The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (2005)

Mere seconds before the Earth is to be demolished by an alien construction crew, journeyman Arthur Dent is swept off the planet by his friend Ford Prefect, a researcher penning a new edition of "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy."

Director:

Garth Jennings

Writers:

Douglas Adams (book), Douglas Adams (screenplay)

Stars:

Martin Freeman, Yasiin Bey, Sam Rockwell

1 win & 10 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Bill Bailey	...	The Whale (voice)
Anna Chancellor	...	Questular Rontok
Warwick Davis	...	Marvin
Yasiin Bey	...	Ford Prefect (as Mos Def)
Zooey Deschanel	...	Trillian
Su Elliot	...	Pub Customer (as Su Eliott)
Martin Freeman	...	Arthur Dent
Stephen Fry	...	Narrator / The Guide (voice)
Richard Griffiths	...	Jeltz (voice)
Dominique Jackson	...	Fook
Simon Jones	...	Ghostly Image
Thomas Lennon	...	Eddie the Computer (voice)
Mark Longhurst	...	Bulldozer Driver
Kelly Macdonald	...	Reporter
John Malkovich	...	Humma Kavula

Storyline

Everyone has bad mornings. You wake up late, you stub your toe, you burn the toast...but for a man named Arthur Dent, this goes far beyond a bad day. When he learns that a friend of his is actually an alien with advanced knowledge of Earth's impending destruction, he is transported off the Earth seconds before it is exploded to make way for a new hyperspace motorway. And as if that's not enough, throw in being wanted by the police, Earth II, an insane electronic encyclopedia, no tea whatsoever, a chronically depressed robot and the search for the meaning of life, and you've got the greatest adventure off Earth.

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Plot Keywords:

male alien | galaxy | friend | spaceship | alien | 

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Taglines:

The most astonishing adventure in the universe begins when the world ends.

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Genres:

Adventure | Comedy | Sci-Fi

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG for thematic elements, action and mild language

Details

Country:

UK USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

29 April 2005 (USA)

Also Known As:

H2G2: le guide du voyageur galactique

Filming Locations:

Canary Islands, Spain

Box Office

Budget:

$50,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$2,092,974 (Australia) (29 April 2005)

Gross:

$51,085,416 (USA) (21 July 2005)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Touchstone Pictures, Spyglass Entertainment, Everyman Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

109 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital SDDS DTS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

This is the ninth version of the "Hitchhiker's Guide". It has previously appeared as a radio series, two record albums, novels, a television series (The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (1981)), a computer game, a stage show, a comic book, a video game (The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (1984)) and a towel. (The game version is not, in fact, a video game, but was an Infocom "interactive fiction" {text only} game, plotted/scripted by Douglas Adams, programmed by Steve Meretzky, which has been available to play free on the BBC Radio 4 website since 2005.)

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Goofs

When Arthur goes back to his house, he makes a cup of tea. When he drinks it, there is clearly milk in it, although he never put any in. When it vibrates along the table, it is black again.

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Quotes

[first lines]
The Book: It's an important and popular fact that things are not always what they seem. For instance, on the planet Earth, Man had always assumed that he was the most intelligent species occupying the planet, instead of the *third* most intelligent. The second most intelligent creatures were of course dolphins who, curiously enough, had long known of the impending destruction of the planet earth. They had made many attempts to alert mankind to the danger, but most of their communications ...

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Crazy Credits

"For Douglas" -- precedes the closing credits, after the final action sequence.

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Connections

Referenced in The Venture Bros.: Pinstripes and Poltergeists (2009)

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Soundtracks

Shoo-Rah, Shoo-Rah
Written by Allen Toussaint
Performed by Betty Wright
Courtesy or Rhino Entertainment Company
By Arrangement with Warner Strategic Marketing

User Reviews

What has all the fuss been about?

First, let me start by saying that this is a funny film.

Like many others, I suspect, I was worried by the MJ Simpson negative review, but having seen the film I can't really understand what all the fuss was about.

Personally, I am very happy that this version contains the new material. I don't want to sit in the cinema watching a line by line copy of the radio play, book, or TV series. Each of those stand by their own merit, and each were good largely because of the new material they contained.

I think the cast did an excellent job, and although Zaphod wasn't quite how I pictured him, Sam Rockwell brought a freshness to the part which largely works. His portrayal of Zaphod as a guy who "thinks he is cool", rather than "is cool" works pretty well, and once you get over the southern drawl, he soon settles as a character. Ford is beautifully played, as are all the major characters.

Admittedly, some of the criticisms that were voiced by Simpson have some justification, but most were simply overstated to support his general vitriolic attack on the "purity" of the film.

In summary, go to see this film and don't worry.

I'm looking forward to the DVD and I have all my fingers crossed for a sequel.

Martin