2001 is the movie that started it all, and in my opinion it remains the perfect film for alternative audio experimentation. With extended sequences absent of dialogue, non-stop symbolic overload, sudden shifts in scenery, and hominids jumping and keeping the beat with makeshift drumsticks, 2001 (and especially the "Dawn of Man" segment) is an ideal candidate for soundtrack substitution. In fact, the film's ability to match almost any musical accompaniment influenced director Stanley Kubrick to score the movie with preexisting classical music: he was using songs like the Blue Danube as a temp track in the editing room, and decided that the tunes worked better than the original score composed by Alex North. The rest is cinema history.
Rather than proposing a playlist to sync with the movie, this is the method I recommend: set your iPod or iTunes to shuffle mode. Then start the movie (it does not matter what DVD version you use), and remember to mute the film's soundtrack. When the MGM lion appears, push PLAY on your iPod or computer (I would tell you to wait for the lion's third roar, but unlike Wizard of OZ the MGM lion does not roar at the beginning of 2001.). Now settle in and enjoy your trip through the musical monolith!
Note: according to legend Kubrick wanted Pink Floyd to score all or part of 2001. Intrepid Floyd heads have synced the entire "Jupiter: And Beyond the Infinite" sequence to the song "Echoes" and you can watch it here. And of course the authors acknowledge The Dark Side of the Rainbow as the sync that started it all.
Also: skipping tracks that come up in shuffle because you don't like them is antithetical to the whole spirit of this sort of venture. Once you commit, watch and sit. Buy the ticket, take the ride.
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