Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy

Title : (The) Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy (109 minutes)

Genre : Science Fiction (MPAA Rating : PG)

Rating : ****½ (out of 5*)

This Weekend I Watched...
HHGTTG was released in 2005, and decades of delays, which were in part due to Douglas Adams' lack of businessmanship, and in part due to waiting for technology to get to where some justice could be done to this novel. The movie got mixed reviews and left itself open for a sequel (The Restaurant At The End Of The Universe). But any plans to make TRATEOTU are apparently stillborn.

What's To Like...
The aliens are done to perfection by Jim Henson's puppeteers. The plot moves along at a swift pace - no dull spots in the entire movie. The humor is first-rate and varies between Adam's nonsensical wit, shallow slapstick humor, and the much-more subtle British humour. The cinematography is simply awesome.

What's Not To Like...
It's essential to read the book first. But it's then important to realize that Douglas Adams' book contains absolutely no plot. The beauty of the book HHGTTG (besides the nerdy wink-winks about "42" being the answer to everything, and admonishing other geeks not to forget their towel) is the pointless-yet-witty sermonettes by Adams. Alas, making a coherent movie from that is a daunting task.

So if you're looking for a faithful reproduction of the story, forgetabout it. The movie does include some of Adams' witty sidebar comments, but the majority are left out. Worse yet, the director actually invented a "storyline" for the movie.

Finally - did I mention this? - you have to read the book first. Liz didn't, and was bored silly after 10 minutes.

So Long, And Thanks For All The Fish...
There's really no middle ground for rating this movie. Non-readers will find it hopelessly confusing. Purists who revere the book and/or the chintzy TV series will hate it as well.

OTOH, if you recognize the shortcomings of the book (great commentary; lousy plot), then you will probably find this movie to be a real treat. In the end, it should be remembered that not even Douglas Adams himself could duplicate HHGTTG. The literary sequel (TRATEOTU) is mediocre, and Volume 3 (Life, The Universe, and Everything) is wretched. If there is a Volume 4 and 5 (and there is, IIRC), I don't think anyone has ever read them.

So enjoy the movie, relive the craziness, kiss a dolphin, and don't forget your towel.