Movie review

  • 2005-06-01
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
Madagascar
Guess Who

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

It was always going to be rough making a satisfactory two-hour movie out of Douglas Adam's famous novel. Unfortunately, bringing this gigantic, funny and quirky universe to the screen did turn out to be too great a task for director Garth Jennings, making his feature debut. This is a flawed and incoherent film, unevenly paced and full of plot-holes. Leaving out parts of the book is understandable, but some things have been changed and others have been added in a way that doesn't remotely help the feature. In all fairness, the movie never becomes dull, and has many passages of charm and amusement. But none of them quite have the same side-splitting impact that the book did. Perhaps it's enjoyable, but it's a mess none the less.
(Julie Vinten)

Based on the best-selling book by Douglas Adams and the even more popular TV series, "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy" is a bizarre and quirky space adventure. Arthur Dent (Martin Freeman) wakes up to find bulldozers ready to demolish his home. His newest pal, Ford Prefect (Mos Def), saves his life before Earth is blown to smithereens. From this point on the film only gets wackier by the second. The special effects are awesome, from the grotesque Vogons to a digitalized John Malkovich character, but the humor is too British for this reviewer to appreciate all of its subtle nuances. Most of the actors never connect with each other, let alone the audience. Nevertheless, it's worth watching at least once, but reading the book is probably less exhausting.
3/4 (Laimons Juris G)

Madagascar

The new DreamWorks cartoon "Madagascar" starts out at New York's Central Park Zoo where zebra Marty (Chris Rock) longs to experience the wild. When his dream actually comes true, it turns out not to be the expected walk in the park for him and his four-legged friends. It's the cheeky and charming characters that keep this movie going, and not the story, which is fairly predictable. The egocentric lemur, voiced by Sacha Baron Cohen (you most likely know him as Ali G), creates some real laugh-out-loud moments. Also the scheming penguins are hilarious, their motto being "be cute and cuddly" while they plan their shady getaway operations from the penguin pool. Those able to turn a blind eye to "Madagascar's" sentimental and also strangely ambiguous message will have an enjoyable time.
(Julie Vinten)

Marty (voice of Chris Rock) is a zebra who dreams of running free in the wild; Alex (Ben Stiller) is the lion king at New York's Central Park Zoo; Gloria (Jada Pinkett Smith) is a pampered but practical hippo; and Melman (David Schwimmer) is a hypochondriac giraffe. DreamWorks has come up with a feature-length cartoon that's bound to make you smile, if you're an adult. Meanwhile, the target audience of little tykes will be screeching in delight as the likable quartet romps its way across the screen. Particularly noteworthy are a gaggle of lemurs, led by Julian (Sacha Baron Cohen) who nearly steals the whole show. "Madagascar" is not "The Incredibles" or one of the "Shrek" flicks, but it's still a ton of fun. Some familiar pop tunes keep things rocking.
1/2 (Laimons Juris G)

Guess Who

This time it isn't Sidney Poitier coming to dinner, but Ashton Kutcher. Simon (Kutcher) is introduced to his fiancee's parents. She is black, he is white, and clearly not what her father (Bernie Mac) had in mind for a son-in-law. Mac, with his apparent flair for comedy, is in many ways the saving grace of "Guess Who." The gradual male bonding of the Mac/Kutcher-team can also be compelling to watch at times. The problem is that "Guess Who" doesn't draw on the race issue nearly enough, too often drifting into second-rate "Meet the Parents" territory. The feature could have been strong, challenging and funny, but they chose the easy dense-romantic-comedy way out. Still, the few scenes that have some humorous bite make the movie just about watchable.
(Julie Vinten)

Now, here's an odd little romantic comedy supposedly based on Stanley Kramer's "Guess Who's Coming to Dinner?" released in 1967. Back then, interracial marriages were illegal in 17 American states. This time around the roles are reversed. In Sidney Poitier's place it's the white-bread kid, Simon (Ashton Kutcher), off to meet his African-American fiancee's (Zoe Saldana) parents. While there were many opportunities for real belly-laughs, none were taken. The cast nonchalantly floats along, doing what they can with very little material. Though likable, Kutcher comes across much too cute. The strongest force on screen is Bernie Mac who plays the ornery father of the bride-to-be. There is no possible way you can compare Kramer's Oscar-nominated film (including Best Picture, Best Director and Best Actor) to this forgettable bit of fluff.
3/4 (Laimons Juris G)

 

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