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Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy
4/29/05 - PG - 110m
Martin Freeman - Arthur Dent
Mos Def - Ford Prefect
Zooey Deschanel - Trillian
Director: Garth Jennings
Book by: Douglas Adams
Screenplay: Douglas Adams (85%)
Karey Kirkpatrick
Studio: Touchstone
Official
Website
JEF
Yet another movie that was almost a red light. But again, due to the creativity, I’m giving them points for that, which will bring it up to a yellow light.
Storyline: This is an almost impossible movie to describe the storyline. I will broadly try to sum it up… Earth is destroyed because it is in the way of a new galatic highway. Just prior to destruction, a man, Arthur Dent (Martin Freeman) and his ‘alien’ friend Ford Prefect (Mos Def), escape. They are then swept up in an incredible adventure that includes Aliens (Vogons), two headed presidents (Zaphod), and depressed robots (Marvin).
Perhaps I went into this movie with my expectations set too high. I am a pretty big fan of the author who created this whacky story, Douglas Adams. I had read the first book of his five book “trilogy” and very much enjoyed it, way back in the 80’s. I think what sparked this was having seen the classic Hitchhikers Guide that was a small mini-series done by the BBC shown here in the states on PBS. It was very much a British comedy in the style of Monty Python, or Fawlty Towers. Quite funny, and I especially remember Zaphod, and Marvin as being my favorite characters (Not to mention the funny musings of the narrative voice).
I admit though, that I never made it past the first book, I think I started the second book (The Restaurant at the End of the Universe), but if I recall, I never finished it. And I’m sure I’m dating myself here, but I even had the Video Game for the Commodore 64!
In preparation for the movie, I actually picked up a new copy of all the 5 books compiled into one large paperback. I re-read the first story about 2 months ago, and upon finishing it, wondered, ‘How in the world are they going to make this into a movie’?
Well, First the positives…
The effects were great. There seemed to be a little “cheesy” factor to them, but this was perfectly acceptable as it sort of gave a nod to the original TV series (which was very cheesy). Sam Rockwell, who played Zaphod, seemed to be having a great time! I have enjoyed many of Sam’s characters and knew he was an excellent choice for playing the quirky Zaphod. But, Sam’s role almost eclipsed all the other actors. It was unbalanced, and he stole the scene in all of his parts.
Martin Freeman, who played Arthur Dent, was also perfectly cast. Freeman plays the best “everyman” that I’ve seen in a long time. I very much enjoyed his performances in “The Office”. But, in playing “the straight man” you need to be paired up with a complementary actor, and Mos Def just wasn’t cutting it. He was good, but there was just something missing, that he felt out of place. There was one scene in particular that cracked me up, where Mos was chasing the Vogon’s with his towel.
Zooey Deschanel, who played Trillian, was horrible. If I didn’t know that she was in the movie “Elf” I would have thought they just pulled a girl off the street and gave her this role. I didn’t find her believable at all.
Marvin (or the voice of – Alan Rickman), wasn’t bad. But As soon as I heard his voice, along with Sam Rockwell, I kept picturing the other sci-fi movie “Galaxy Quest”, and it was a little distracting. Speaking of Alan, I found it odd, that for a book, radio series, and TV series, all of which have that “British comedy” feel, that this movie was very “Americanized”. Other than the Aliens, and Marvin, and Arthur, it felt like an American remake, again this was somewhat distracting and disappointing.
So, all in all, I was able to sit through the entire movie, but I must point out, that in a theatre of only 10 people, two people got up to leave about half way through. This movie I think is strictly for the fans of the book. When a movie has 10 different Producers, that’s a bad sign - too many cooks in the kitchen. I feel bad for Mr. Adams too, for having not seen this project through due to his untimely death in 2001. His talent will be missed.
Jef
