After literally decades of trying to bring Douglas Adams' magnum opus to the big screen, the Hitch Hiker's Guide to the Galaxy has finally hit the movie theatre. I've been a fan of the books and the radio show since I was a little kid, so I was filled with both anticipation and nervousness as I stepped into the movie theatre to see what Hollywood had wrought. But, for the most part, they got it right.
It isn't perfect, and they took some liberties with the original story, but the actors all put in a good try with characters who are a little off-kilter to begin with. Martin Freeman, who plays Arthur Dent, gets the role more or less spot-on, and Sam Rockwell is pure comedy gold as Zaphod. Mos Def is fine as Ford Prefect, and Zooey Deschanel isn't terrible as Trillian. Alan Rickman does a fine Marvin, though he's more mopey and less of a bastard than in previous versions.
But the standout is, of course, the book, voiced by Stephen Fry. The best thing about the old BBC TV series was the animations during the book sequences, and the movie pulls those off in fine form. And as somebody who had his sense of humour and outlook on life permanently warped by the books at age 12, I have to admit I choked back a tear when the book was first introduced to a sweeping version of the old guitar score used in the radio program.
The places the movie takes a right turn from the book generally work well; a trip to the Vogon home planet devolves into a action packed sequence of filling out forms, which is a lot funnier than it sounds. And the insanity of the infinite improbability drive is executed in fine form, especially when all the characters turn into stop motion yarn puppets (trust me, it makes sense, sorta.)
So while it isn't perfect, and the plot sort of meanders around all over the place, it's enough to keep a hardcore fan like myself happy. I doubt there'll be a sequel, as I was the only one laughing at some points, but it's definitely a fine effort.