The Hitchhiker's Guide To the Galaxy
2005
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Ordinary guy Arthur Dent (Martin Freeman) wakes up one day to see that his house is about to be demolished to make room for a new highway. What he doesn?t know is that the planet earth is also scheduled for demolition by aliens to make way for a new hyperspace highway. His supposedly out-of-work-actor of a best friend Ford Prefect (Mos Def) is also an alien, albeit a friendly one, and manages to save Arthur. After the destruction of the earth, they eventually and very improbably end up in the company of the not-so-bright president of the galaxy (Sam Rockwell), a chrnoically depressed robot (Warwick Davis/voice of Alan Rickman), and the last woman from earth (Zooey Deschanel), and embark on a wonderfully improbably adventure.
Many fans of the book objected to this film because it isn't as funny as the book. Of course, you couldn't possibly make something as funny as the book: so much of the humor was simply in how the book was narrated. Example: "Nothing happened. Then, after a moment, nothing continued to happen." The entire book is like that, as everything is simply described in a clever, amusing way. However, what the detractors of this film fail to notice is that this film is, in and of itself, very, very funny, and absolutely perfectly designed.
First, the casting was a stroke of genius. Freeman is perfect. I mean, he is perfect beyond perfect. Few adaptations of a book have found such perfection in their central character; this is precisely what Arthur Dent needs to be: likeably normal, and funny because of his reactions to everything and discomfort with the universe he's untintentionally discovered. Mos Def seems like an odd choice, but he hits the nail right on the head, capturing Ford's almost complete detatchment from everything... when he has his towel with him. Without his towel, he becomes hopeless. Deschanel isn't really like Trillian is in the book, but there's a reason: the character in the book is very, very strange and unapproachable. What Deschanel does here is be completely likeable but just weird enough to be exactly what a film version of Trillian would have to be. Rockwell is totally unhinged on a Gary Oldman level, except with a method to the madness. Also very funny. Stephen Fry narrates very nicely. Bill Nighy is hilarious in the small role of Slartibartfast, with a salesman's smile not even remotely diguising his cynical, downbeat look. And Rickman is truly brilliant as the permanately depressed robot, the greatest character in the books - and, as it turns out, the film.
The cast hits every character and every gag perfectly while the costume and set designers do an absolutely wonderful job in making everything look even better than you imagined from the book (I especially like the Vogons). Director Garth Jennings makes most of the gags about as well as they can be made and certainly understands his material well; sometimes he makes everything loud instead of funny, but it usually works. The script is filled with Adams? brilliantly satric silliness that is often side-splitting for more than one reason. Some of the special effects aren?t completely convincing, but they work perfectly with the material. It probably wouldn?t have been as good with better effects, and some of them are truly spectacular.
However, as fast, funny, and enjoyable as this film is, it?s never anywhere near as absolutely hilarious as the book. Yes, it?s the same basic thing, and it does actually do a few things better than the book (primarily developing Trilian and the romance [I?m comparing the romance in the film to the one in the fourth book]) and adds some wonderful things (Adams was one of the screenwriters and came up with some truly brilliant ideas, like the Vogons' home world and the Point-Of-View Gun) but the wording of the dialogue and narrative the book should have been better maintained. If so, it would have made this even better. Not that it would be possible to fully capture that, but it could have been better. For example, the roundabout way Ford delays the construction workers from immediately destroying Arthur's house in the book is so much funnier than the cheap gag he uses here (although it is amusing). Also, some of the changes from the book don't work; the ending is a little too upbeat, and the trip to the world where everyone sneezes goes on too long.
That doesn?t mean it isn?t exceptionally entertaining anyway. After all, it's a funny, intelligent, occassionally hilarious, and very enjoyable film. At times, it approaches greatness, which is rare for comedies. Honestly, it?s one of the better comedies so far of the 21st century.
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