Review

Review Date: 1-May-05
Spoiler Rating: Medium
Juju Judgment: Just OK

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (2005)

Call me a square (or perhaps not square enough), but I have never read Douglas Adams' sci-fi comedy classic "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy." Being in a state of ignorance about the source material is usually the best way to see a movie adaptation, and I claim that advantage here. For the theatrical "Hitchhiker's Guide" doesn't offer anything in the way of cleverness, satire, or out-and-out hilarity that would suggest a book worthy of legions of fans (on Earth or anywhere else). Happily, it couldn't disappoint me; but unfortunately, I found it only moderately entertaining.

"Hitchhiker's Guide" relates the comic misadventures of a British bloke named Arthur Dent (Martin Freeman), who wakes one morning to the dual problems of heartbreak and forcible eviction: he recently met and lost the girl of his dreams (Zooey Deschanel), and a construction crew is planning to raze his house to make way for a new thoroughfare. In a sort of good news/bad news scenario, one of these difficulties is speedily erased when a group of fat-lipped, über-bureaucratic aliens blow up Earth to make way for a new space route. Aided by his friend Ford (Mos Def), Arthur escapes the destruction by heading out into space, where he miraculously reunites with his love interest and joins her in following an egotistical celebrity named Zaphod Beeblebrox (Sam Rockwell) and a manic-depressive robot called Marvin (voiced by Alan Rickman). Together, this motley crew bops from planet to planet encountering strange creatures (like John Malkovich) and discovering truths of varying depth and seriousness.

The highlight of "Hitchhiker's Guide" is a dazzling sequence in which a cosmic engineer played by Bill Nighy takes Arthur on a tour of where planets are made. Regrettably, this is the only scene in which the imagination of the filmmakers begins to soar. (The flick may be a comedy, but if you're going to take me into outer space you'd better make it worth the trip.) For the most part, the action involves slapstick or the lampooning of human faults like self-obsession and overzealous philosophical thought, none of which the cast can elevate above the generic. Freeman is likable and has splendid hair, but Rockwell gets tired really quickly and Deschanel seems uncomfortably out of place. (Her wide-eyed, offbeat girl-next-door schtick has run its course and is now grating, particularly here.) Naturally — since every studio wants merchandising revenue in addition to ticket sales — the robot Marvin is cute, chiefly because of his perfectly round, slightly oversized head. But he can't carry this sucker alone, especially being such a drip.

This is probably the one movie in history to which a reviewer would most want to give a "thumbs up," but, alas, honesty robs me of the pun. The movie version of "Hitchhiker's Guide" made me more culturally literate (now I know the inspiration for Zapp Branigan on "Futurama" and, perhaps, Dolores Umbridge in Harry Potter 5), but it didn't give me much beyond that.

Copyright © 2005 The Jujube (M. I. Kim). All rights reserved.