![]() A H2G2 movie could have been brilliant, but with the changes to the source for fans of the original, it's average. The greatness shows what COULD have been. It is these parts, and the 20year slog, that gets me to a 4/10 There were moments of greatness, and it's in that that I am most upset. I thought some of the visuals of the movie were brilliant. To be fair, there are some things I do like in this. I am a dyed in the wool fan of the books. I can see what they did.- I personally don't like the movie much. Each form is a different entity, so this movie should be regarded in that sense. You need to remember that H2G2 in every version has contradicted itself. Even some new characters where made by DNA for the movie. Trillian and Arthur end up in a love story, Zaphod's turned into a prick, the plot is changed a bit, and the inclusion of slapstick humour. But then they wanted it to appeal to the masses. I can see what they did.- They wanted to make a movie that was still H2G2 in a sense. Best moment: Ford attacks the Vogons with a towel and foils them by closing a tiny garden gate ("Oh no! We'll have to go around!"). Still, it's p***-funny and that's the main thing. So I loved it, though the ending is also a bit of an anti-climax, but only perhaps because I was expecting something bigger. ![]() The opening title song is worth the price of admission alone (think Eric Idle at his peak). The FX are great, both CGI and the Jim Henson creatures (the Vogons, brilliantly voiced by The League of Gentleman). Again, Deschanel is an odd choice (another yank) but she is utterly spellbinding (oh the shower scene.hubba hubba). Trillian isn't that important in the novel and the movie bumps up her role to a love triangle situation between her Arthur and Zaphod. The cast: never been a fan of the office but Martin Freeman is perfect as Arthur Dent, Sam Rockwell hilariously OTT and Mos Def a surprising choice but one that really works. The new stuff is cleverly done and works a treat IMO. As an adaptation I think it works extremely well though there were a few confusing moments even for me as the large philosophical questions were crammed into two hours worth of movie. Think Monty Python in space, or a very British version of The Fifth Element. If you've never read the books (and I suggest you do, it moves at such a pace you might find yourself going 'eh?' a lot) then I don't know what you'd make of it. I saw it with about 2000 media persons and we all loved it, which is a pretty hard thing to accomplish. It's very funny, very kooky and visually gorgeous. Other flaws are the confused storytelling, the tedious pacing, the embarrassing dialogue, characters that are devoid of any complexity and turned into walking clichés and less-than-mediocre direction. ![]() ![]() I try not to be a purist, but this adaptation is far too condensed and pivotal elements are lost of their meaning and some especially the romance are shoe-horned and feel superfluous. The book is so good, but impossible to compress into a 2-hour movie. So what was wrong with this movie? A lot of things is the correct answer. Helen Mirren? Alan Rickman? Bill Nighhy? Anna Chancellor? Sam Rockwell? Sterling actors, but wasted by quite a number of components, Rockwell especially is made to go over-the-top and it doesn't work at all. My biggest beef of the film is how much the cast is wasted. Joby Talbot's music is both good and disappointing, good in the sense of how well it is composed, disappointing in how it fitted with the film's moods. The only redeeming merits are some of the effects, costume and set design(apart from the villains which were too grotesque and the Vogons look silly) and the performance of Martin Freeman. The source material is so good, and deserves a much better movie and adaptation than this misfire. The BBC mini-series may have had a low budget, but overall it was excellent and captured the essence of the story wonderfully, which this film doesn't.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |