Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy – Garth Jennings
From the very first shot of dolphins playfully jumping in water to the very last shots of Bill Nighy as “the creater”, the Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy is a film that nerds and non-nerds can appreciate together. Even if you haven’t read Douglas Adams’s novels, or listened to the radio show, this film provides enough background information to make you want to go on adventures in this wacky parallel world.
Arthur Dent, played by the adorably awkward Martin Freeman, is the most ordinary of British citizens faced with the double destruction of his home. All he wants is a warm cup of tea, but little does he know, he is about to discover the secret to “life, the universe, …everything.” Lucky for him, he is saved by his best friend Ford, played by Mos Def, an alien who is in the know about the plans for a hyperspace bypass through earth. Together, they encounter aliens of all shapes and sizes, a spunky earth girl played by Zooey Deschanel, and a creepy two-headed Sam Rockwell. Rockwell as the President of the Galaxy seems horribly fatuous and useless, but is in fact on the quest to know the answer to everything. He hijacks a spaceship with an unpredictable improbability drive for his quest, picking up hitchhikers Arthur and Ford after they’ve been expelled into space by the Vogons, a highly bureaucratic species of blobs. On their way to discover the secret to life, the universe, everything, they meet Humma Kavula, the other presidential candidate. John Malkovich as the presidential loser is deliciously evil. One of the highlights of the film is the religious ceremony led by Humma Kavula, a parody of Catholic mass. At the end of a prayer, instead of “amen”, the worshipers sneeze an “atchoo!”
Even if the plot sounds horribly geeky and predictable, Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy is worth watching just for the visual effects and the amazing fixtures in Douglas Adams’s fictional world. With inventions from craving detector, to manically depressed robots, to bread slicers that toast, to lemon juicer thinking caps, every instant of the film will be sure to delight viewers. The name of the film comes from an electronic guidebook for hitchhiking tourists, being researched by Ford. The makers of the film made the effort to animate several necessary entries from the actual Guide to the Galaxy, explaining natural occurrences in the only way expected from this crazy parallel world. The Babel fish, namesake of the online translator, is an actual fish that processes foreign languages to something understandable for the individual in whose head the fish resides. Some of the more far-fetched entries touch on quantum physics, catering to the die-hard scientist fans of Douglas Adams.
In the special features, viewers can find an extra entry from the very brilliant electronic Guide to the Galaxy, as well as many deleted scenes and outtakes. In addition to the standard “making of’ featurette and commentaries, there is even a sing-along video for “So Long, and Thanks for All the Fish,” the clever song sung by the second most intelligent creatures on earth, the dolphins.
Even though the plot is pretty predictable, with a happy ending, certain embellishments of the story are original. Douglas Adams fans are sure to be enraged by the “C” that I give the film for story. However, the film deserves a solid A for originality and visuals. The acting is trivial compared to the construction of Adams’s space world. Overall though, this film gets a B. It is good enough to warrant one viewing, but probably not interesting enough to watch more than once. If you’re looking for a lighthearted film to serve as an escape vehicle from today’s busy world, this mildly enjoyable film is your spaceship.
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