The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy ***
Cast: Martin Freeman, Mos Def , Sam Rockwell, Zooey Deschanel, John Malkovich, Bill Nighy, Anna Chancellor, Alan Rickman (voice), Stephen Fry (voice), Helen Mirren (voice)
Director: Garth Jennings
Running Length: 1:43
MPAA Classification: PG

In England, Arthur Dent (Freeman) wakes up to a bad day. His house is about to be flattened to make way for an expressway bypass. He finds out his friend Ford Prefect (Def) is an alien. And the Earth is about to be destroyed by the Vogons. Ford gets them off of Earth in time, and soon they find themselves in the company of Zaphod Beeblebrox (Rockwell), the President of the Galaxy; Trillian (Deschanel), the last human woman; and Marvin (voice of Rickman), a depressed robot that makes Eeyore look happy.

"Hitchhiker" is just what fans of the books have been waiting for. While deviating from the source material, the screenplay was co-written by Douglas Adams himself, and a lot of the dialogue is lifted from the novels. The story has existed in different versions before as well, so the changes are nothing to throw the fans off.

Martin Freeman is the perfect Arthur, an ordinary everyman. Mos Def nails Ford Prefect almost perfectly. Sam Rockwell is over the top annoying at times as Zaphod. And there is no one more perfectly suited to give voice to Marvin than the great Alan Rickman. Marvin steals just about every scene he is in.

That being said, this movie is more for fans of the novels than the average moviegoer. It is true to the spirit of Adams's work, and should leave fans satisfied. Others may walk out saying "what was the point?". I think it is worth a viewing though even if you are not a fan on the off chance that you connect with it. And if you don't, don't panic, the summer movie season is just around the corner.