doggans

Whenever a much-loved franchise is being brought to the big screen, there are going to be upset fans. If a film is in development for a particularly long time, say, over 20 years, expectations rise, and the chances of fans being upset increase exponentially. For example, when the film Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace came out, many fans were outraged that the film was anything less than Citizen Kane in a galaxy far, far away. In the case of the film version of Douglas Adams' masterpiece saga, almost every fan had their own version of the film planned out in their head. Many were outraged to discover that Garth Jennings had not, in fact, consulted them as to how tall Marvin the Paranoid Android should be. However, many fans who believe themselves to be more sensible knew going into the film that a perfect Hitchhiker film would be virtually impossible, and therefore finitely improbable, and since the filmmakers do not have an Improbability Drive, a perfect film would not be made. They also knew that the film would be different than any previous version of Hitchhiker, like every previous version was different than any that came before it. Many of these fans were able to leave the theater very satisfied indeed.

I am one of these fans. I had been hyping myself up for the film for a very long time, but I was always keeping myself in check, reminding myself that this would not be exactly how I envisioned it. As an amateur filmmaker, that was hard to do, as I rarely read any book without knowing exactly how I would composite the shot and what the tempo of the score would be. Nevertheless, I kept my own personal view in check, and reminded myself that if I could survive the BBC TV series, I could survive anything that the Guide had to throw at me. As it turns out, I didn't just survive it, I loved it.

The film starts off on the right note with a show-stopping musical number based on one of the most popular lines from the saga. This immediately sets the tone for the whole movie. The song manages to be both hilarious and catchy, and the melody is used very well throughout the whole score. (Incidentally, I must praise Joby Talbot's excellent score, which manages to combine John Williamsian adventurous themes, futuristic electronic beats, and even Broadway-worthy show tunes.)

As much as I loved the dialogue from previous versions about the bypass (Beware of the Leopard, points A, B, and C, etc.), I , unlike a number of fans, do not think the film suffered by having it cut down. Most of the cuts from previous versions, though I would have liked to see them, I was okay with. (I noticed these purist fans didn't seem to complain when Lady Cynthia Fitz-Miltion's speech was cut from the radio version to the book version.) Even though I had always wanted Hugh Laurie in the role, Martin Freeman was an amazing Arthur Dent. Granted, the role was originally written for Simon Jones, but Freeman plays the part very well. The character is not as sarcastic as he has been in the past, but it's understandable given his predicament. Mos Def is the best Ford Prefect I've ever seen. He does an excellent job with the difficult task of conveying Ford as both intelligent and insane. Sam Rockwell is just the annoying prick I always pictured Zaphod as. (Although I'm not sure why he got top billing, but then again, I also wasn't sure why they said "based on the book" and neglected to mention the radio version, except that the book is better known.) Zooey Deschanel is the intelligent, charming, witty astrophysicist Trillian that Sandra Dickinson wasn't. What's more, she actually has a personality in this version. I think that might be a first. The always-wonderful Stephen Fry and Alan Rickman were of course wonderful in their voice roles. Rickman even sounded a bit like Steven Moore. Although I do feel that credit must go to Warwick Davis for providing very Marvinlike motions. Acting without speaking is difficult, and Davis pulled it off well. And Bill Nighy as Slartibartfast...I had read several reviews saying they were amazed at the depth Nighy brought to the character. I sort of shrugged these reviews off, thinking Slartibartfast was a character that it wasn't possible to bring depth to. But Nighy is excellent.

Simon Jones, the TV Marvin costume, and the face of the late Douglas Adams all have excellent cameos as well.

As for the new characters, I heard many complaints that they were pointless additions. (Yes, from the same people who get upset that subplots about man proving the nonexistance of God got left on the cutting room floor.) I, however, didn't think they were distracting from the story or anything, and I felt they were setting things up for the sequel. Also, I enjoyed how the Vogons and the Ravenous Bugblatter Beast were more central to the plot than usual.

I didn't think the love story ruined the film, but then, I've always been a bit of a romantic.

Some people claim that newcomers to the Guide won't be able to follow the plot. I went to see it with a few friends, one of whom had never experienced the Guide in any form, but he followed it perfectly. So, if you are paying attention, you should be able to understand most of the film as best as it can be understood, but just the same, you might want to bring one of your hoopy frood friends who has the radio play, book, TV series, and computer game committed to memory along to explain any loose ends.

All in all, the film, while not perfect, was excellent. It was almost, but not quite, entirely unlike imperfect. 4.5 stars out of 5.

Every internet geek should be familiar with the genius of the Brothers Chaps and their Homestar Runner cartoons, which first became popular with the release of the Strong Bad Emails in 2002. This DVD collection features the first hundred installments of the usually-weekly short, plus audio commentaries, mockumentaries, puppet stuff, music videos, and more. Matt Chapman proves himself to be quite possible the most talented voice actor since Mel Blanc, and both Mike and Matt show their writing talent, with subtly clever satires on everything from music, to movies, to television, to video games, and most importantly, the Internet, and the Eighties.

Most of the easter eggs from the site are accessible on the DVD, and some new ones have also been included. All in all, this belongs in every Homestar fan's collection, and I hope we don't have to wait too long before the next batch of emails on DVD, or perhaps some of the other cartoons. (I think "Where's the Cheat" deserves to be on DVD, as well as the Marzipan Answering Machines.) It is now my intention to play video games for several hours.

Adam Bertocci's latest short film has a more professional feel than most of his earlier works, not to mention more humor. With the Lola Rennt/Star Wars crossover "Run Leia Run" and the one-man blackout short "Sparky", Bertocci provided many laughs and showed a great sense of satire, finding humor in movies and in everyday life. With "Love: The Movie", he returns to both sources, comparing making a movie with falling in love. Although the film might be funnier to a filmmaker, it should be entertaining to anyone. The dialogue is clever, the performances by the cast are excellent, the musical score is quite good, and the ending is everything we've come to expect from Bertocci. If this film has any flaw at all, it is only that it is too short. We can't wait to see what Bertocci could do with a feature-length film budget and resources.