prompts an expedition to Jupiter on a spacecraft «Discovery 1». During the journey, the HAL 9000’s onboard computer goes out of control, leading to tragic consequences.

The opening scene of «A Space Odyssey» set to the music of Richard Strauss «Thus Spake Zarathustra» has become an iconic piece of world cinema. The tune has become so popular that it has been used in numerous films and TV series, including «The Big Bang Theory» and the recent «Barbie» directed by Greta Gerwig.

Kubrick’s film, along with such films as «Alien» and «Predator», defined an era in science fiction cinema. Directors still include it among the most influential films of all time.

In addition to «Space Odyssey», Villeneuve was greatly influenced by the «Star Wars» saga. The director admitted that he had watched «The Empire Strikes Back» countless times and was obsessed with the «Star Wars» universe. Despite his fascination with the space theme, Villeneuve has no plans to cooperate with Lucasfilm.