The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

Directed by	Garth Jennings
Written by	Douglas Adams (book/original screenplay) Karey Kirkpatrick
Starring	Martin Freeman Mos Def Sam Rockwell Zooey Deschanel Bill Nighy Stephen Fry John Malkovich Anna Chancellor Jack Stanley Dominique Jackson Warwick Davis
Produced by	Douglas Adams (posthumous credit) Derek Evans Robbie Stamp
Distributed by	Buena Vista Pictures
Release date	April 28, 2005 (UK, Ireland, Australia); April 29, 2005 (USA)
Runtime	USA: 110 min
Language	English
Budget	$45-50,000,000 (estimate)
IMDb page

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy is a science-fiction movie based on the book of the same name by Douglas Adams. Shooting was completed in August 2004 and the movie was released on April 28, 2005 in the UK, Australia and New Zealand; and on the following day in the USA. It is scheduled to be rolled out to cinemas worldwide during May, June, July, and August. Download high resolution version (1798x2667, 663 KB) File links The following pages link to this file: The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy (movie) Categories: Fair use posters ... Hammer & Tongs is the pseudonym of promo and movie director Garth Jennings and producer Nick Goldsmith, as well as the name of their production company. ... Douglas Noël Adams in an undated publicity photograph Douglas Noël Adams (March 11, 1952 – May 11, 2001), also known as Bop Ad or Bob (after his illegible signature) or by his initials DNA, was a British comic radio dramatist and author, most notably of The Hitchhikers Guide... Karey Kirkpatrick is a screenwriter. ... Martin Freeman (born September 8, 1971, Aldershot) is an English actor most famous for playing Tim Canterbury in the BBCs Golden Globe winning comedy The Office. ... Mos Def (born Dante Beze on December 11, 1973) is a Brooklyn-born rapper and actor, who began his performing career on the television show The Cosby Mysteries in 1994. ... Sam Rockwell (born November 5, 1968) is an American film actor from Daly City, California. ... Publicity still of Zooey Deschanel as Trillian in The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy (2005) Zooey Claire Deschanel (born January 17, 1980 in Los Angeles, California) is an American actress. ... Bill Nighy (born December 12, 1949 in Caterham, Surrey) is a British actor. ... Stephen Fry on the cover of his autobiography Stephen John Fry (born 24 August, 1957) is a British comedian, author, actor, and director. ... John Malkovich at the Grimme Online Award 2005 at Schloss Bensberg. ... Anna Chancellor is a British actress. ... Photo Credit: David Harrison Warwick Davis (born February 3, 1970) is an actor noted for being short — he is three feet six inches (about one metre) tall. ... Robbie Stamp was born in 1960 and had his career in producing television documentaries when he met Douglas Adams, with whom he formed a great friendship. ... The Buena Vista Motion Pictures Group is a collection of affiliated motion picture studios, all subsidaries of The Walt Disney Company. ... April 28 is the 118th day of the year (119th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 247 days remaining. ... 2005 is a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar and is the current year. ... April 29 is the 119th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (120th in leap years). ... 2005 is a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar and is the current year. ... The United States dollar is the official currency of the United States. ... A collection of classic science fiction novels Science fiction is a form of speculative fiction principally dealing with the impact of imagined science and technology upon society and persons as individuals. ... The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy (1979, ISBN 0330258648) is the title of the first of five books in the Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy comedy science fiction series by Douglas Adams. ... Douglas Noël Adams in an undated publicity photograph Douglas Noël Adams (March 11, 1952 – May 11, 2001), also known as Bop Ad or Bob (after his illegible signature) or by his initials DNA, was a British comic radio dramatist and author, most notably of The Hitchhikers Guide... Note: as an adjective (stressed on the second syllable instead of the first), august means honorable. ... 2004 is a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... April 28 is the 118th day of the year (119th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 247 days remaining. ... 2005 is a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar and is the current year. ...

The screenplay was begun by Adams and completed by Garth Jennings and Karey Kirkpatrick after Adams' death. Hammer & Tongs is the pseudonym of promo and movie director Garth Jennings and producer Nick Goldsmith, as well as the name of their production company. ... Karey Kirkpatrick is a screenwriter. ...

Cast

• Martin Freeman as Arthur Dent
• Mos Def as Ford Prefect
• Sam Rockwell as Zaphod Beeblebrox
• Zooey Deschanel as Trillian
• Bill Nighy as Slartibartfast
• John Malkovich as Humma Kavula
• Anna Chancellor as Questular Rontok
• Jack Stanley and Dominique Jackson as Lunkwill and Fook
• Steve Pemberton as Prosser
• Albie Woodington as the barman
• Jason Schwartzman as Gag Halfrunt
• Simon Jones as "Ghostly Image"
• Mark Longhurst as "Bulldozer Driver"
• Su Elliott as "Pub Customer"
• Terry Bamber as "Technician"
• Kelly MacDonald as "Reporter"
• Helen Mirren as the voice of Deep Thought
• Bill Bailey as the voice of the whale
• Tom Lennon as Eddie the Shipboard Computer
• Warwick Davis as the body of Marvin
• Alan Rickman as the voice of Marvin.
• Stephen Fry as the voice of The Guide
• Ian McNeice voices Kwaltz, a Vogon
• Richard Griffiths as the voice of Prostetnic Vogon Jeltz
• Mark Gatiss - Vogon voice
• Reece Shearsmith - Vogon voice
• Steve Pemberton - Vogon voice

Martin Freeman (born September 8, 1971, Aldershot) is an English actor most famous for playing Tim Canterbury in the BBCs Golden Globe winning comedy The Office. ... Simon Jones as an upset Arthur Dent, watching his home being demolished in the first episode of the BBC TV series. ... Mos Def (born Dante Beze on December 11, 1973) is a Brooklyn-born rapper and actor, who began his performing career on the television show The Cosby Mysteries in 1994. ... David Dixon as Ford Prefect in Episode One of the TV adaptation of The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy. ... Sam Rockwell (born November 5, 1968) is an American film actor from Daly City, California. ... Mark Wing-Davey as Zaphod Beeblebrox, from the TV adaptation. ... Publicity still of Zooey Deschanel as Trillian in The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy (2005) Zooey Claire Deschanel (born January 17, 1980 in Los Angeles, California) is an American actress. ... Tricia McMillan aka Trillian is a fictional character from Douglas Adams series The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy. ... Bill Nighy (born December 12, 1949 in Caterham, Surrey) is a British actor. ... There are many minor characters in the various versions of The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy, by Douglas Adams. ... John Malkovich at the Grimme Online Award 2005 at Schloss Bensberg. ... There are many minor characters in the various versions of The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy, by Douglas Adams. ... Anna Chancellor is a British actress. ... There are many minor characters in the various versions of The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy, by Douglas Adams. ... There are many minor characters in the various versions of The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy, by Douglas Adams. ... Steve Pemberton (b. ... There are many minor characters in the various versions of The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy, by Douglas Adams. ... Jason Schwartzman (born June 26, 1980) is an American actor. ... There are many minor characters in the various versions of The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy, by Douglas Adams. ... Simon Jones (born July 27, 1950 in Charlton Park, Wiltshire) is an English actor, most famous for his appearances in the television and radio series of The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy, in which he played the lead role of Arthur Dent. ... Kelly Macdonald (b. ... Mirren aged 24 in Age of Consent (1969) Dame Helen Mirren (born Ilyena Lydia Mironoff July 26, 1945) is a British stage, television and movie actress. ... There are many minor characters in the various versions of The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy, by Douglas Adams. ... Bill Bailey (born 1964 as Mark Bailey) is a British musician and comedian. ... There are many minor characters in the various versions of The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy, by Douglas Adams. ... Photo Credit: David Harrison Warwick Davis (born February 3, 1970) is an actor noted for being short — he is three feet six inches (about one metre) tall. ... In the BBC TV series, the marketing division of the Sirius Cybernetics Corporation defines a robot [like Marvin] as Your plastic pal whos fun to be with. A close-up of the Marvin costume from the 1981 TV series, from Episode Five. ... Alan Sidney Patrick Rickman (born February 21, 1946) is a British stage and screen actor. ... Stephen Fry on the cover of his autobiography Stephen John Fry (born 24 August, 1957) is a British comedian, author, actor, and director. ... Some fictional universes feature useful guidebooks which assist the hero and friends through difficult situations. ... There are many minor characters in the various versions of The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy, by Douglas Adams. ... Prostetnic Vogon Jeltz, a Vogon from the BBC television series. ... Richard Griffiths Richard Griffiths (born 31 July 1947 in Thornaby-on-Tees, Cleveland) is a British actor. ... There are many minor characters in the various versions of The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy, by Douglas Adams. ... Mark Gatiss (born October 17, 1966 in Sedgefield, County Durham) is a British actor and writer. ... Prostetnic Vogon Jeltz, a Vogon from the BBC television series. ... Reece Shearsmith (born 27 August 1969 in Hull) is a British comedy performer and writer. ... Steve Pemberton (b. ...

Production

In a Slashdot interview [1], Robbie Stamp, one of the film's executive producers, noted the following about the cast of the film: Slashdot (frequently abbreviated as /.) is a popular technology-related website, updated many times daily with articles that are short summaries of stories on other websites with links to the stories, and provisions for readers to comment on the story. ... Robbie Stamp was born in 1960 and had his career in producing television documentaries when he met Douglas Adams, with whom he formed a great friendship. ... Executive producer is a role in the entertainment industry that is difficult to define clearly. ...

• The hardest character to cast was "the voice of the Guide itself and in the end came back to somebody who was one of the people Douglas himself had wanted, namely Stephen Fry."
• "Douglas himself is on record as saying that as far as he was concerned the only character who had to be British, indeed English, was Arthur Dent."

Preparations for the premiere of Hitchiker's Guide to the Galaxy on Leicester Square

Stamp also commented on how much role the studio and the other screenwriters (other than Adams that is) had on the film: Stephen Fry on the cover of his autobiography Stephen John Fry (born 24 August, 1957) is a British comedian, author, actor, and director. ... Simon Jones as an upset Arthur Dent, watching his home being demolished in the first episode of the BBC TV series. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1024x768, 256 KB)Preparations for the premiere of Hitchikers Guide to the Galaxy on Leicester Square. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1024x768, 256 KB)Preparations for the premiere of Hitchikers Guide to the Galaxy on Leicester Square. ...

• "I think that a lot of fans would be surprised to know just how much of a free hand we have been given in the making of this movie. I know how easy it is to see every decision to cut a scene as 'studio' pressure but it was always much more to do with pacing and rhythm in the film itself."
• "The script we shot was very much based on the last draft that Douglas wrote....All the substantive new ideas in the movie...are brand new Douglas ideas written especially for the movie by him....Douglas was always up for reinventing HHGG in each of its different incarnations and he knew that working harder on some character development and some of the key relationships was an integral part of turning HHGG into a movie."

Adaptation may refer to— Adaptation in biology, an anatomical structure, physiological process or behavioral trait that has evolved over a period of time by the process of natural selection that increases the likelihood of reproductive success. ...

Soundtrack

The front cover of the booklet included with the soundtrack to the Hitchhiker's movie.

The complete motion picture soundtrack was released as an iTunes Music Store exclusive on 12 April 2005, two weeks before the scheduled CD release. The iTunes Music Store also has two further exclusive sets of tracks related to the movie: Scan of the front cover of the CD booklet included with the soundtrack for The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy (movie). ... Scan of the front cover of the CD booklet included with the soundtrack for The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy (movie). ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Film soundtrack. ... iTunes Music Store currently viewing the United States store. ... April 12 is the 102nd day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (103rd in leap years). ... 2005 is a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar and is the current year. ...

• The Marvin Mixes are remixes of a new version of Reasons to be Miserable, here performed by Stephen Fry, as well as a new vocal and a new instrumental track for Marvin, also performed by Fry. Stephen Moore had recorded the vocals of both tracks in 1981.
• The Guide Entries are new spoken "Hitchhiker's Guide" entries, all read by Fry, with accompanying music by Joby Talbot, who wrote the film score.

The soundtrack CD was released on 26 April 2005, by Hollywood Records, a division of The Walt Disney Company. The CD has the same 33 tracks as the previous iTunes Music Store release. The enclosed booklet includes acknowledgements from Joby Talbot and notes on the creation of the song So Long and Thanks for All the Fish, written by Garth Jennings. Stephen Fry on the cover of his autobiography Stephen John Fry (born 24 August, 1957) is a British comedian, author, actor, and director. ... Stephen Moore (born December 11, 1937) is a British actor from Brixton, London. ... The Guide Entries are four sound recordings available on the iTunes Music Store, read by Stephen Fry, and written by Fry and Joby Taylor (with the exception of the How to be Cool entry, which was also co-written by Tim Browse). ... Born in 1971 in Wimbledon, London, Joby Talbot initially studied composition at Royal Holloway and Bedford New College. ... A film score is the background music in a film, generally specially written for the film and often used to heighten emotions provoked by the imagery on the screen or by the dialogue. ... Hollywood Records is a record label owned by Disney. ... The Walt Disney Company (most commonly known as Disney) (NYSE: DIS) is one of the largest media and entertainment corporations in the world. ...

Plot

The logo of the Guide, as seen in the movie, inscribed on the Guide's cover, along with Don't Panic.

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The movie follows the general plot of previous versions of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy though, as with previous incarnations, there have been changes for this version. Most notable are the sections on the planets Viltvodle VI and Vogsphere. Also the love story between Arthur and Trillian is emphasized and more fully developed in this movie than previous renditions. Image File history File links An image familiar to any hitchhiker, its the symbol of the H2G2 movie. ... Image File history File links An image familiar to any hitchhiker, its the symbol of the H2G2 movie. ... The cover of the first novel in the Hitchhikers series, from a late 1990s printing. ...

Waking to the sound of bulldozers encroaching upon his house, Arthur Dent tries to prevent the destruction of his home by laying in the path of the bulldozers. His attempts are interrupted by his friend Ford Prefect, who convinces Arthur to accompany him to the local public house. Here Ford reveals that he is actually an alien (and not from Guildford) and as a favour is planning to save Arthur from certain death when the Earth is demolished to make way for a hyperspace bypass in the next few minutes. After hitchhiking aboard one of the orbiting Vogon ships, the duo are captured by the Vogons, forced to listen to the Vogon Captain's poetry (the third worst in the universe), and then thrown out an airlock, where (against all probability) they are rescued by the Heart of Gold, a spaceship stolen by Galactic President Zaphod Beeblebrox, and accompanied by Tricia McMillan, now calling herself Trillian (whom Arthur once met at a party) and Marvin the Paranoid Android. Simon Jones as an upset Arthur Dent, watching his home being demolished in the first episode of the BBC TV series. ... Ford Prefect is: a model of car - see Ford Prefect (car) a character in The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy, named after the car - see Ford Prefect (character) This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ... An amusingly named pub (the Old New Inn) at Bourton-on-the-Water, in the Cotswold Hills of south west England A pub in the Haymarket area of Edinburgh, Scotland A public house, usually known as a pub, is a drinking establishment found mainly in the United Kingdom, Ireland, Canada... Map sources for Guildford at grid reference SU9949 Guildford is the county town of Surrey, England, as well as being the seat for the borough of Guildford and the administrative headquarters of the South East England region. ... Heart of Gold is a fictional spaceship in The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams. ... Mark Wing-Davey as Zaphod Beeblebrox, from the TV adaptation. ... Tricia McMillan aka Trillian is a fictional character from Douglas Adams series The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy. ... In the BBC TV series, the marketing division of the Sirius Cybernetics Corporation defines a robot [like Marvin] as Your plastic pal whos fun to be with. A close-up of the Marvin costume from the 1981 TV series, from Episode Five. ...

It is at this point that the plot begins to diverge from previous versions of the story. In this version, Zaphod is already aware of the Quest for the Answer to Life, the Universe, and Everything, and desiring the Question for himself he stole the Heart of Gold with the intent of using it to visit the planet Magrathea. It is a Magrathean data archive cube that reveals the story of Deep Thought, but not the identity of the computer built to discover the "Ultimate Question." Also in this version, the Vogons remain in pursuit of Zaphod and the Heart of Gold throughout, at the behest of the Galactic Vice-President who wishes to "rescue" him from his abductor (Zaphod abducted himself when he stole the Heart of Gold). The Answer to Life, the Universe, and Everything is a concept taken from Douglas Adams science fiction series The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy. ... This is a list of places featured in The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy. ...

The Improbability Drive takes the ship to Viltvodle VI, home of the Jatravartids and Humma Kavula, who was Zaphod's opponent in the election for President of the Galaxy. Kavula has a small red cube that contains the coordinates to Magrathea, and offers it to Zaphod in exchange for a gun (the Point-of-view gun) that can be found near Deep Thought. Kavula requires a "hostage" in order to ensure that Zaphod will complete the quest, and removes Zaphod's second head. This is a list of races featured in The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy. ... The Point-of-view gun is a gun in the movie of The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy which does not appear in the books or radio series (see The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy). ... Deep Thought may refer to: Deep Thought, a fictional computer in The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy Deep Thought, a chess computer, named after the Hitchhikers Guide Deep Thought Deep Thought, a chatterbot made to work over IRC, named after the Hitchhikers Guide Deep Thought Deep Thoughts...

During their departure from Viltvodle VI, Trillian is captured by the Vogons and brought to their homeworld, Vogsphere. Our heroes go to the Vogon homeworld and try to rescue Trillian. Upon stepping off their ship they briefly encounter subterraneous fauna that attack people who exhibit original thought, which they manage to evade once they reach an urban area. The excessive bureaucracy associated with many governing bodies is parodied when they are confronted by the amount of red tape that they must forge through to rescue Trillian. As Trillian is processed, she learns of the destruction of the Earth, which Arthur had not told her about (after he had been threatened on the subject by Zaphod). She also learns that Zaphod was the one who absent-mindedly autographed the demolition order for Earth (by signing "Love & Kisses, Zaphod"). Arthur, Zaphod, and Ford manage to fill out the appropriate Presidential Prisoner Release forms to have Trillian released just before she is fed to the Ravenous Bugblatter Beast of Traal and the crew escapes Vogsphere. Just as the Vogons are about to give pursuit a klaxon sounds and they delay the chase as they take an hour off for lunch. Bureaucracy is a sociological concept of government and its institutions as an organizational structure characterized by regularized procedure, division of responsibility, hierarchy, and impersonal relationships. ... Red tape is a derisive term for regulations that are considered excessive or bureaucratic procedures that are considered excessively time- and effort-consuming. ... This is a list of races featured in The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy. ...

The Heart of Gold heads for Magrathea, where the company is separated - Zaphod, Trillian, and Ford meet Deep Thought, while Arthur meets Slartibartfast, and learns of Earth's origin. While touring the Magrathean Planet Factory Floor, Arthur is introduced to the Earth Mark II, a backup copy. He is eventually led to his house in England, now restored. There are many minor characters in the various versions of The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy, by Douglas Adams. ...

Meanwhile, beneath Deep Thought, Zaphod, Trillian, and Ford find the Point-of-view gun, the object sought by Humma Kavula. According to the Guide, it was built by Deep Thought for a council of angry housewives who were tired of ending arguments by complaining to husbands that "you just don't get it, do you?" When fired, the Point-of-view gun causes the target to experience the point of view of the wielder. Trillian uses it to make Zaphod understand her conflicting feelings about their relationship. A point of view, viewpoint or POV, is the following: On a given topic, a point of view is a cognitive perspective. ...

Back at Arthur's house, Arthur is reunited with Ford, Zaphod and Trillian, who are busy enjoying a lavish meal provided by the mice. The meal however has been laced with sedative, and consequently Arthur finds his three companions falling fast asleep. It is a trap to enable the mice to restrain Arthur and extract his brain (being the most recent component left from the Earth after its demolition, and thus needed to complete the Earth's computer program). Faced with his demise, Arthur finally expresses his love for Trillian. Before the mice manage the extraction, Arthur breaks free from his restraints, and squishes the mice with a teapot.

The heroes leave the recreation of Arthur's house, only to be confronted by a large number of Vogons. While Zaphod attempts to operate Arthur's "spaceship" (which is in fact just a caravan), Arthur and Trillian try to retrieve the dropped Point-of-view gun but are forced to use the caravan as cover from the hail of fire the Vogons direct at them. Marvin goes to catch up with the rest, remarking that Vogons are the worst marksmen in the universe, but he is hit in the back of the head by a Vogon blast and collapses. A Trailer is an unpowered vehicle pulled by one with an engine. ...

Just as it seems that they are doomed, Marvin reactivates and picks up the nearby Point-of-view gun. He fires, hitting all of the Vogons and they are exposed to his perspective on life; they all instantly become incredibly depressed and collapse.

As the depressed Vogons are taken away and the final touches are applied to Earth Mark II, Slartibartfast asks Arthur if there is anything that the new Earth could do without and Arthur replies, "Yeah, me." The movie ends with Arthur and his companions leaving the newly "rebooted" Earth and reboarding the Heart of Gold, with the intended destination of Milliways, The Restaurant at the End of the Universe. This is a list of places featured in The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy. ... The Restaurant at the End of the Universe (1980, ISBN 0345391810) is the second book in the Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy comedy science fiction series by Douglas Adams. ...

Differences

The story is largely identical to the earlier versions until the characters arrive on the Heart of Gold, the most notable changes being the introduction of Trillian earlier, and a motivation for Ford rescuing Arthur being given. Heart of Gold is a fictional spaceship in The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams. ...

Zaphod's motivation for finding Magrathea is changed somewhat - he already knows of the Ultimate Answer, and seeks the computer that Deep Thought designed for the Ultimate Question. However, his underlying motivation, to become rich and famous (despite the fact that he already is) remains the same.

The sub-plot involving Humma Kavula is new (the Jatravartids were previously only mentioned), the Heart of Gold originally going directly to Magrathea. In the previous versions the Heart of Gold and Zaphod Beeblebrox are originally pursued by the Galactic Police, not the Vogons, although the Vogons later do catch up with the Heart of Gold, in order to kill Arthur and Trillian.

The character of Vice-President Questular, the belief that the president has been "kidnapped", and the capture and rescue of Trillian are new for the film.

The climax of the action is largely new. In earlier versions the Galactic Police confronted the characters on Magrathea - in the movie the Vogons confront the characters on the Earth Mark II, whilst it is still being worked on. The mechanism for dealing with them (the Point of View gun) is new in the movie, but its application (Marvin exposing the Vogons to his point of view, hence causing them to collapse) is similar to the book version, where Marvin killed the Galactic Police by networking with its computer causing it to become depressed, commit suicide, and shut down the Policemen's life support system. At the very end of the film, the second Earth is rolled out, and Arthur Dent chooses to remain a hitch-hiker. Nothing analagous happens in previous versions - although the Earth does re-appear in So Long, and Thanks for All the Fish - it turns out, in Mostly Harmless to be for completely different reasons. So Long, and Thanks For All the Fish (1984, ISBN 0345391837) is the fourth book of the Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy series written by Douglas Adams. ... The front cover of the US first hardcover edition of Mostly Harmless. ...

The romantic triangle between Trillian, Zaphod and Arthur is hinted at in the previous versions, but never went anywhere. This plot thread was more developed in the movie. In the opening scenes, Arthur explains his encounter to Trillian at the party to Ford, introducing the character of Trillian earlier. Trillian is portrayed as American in the movie, as with the television series. In the radio series and the books she has a British accent.

Later, we find that Zaphod is keeping news of Earth's destruction from Trillian, and Trillian eventually dumps Zaphod after she discovers he is responsible for accidentally signing papers authorising the destruction of the Earth, thinking that a fan was asking for an autograph. This is similar to the way the Frogstar Prisoner Relations Officer tricked him into signing a statement saying that he was put in the Total Perspective Vortex of his own free will in the radio series. In some earlier versions he had been involved in a conspiracy to destroy Earth. The Total Perspective Vortex, in the fictional world of Douglas Adamss The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy, is the most horrible torture device a sentient being can be subjected to. ...

Nods to BBC productions

• The original Marvin prop from the 1981 TV version of the story can be seen in one scene, in a queue on Vogsphere, albeit with orange eyes, instead of the original red.
• The theme tune for the BBC radio and TV series, The Eagles' "Journey of the Sorcerer", is used, in a new arrangement by Joby Talbot.
• "What A Wonderful World", sung by Louis Armstrong, was used as background music for the film's teaser trailer. This song was also used at the conclusion of the first radio series and at the conclusion of the BBC TV series, both set on prehistoric Earth.
• Simon Jones, who played Arthur Dent in the radio and TV series, makes a brief cameo appearance. He is credited as the "Ghostly Image."
• Deep Thought is watching an old BBC children's show on TV in the film.

The Eagles is an American rock music group that originally came together in Los Angeles, California in the early 1970s. ... ... Louis Armstrongs stage personality matched his flashy trumpet as captured in this photo by William P. Gottlieb. ... Since its first use in 1851, a cameo role or cameo appearance has been a brief appearance in a play (or later, a movie or a video/computer game) that stands out against the general context for its éclat or dramatic punch. ...

Characters

• Arthur Dent, an "ordinary Earthman"
• Ford Prefect, a researcher for "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy"
• Tricia McMillan, who has re-dubbed herself "Trillian" (because it sounds "spacier"). Over the course of the movie, she comes to dislike Zaphod Beeblebrox.
• Zaphod Beeblebrox, President of the Galaxy
• Slartibartfast, a coastline designer
• Humma Kavula, a religious leader on the planet Viltvodle VI, and Zaphod's vanquished opponent in the recent Presidential election. This character was devised by Adams as the villain for an additional subplot of the movie, not present in previous incarnations of the story.
• Marvin, the Paranoid Android
• Prostetnic Vogon Jeltz, leader of the Vogon Constructor Fleet

Simon Jones as an upset Arthur Dent, watching his home being demolished in the first episode of the BBC TV series. ... David Dixon as Ford Prefect in Episode One of the TV adaptation of The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy. ... Tricia McMillan aka Trillian is a fictional character from Douglas Adams series The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy. ... Mark Wing-Davey as Zaphod Beeblebrox, from the TV adaptation. ... There are many minor characters in the various versions of The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy, by Douglas Adams. ... There are many minor characters in the various versions of The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy, by Douglas Adams. ... In the BBC TV series, the marketing division of the Sirius Cybernetics Corporation defines a robot [like Marvin] as Your plastic pal whos fun to be with. A close-up of the Marvin costume from the 1981 TV series, from Episode Five. ... There are many minor characters in the various versions of The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy, by Douglas Adams. ...

Box Office earnings

• The movie made $21,103,203 in the USA in its opening weekend, opening in first place.

• The movie remained in the US box office top ten for its first four weeks of release.

• The movie's total box office gross was $82,863,267 worldwide (as of mid-June 2005).

The United States dollar is the official currency of the United States. ... The United States dollar is the official currency of the United States. ...

Home video release

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy is due to be released in a two DVD set in the UK and North America in September 2005. A VHS release has not been announced. 2005 is a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar and is the current year. ...

External links

Wikinews has a related story:

Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy movie in theaters

• The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (2005) at the Internet Movie Database

Wikinews logo. ... The Internet Movie Database (IMDb), owned by Amazon. ...

Owners' sites

• Official Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy Movie Site (UK)
• Official Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy Movie Site (USA)
• Official Trailer
• "Hitchhiker Movie FAQ with FUA" from the Douglas Adams Continuum

Interviews

• Interview with executive producer Robbie Stamp, from Slashdot

Slashdot (frequently abbreviated as /.) is a popular technology-related website, updated many times daily with articles that are short summaries of stories on other websites with links to the stories, and provisions for readers to comment on the story. ...

Independent reviews

• Washington Post "...more than a pleasant surprise."
• San Francisco Chronicle "The movie hangs together and gets by with more than a margin of goodwill because the dazzle it offers is one of the mind."
• New York Times "...hugely likeable..."
• Planet Magrathea (2005/3/31) "Not funny"
• BBC - Review: Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy "Don't panic - The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy is not as bad as I had feared. Then again, it is not as good as I had hoped."
• The Register "The film version of the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy is faithful to author Douglas Adams' legacy. The trouble is it's simply not especially funny."
• Slashdot Some comments are by people who say they saw the movie.
• Rotten Tomatoes Reviews by professional critics.