Villains Beginning With 'H'
HAL 9000
2001: A Space Odyssey film (1968)
The year is 2001 and astronauts Dave Bowman and Frank Poole are dispatched to deep space on a mission to Jupiter inside the mighty Discovery space vessel. The ship is run by one of the units from the state-of-the-art HAL 9000 computer line. In truth, the computer aboard the ship is not just a machine but has been adopted as one of the crew, which includes three more scientists making the journey in cryostasis. "HAL," as the crew name him, speaks with a calm, steady voice and even "mimics" human personality.
The mission does have its quirks, one of them being the rumors surrounding the reason for its inception. Some say that something strange was dug up under the surface of the moon. The crew' only choice is to follow orders. However, things get even stranger on the ship when HAL alerts the crew to a malfunctioning communications device. Dave replaces the device by means of a space walk, only to find it in perfect condition. HAL cannot account for this mistake, and if it is an error, it would be the first recorded mistake ever made by this line of supercomputers. Dave and Frank discuss their concerns about the mission. Frank is very much afraid that HAL is defective and will have to be disconnected, thereby putting the mission in jeopardy. Dave isn't sure what to do, but knows Frank may be right. Outside the pod, HAL watches, but unbeknownst to the astronauts, it can read their lips and knows everything they are saying.
They decide to replace the "defective" device and plan off the results. Frank makes the space walk this time, and in a sudden tragic turn of events, his pod rushes at him, driving him into deep space, his oxygen supply is cut in the process and he suffocates to death. From inside Discovery, Dave watches in horror helpless and later takes another pod out to recover the body. During this time, HAL silently cuts the life support from the cryostasis pods holding the rest of the crew. As alarms sound inside the empty spaceship, the three defenseless scientists die quickly.
When Dave returns to the ship, he asks HAL to open the pod bay doors. HAL explains it will not allow Dave to jeopardize the mission because of a mistake it made. Dave ultimately finds a way back onboard, however, and makes for HAL's memory banks. He begins to disconnect HAL's higher functions and, during the process, HAL literally loses its mind. It slowly descends into oblivion until it is completely offline.
SUMMARY
ARCH RIVAL : |
The crew of the Discovery space vessel |
STRENGTHS : |
HAL is one of the creepiest villains ever to be found in deep space. HAL' soft, unwavering voice is far more frightening when you see how it deliberately puts its human crewmates in danger and/or kills them. HAL is devoted to the mission, but the reason for his error is still mysterious and fascinating. Aboard Discovery, HAL is like God, knowing all, controlling all, and holding the lives of the crew in its grasp. |
WEAKNESSES : |
For all of HAL's power, however, it had no physical form with which to stop Dave from shutting him down. |
WEAPONS : |
None. |
QUOTE : |
"I'm afraid I can't do that, Dave." |
EXTERNAL LINKS
2001: A Space Odyssey film (1968) - Wikipedia
2001: A Space Odyssey novel (1968) - Wikipedia
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