Slashdot Mirror
Hitchhiker's Movie is Bad, says Adams Biographer
Rollerbob writes "MJ Simpson, who has 'been studying and documenting the life and career of Douglas Adams for more than 20 years', has written a very in-depth review and plot analysis of the Hitchhiker's movie. As well as the full review that contains SPOILERS , he has also published a shortened spoiler-free version, as well as a list of things from the radio plays, records, books and TV series that have not been included in the movie. Hitchhiker's fans, prepare to be like Marvin ... very depressed."
"Really bad"
"vastly, staggeringly, jaw-droppingly bad"
"bad on a big scale"
"bad on a small scale"
"staggeringly unfunny"
"unfunny, pointless crap"
"an abomination"
"amazingly, mindbogglingly awful"
"a terrible, terrible film"
(And that's from the short review)
Here is another review of the movie.
"One thing's for sure... Douglas Adams would be very proud. In the end, that's the greatest success that Robbie Stamp and Spyglass Entertainment and Jay Roach and Touchstone could have hoped for."
The odd thing is, though, that here the screenwriter, Karey Kirkpatrick, discusses just those things that make Adams' writing Adams' writing, and it really seemed he got it.
No, I think it was meant to be a radio drama originally. The books were adaptations that came later.
Now you'd think that adapting a radio program to a movie would be cake...just add visuals. Apparently that is not the case.
"Leave the strategizing to those of us with planet-sized brains." -Tycho
RTFA. The reviewer complains that lots of inferior material is inserted instead of the good jokes that are pulled out.
You have to know that the original person attached to the script was "Mr Ghostbusters" Ivan Reitman. Douglas Adams hated this choice, as he felt Reitman lacked any of the subtleties or wit necessary to do the film (see also Meatballs, Kindergarden Cop, and Evolution). But the studio refused to back down. However, while Douglas was under contractual obligation to deliver a script, the contract didn't specify when. So Douglas sat on it. and sat on it. and sat on it. and basically refused to finish it unless another person was attached to the project. I believe that is where it stood when he died... material he had started writing twenty years prior and had intentionally never finished got finished by someone else and squished into a movie.
If you're desperate for more of that genuine Douglas Adams wit, check out
Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency,
The Long Dark Tea time of the Soul,
The Deeper Meaning of Liff, and
The Last Chance to See.
They're all very good, but The Last Chance to See has to be at the top of the list, if for no other reason than the idea of Mr. Hitchhiker's Guide getting paid to write a travelogue is so engaging, and the subject matter so brilliant. The Dirk Gently series is spot on as well. While the character archetypes are quite recognizable from the HHGTG, that's not necessarily a bad thing.
Also, many people don't know this but the radio scripts diverge pretty far from the books, with entire planets and escapades not present in the texts. They're also worth a read. And the companion book to both gives insight and humor into the whole process, and is required reading for anyone who wants to understand what the heck went on. It includes little DA gems like a sketch about a veteran kamikazee pilot.
The HHGTG videogame also contains a wealth of amazing material not available elsewhere, though you will need to cheat like mad to get through it. Starship Titanic the book wasn't wirtten by DA, but the game was. The game, sadly, isn't very good, though if you're desperate it was better than this movie sounds like it will be. The Parrot in that game was also a gem.
The ______ Agenda