Mike Kaplan on Stanley Kubrick and Marketing 2001
by Andre Soares
Mike Kaplan’s "Kubrick: a marketing odyssey" in The Guardian:
"I was the resident longhair in the publicity department of MGM when I first met Stanley Kubrick, in April 1968. I had spent the previous four days canvassing the befuddled media, who were trying to grasp his new film, a non-verbal epic called 2001: A Space Odyssey, and MGM’s executives were in fear about the prospects of their most expensive film to date and, consequently, their future.
"Roger Carras, Kubrick’s promotion executive, was taking me to meet the great man to explain to him why the film was near unanimously misunderstood. It was being presented as "an epic drama of adventure and exploration", and many were expecting a modern Flash Gordon. Instead, Kubrick had created a metaphysical drama encompassing evolution, reincarnation, the beauty of space, the terror of science, the mystery of mankind. The campaign had to be reconceived and repositioned - an impossible task unless Kubrick, who had complete control of his work, could be convinced this was vital to save his film from impending disaster and devastating reviews."
Kaplan’s article is a couple of months old, but those who haven’t seen it, yet, should check it out.
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