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Everyman Arthur Dent is
whisked off the Earth seconds before it is demolished to make way for a
hyperspace bypass. Sadly, his day has only just begun. Before it's over,
he will have been blown up, attended a poetry reading, been thrown out
of an airlock, rescued, reunited with the love of his life, shot at, had
a fish stuck in his ear, insulted, whacked, sickened, deprived of tea,
learned the answer to the ultimate question, and almost had his brain
sawed out by mice. He then goes to have lunch.
OK, I want to start by saying
that I have been a fan of Hitchhikers ever since I saw that little green
dude, you know what I'm talking about. It must've been in Junior High
because I remember doing a recreation of the cover for a book report,
lol. Anyways I enjoy the hell out of this movie. It may not be an exact
translation of the books, but there have been nine different
incarnations of Hitchhiker's including a video game, a radio play and a
BBC television series. Of all these I have only read the books and seen
this movie. This movie definitely captures the spirit of Hitchhiker's,
especially the opening number - So Long And Thanks For All The Fish.
Kind of sets the tone for the whole movie, doesn't it? It is absurd at
times, touching at others, but no matter how ridiculous it gets
everything seems to make some sort of skewed sense. Some people hate the
changes that have been made to this beloved series; some may not know
that most of those changes were written by Douglas Adams himself
specifically for the movie. So I guess he is OK with the changes. Such a
shame that he died before being able to see the completed film. I think
he would've liked it.
The casting is pretty much
spot on, especially Mos Def and Sam Rockwell. I have never seen anything
else that Mos Def has done but he will forever be Ford Prefect to me. He
plays it so serious and slightly clueless that when he tries to be
understanding about what his friend Arthur is going through that it
becomes even more touching. But when the film gets ridiculous he fits
right in as well. Sam Rockwell's Zaphod Beeblebrox is terrific! IN the
special features he said he was going for a mixture of Elvis, Bill
Clinton, Patrick Swayze, surfer, Spicolli,
Brad Pitt, rock star sort of president. I think he pulled it off
quite well. I had never heard of Martin Freeman before and he comes
across as kind of bland, but then again, the character of Arthur is
pretty bland. So either he is a great actor or a terrible one, lol.
Zooey Deschanel is very cute in this. Almost the girl next door in the
looks dept, but she plays a physicist, which doesn't really come through
in the movie. Well, at least she's cute and can act. I want to
mention Bill Nighy as Slartibartfast. I have only seen him in Underworld
and was not impressed by that movie at all. Actually thought it sucked.
So seeing Bill Nighy in this was a treat. As small a part he has he is
perfect. He even snorts in one scene! And don't forget the narrator! His
voice is perfect. His will always be the voice I hear when reading these
books.
The effects are great; I love
the tour of the factory floor and the yarn reality sequence. There is
even a cameo of the sound of a lightsaber that was actually a gift from
George Lucas! (Gasp!)
The DVD has a few good things in the extras dept. A decent making of, a
hangman game featuring Marvin the robot (which I haven't mentioned yet
as I don't like him.), some deleted scenes, some REALLY deleted scenes
(you have to see to understand), a couple of guide entries that didn't
make it into the final film, and a sing-along to So Long And Thanks For
All The Fish. There are also two commentaries that I have yet to listen
to.
All in all if you're a fan of
the series you may or may not like it. If you just want a funny, absurd
movie pick it up. If you are a fan of Airplane or the Naked Gun you may
like this. If you do like the movie, go get the books and pick up the
Salmon of Doubt. It is a collection of random thoughts, interviews and
assays from Douglas Adams' myriad computers.
So, until G 'N R finally
releases The Chinese Democracy,
keep reading my reviews.
Mitch
Best Lines:
Arthur: All
my life I've had this strange feeling that there's something big and
sinister going on in the world.
Slartibartfast: No, that's perfectly normal paranoia.
Everyone in the universe gets that.
Arthur: I'm
sorry, did you just say you needed my brain?
Fook: Yes, to complete the program.
Arthur: Well, you can't have it, I'm using it!
Fook: Hardly.
Arthur: Cheeky mouse...
Mr. Prosser:
Do you know how much damage this bulldozer would sustain if I just let
it roll over you?
Arthur: How much?
Mr. Prosser: None at all.
Slartibartfast:
[talking about the Earth] Best laid plans of mice.
Arthur: And men.
Slartibartfast: What?
Arthur: Best laid plans of mice and men.
Slartibartfast: Oh. No, I don't think men had much to
do with it.
Trillian: [Zaphod
aims the Point of View gun at Trillian] It won't affect me, I'm already
a woman.
The Book:
According to the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, the best drink in the
known universe is the Pan-Galactic Gargle Blaster. It has the effect of
having your brains smashed out with a slice of lemon... wrapped around a
large gold brick.
Lunkwill: Do
you...
Deep Thought: Have an answer for you? Yes. But you're
not going to like it.
Fook: Please tell us. We must know!
Deep Thought: Okay. The answer to the ultimate question
of life, the universe, and everything is...
[wild cheers from audience, then silence]
Deep Thought: 42
Zaphod: [to
Trillian] Hey slick, are you wearing my underwear? 'Cause I'm wearing
yours, and they're not doing the trick
Vogon:
Resistance is useless!
The Book: In
the beginning the universe was created. This made a lot of people angry
and has widely been considered as a bad move.
Ford:
[distracting the men about to demolish Arthur's house] Workers of the
earth! I bring... good tidings of peanuts! And beer!
Slartibartfast:
I'd much rather be happy than right any day.
Arthur: And are you?
Slartibartfast: Ahh... No.
[laughs, snorts]
Slartibartfast: Well, that's where it all falls down,
of course.
Ford: I know
this great Restaurant at the End of the Universe.
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