ONE THING before speaking of these reviews. I would like to stress AGAIN than the fact that the Hitchhiker’s movie differs from the book was Douglas’ own will. So please don’t say that it’s Disney or Karey Kirkpatrick’s faults if the movie has included some new stuff and if it seems to be different from the book on several points.
As I’ve announced a few days ago on this website, there has been a test screening the 27th at Los Angeles. There are already a few reviews online on Aintitcool and imdb. Let’s listen to Harry from Aintitcool first “Director Garth Jennings was at the screening along with producer Jay Roach. The whole point about this screening was to get feedback to see what was working so far and where they have to go on this. Roach loves to test screen and tinker, and there’s evidently a lot more work everyone wants to do to make this thing great. Remember – these folks have seen a film minus 20 minutes or so, minus a finished score, final editing (which is king on comedy timing).”
THE IMDB AND AINTITCOOL REVIEWS
These critics are interesting and contain spoilers of course (mainly the second imdb critic). There are two critics on aintitcool. One who think the movie is “mostly terrific” and an other one who didn’t like so much the movie. The one imdb is 75% satisfied too
Moriarty from aintitcool published also a short review on chud.com forum : “I’ll say this much for now… if you’re a Douglas Adams fan, prepare for a big wet sloppy kiss. This is an affectionate, huge-hearted tribute to the man’s work and his sense of humor, right down to a final shot that almost brings tears to the eyes.” He then published a bigger review (but with a lot of spoilers on aintitcool) : “I thought the film was a glorious shambling tribute to the work of Adams, a beautifully realized vision filled to the brim with quirky performances and hilarious details. It’s almost shockingly eccentric and manages to stay very faithful to the spirit of all the previous incarnations of the story while also contributing some fascinating new ideas to the overall mythos.”
THE REVIEW ON H2G2
On h2g2, HighRevMac publishes an enthusiastic review : “I’m sure there will be fans who find things to complain about. A couple of my favorite lines were AWOL, and it gets just a little bit Hollywood in some points (Romance, Action). But on the other hand I really liked some of the new bits and even some of the Hollywood elements (Romance, Action…). I thought that Martin Freeman did a great jod as Arthur and Mos Def was perfect as Ford Prefect. Sam Rockwell as Zaphod was a lot of fun and I think I enjoyed the way his extra head and arm were done, but i still have some niggling little doubts. See what you think, when you see it yourselves.There’s also a very sequelesque open door left at the end of the movie. Good and Bad. If one gets made, great! If not, grrrr.Overall though, I highly recommend the Hitchhikers Guide To The Galaxy as an excellent movie. One that I think will please both fans and the general public at large.”
REVIEW FROM FREEZEDRIEDMOVIES.COM
Bob G Smith has posted a review on freezedfriedmovies.com. He gives a score of 10/10 to the movie : “The movie started strong and continued to hold pace through the rest of the film, which is a rarity now days. A large portion of the film was just how I imagined it in the book, especially the Improbability Drive. The overall design of the film was very inspired and kept the irreverent tone of the books without becoming outlandish or out-right silly. I’ve seen some complaints about the film’s design and FX, it seems some people forgot we were watching a work print, yes some of the FX look a little iffy, but that’s because it’s not done yet. So yes, things like Zaphod’s third arm and second head looked a bit out of place, but when it’s finished and all slicked out it’ll look fine. Even with the unfinished FX they did a good job mixing models & men in suits with CGI, there was nothing I saw that was out of place at all. All roughness aside the FX worked well, the costumes were great, and the creature design was wonderful! I love the way the Vogon’s look in this, maintaining some elements of the BBC mini while doing something new with it… The performances were top notch…. Mos Def really impressed me as Ford…. Sam Rockwell as Zaphod was a great mix of George W. swagger and bumbling idiot… Zooey Deschanel was, at times, was a little dry as Trillian but overall her performance was very heartfelt… Alan Rickman’s voice work as Marvin was perfect…. Martin Freeman was Arthur Dent, just as I’d pictured him”
SOME SPARCE CRITICS
The critics, when there are ones, go to the lovestory between Arthur and Trillian and some acting from Mos, Sam and Zooey. But nobody seems think the same thing so it’s hard to say. One guy thinks that special effects look cheap (but they are not finished, this is only a test screening!), an other one don’t like the Vogons (well I love them), some think that they’re not enough Narrator stuff (but they are going to add some). Everybody seem to love Marvin (with Alan Rickman’s voice), Bill Nighy, and recognize that there are some very funny parts (the whale,…). Maybe the comedy timing is not here still. But once again, the work on the movie is not finished, and the aim of a test screening is to be able to see public reactions and improve the movie.
