chez dafyd

“The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy” is an absolutely brilliant fantstic super-duper film. Full stop. See it!

From the Busby-esque beginning sequence with the dolphins (“so long and thanks for all the fish”) to the finale with the mice (if you don’t know the story … don’t ask!), it’s a non-stop romp through one of the English language’s greatest novels. The scene with Eddie Izzard Bill Bailey’s sperm whale hurtling through the atmosphere is seriously inspired!

Despite being made by Disney and Jerry Bruckheimer’s production studio, H2G2 is also an affectionate tribute to Douglas Adams (who died in 2001) and the complicated history of the saga. Adams himself appears in no less than two scenes of the film (indeed, he’s the very last image), the Marvin from the TV series puts in an appearance, as does Simon Jones (the original Arthur Dent).

This is, of course, the ninth incarnation of H2G2 – it previously appeared as a radio series, a record album, a novel, a television series, a computer game, a stage show, a comic book and a towel. The film certainly does the others proud!

It’s also a quintessentially British film – despite having several American cast members. In fact, these Americans don’t stand out – rather, they emphasise the diversity of the universe Adams created. Before his death, he said that “when it comes down to it, my principle is this – Arthur should be British. The rest of the cast should be decided purely on merit and not on nationality.” That is exactly what the film does – and it does it very, very well.

I know other people have really enjoyed the film, and I have no doubt that you will too…

Go And See It!