Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		2.0
Audio		4.5
Extras		5.0
Overall		3.5

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy Blu-ray Movie Review

Level 42 ain't lookin' that hot.

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman November 18, 2020

Though it’s quite probable that many people acquainted with Douglas Adams’ inimitable The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy franchise may associate it with books, the wending tale of Arthur Dent, Ford Prefect and a veritable glut of supporting characters actually began life as a BBC Radio 4 series, one that built to such popularity so quickly that “novelizations” were deemed necessary. BBC’s history with this Adams outing and indeed at least one other (Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency) has been ambitious, but also arguably problematic, with part of the problem lying squarely with the tone and complexity of Adams’ writing. If you’ve never read any of the Hitchhiker’s Guide books, it’s hard to describe Adams’ dry wit, which is often combined with a metaphysical bent (and/or Dent, all things considered) that can be both hilarious and thought provoking. In that regard, take the way The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy begins — with Arthur Dent (Simon Jones), who awakens one morning to find a construction crew outside his bungalow preparing to demolish his domicile to make way for a bypass. That inconvenience fades only slightly into the background when Dent’s friend Ford Prefect (David Dixon) arrives and within a few moments breathlessly reveals that he’s an alien and that the entire planet Earth is about to be demolished by a nefarious big green man named Prostetnic Vogon Jeltz (Martin Benson) in order to make way for a space thoroughfare. Now, like probably many fans of Hitchhiker's Guide, I first became aware of the franchise through the books, though the radio version did air in my hometown of Portland and I caught at least some of it at the time. But the deficits of this presentation may be evident from this very opening scene, where some of the humor seems forced, and the "meta" aspects courtesy of Adams' kind of snarkily omniscient narrator in the book, something that is ported over to in both the radio and television versions (courtesy of copious actual narration), just doesn't seem to resonate quite as well with the lo-fi pictures accompanying the audio. This might suggest that Adams' prototypically British humor could at least arguably be best appreciated either when being read, or being listened to, rather than combining it into a viewing experience.

I read all of the Hitchhiker books as they appeared, and considered myself then and continue to consider myself a huge fan of Adams and this particular franchise. In that regard, though, like probably many fans of Hitchhiker's Guide, I first became aware of the franchise through the books, though the radio version did air in my hometown of Portland and I caught at least some of it at the time. But the deficits of this version may be evident from this very opening scene, where some of the humor seems forced, and the "meta" aspects courtesy of Adams' kind of snarkily omniscient narrator in the book, something that is ported over to in both the radio and television versions (courtesy of copious actual narration), just don't seem to resonate quite as well with the lo-fi pictures accompanying the audio. This might suggest that Adams' prototypically British humor could at least arguably be best appreciated either when being read, or being listened to, rather than combining it into a viewing experience.

All of this said, there is a ton to enjoy in this version, even if the "special effects" and even some of the practical effects (like the "double head" for Zaphod Beeblebrox) are almost laughably inept by today's standards. But Adams' writing is so acute, and the completely lunatic characters he creates so memorable, that this television version is actually able to elide some of its less successful elements. This version certainly works in more of the "original" (in terms of the radio version, and at least some of the novelizations) than the later feature film version, but it's also probably repeatedly kind of ADHD-like courtesy of its frequent cutaways to things like snippets supposedly from the Guide. Again, this very disjunctive quality is part and parcel of Adams' writing style, but the visuals here just don't always support the whimsy of the conceit as well as might have been hoped.

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of BBC with an AVC encoded 1080i transfer in 1.33:1. There's just no way to get around the fact that this is an upscale, and the glut of lo-fi effects don't translate very well quite a bit of the time. There are rampant issues with anomalies like aliasing and stair stepping that afflict everything from things like the edges on miniatures to even the printing that unspools on various computer monitors or in the cutaways to the supposed actual Guide. Even the "live action" elements, whether filmed (as in some of the outdoor material) or not, just looks ragged and harshly digital a lot of the time. That may lead some to wonder why I'm even scoring this at a 2.0, but in terms of upscales (and I've had to see a ton of them courtesy of the BBC releases of the standard definition seasons of Doctor Who), this looks generally acceptable, if obviously far from optimal. The palette is still rather nicely suffused, and some of the detail on things like fabrics or even practical props aboard the spaceship can (again) be acceptable if far from optimal.

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

It can be almost comically instructive to toggle through the audio options included for the main feature, as it's kind of like experiencing the evolution of recording technologies over the course of the past few decades. The audio options include the original two channel mono (in DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0), a 1981 stereo mix (in DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0), a 2018 stereo mix (in DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0), and a repurposed surround track in DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1. Toggling through the three DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 tracks reveals clear upticks in quality each time, with not just a wider soundstage courtesy of the stereo renderings, but decidedly better support in the midrange and low end as you get up to the 2018 remaster. The 5.1 repurposing isn't especially aggressive, which may be a good thing, since there's little of the "phasing" quality that has, for example, occasionally hobbled the surround remixes on the Doctor Who releases. The surround track opens up some of the effects work most noticeably. Dialogue is rendered cleanly and clearly throughout all tracks. Optional English subtitles are available.

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Disc One

• Production Notes can be accessed under the Setup menu, and are presented as "alternate" subtitles (which means if you want to read these, you can't simultaneously have subtitles). These are really quite interesting and provide all sorts of behind the scenes data which may appeal to fans.

Disc Two

• The Making of Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (1993) (1080i; 1:01:06) is a fun retrospective with some good interviews.


• Don't Panic! (1080i; 27:10) has a bunch of funny interviews, as well as an enjoyable archival Q & A.


• Communicate! (1080i; 10:55) is an archival promo piece for the radio version.


• Behind the Scenes (1080i; 7:38) features a bunch of snippets of scenes being shot, all with timecode captions.


• Pebble Mill at One (Alan Bell and Rod Lord) (1080i; 6:52) is a vintage television interview.


• Deleted Scene Episode 2 (1080i; 2:18) also as a timecode caption.


• Tomorrow's World Sequence (1080i; 2:34) looks at Zaphod Beeblebrox's "accessory head".


• Outtakes (Blooper Reel) (1080i; 9:38)


• Peter Jones Introduction (1080i; 8:50)


• Trailers (1080i; 2:55)


• Explosion of Earth (1080i; 00:46)


• Unused Titles (1080i; 00:40)


• Heart of Gold (1080i; 3:36)

Disc Three

• Mostly Hand Drawn (1080i; 30:58) offers all of the series graphics remastered from the original film and aggregated into one sequence.


• Life, The Universe & Clapperboards (1080i; 24:00) features live action excerpts, newly remastered from surviving archive reels.


• Bonus Material

  Recorded at the End of the Universe (1080i; 25:03) offers behind the scenes footage and various trivia about the production.

  
  

  Writing Hitchhiker (1080i; 15:27) includes some touching first person remembrances of Douglas Adams, including by his half brother James.

  
  

  Trailer for Radio Times (1080i; 1:26)

  
  

  Open Door: The Sound of Love (Douglas Adams, 1980) (1080i; 5:11) is advertised as being the earliest known filmed interview with Douglas Adams.

  
  

  Douglas Adams on Nationwide (1980) (1080i; 3:34) is another archival interview with' Adams (hilariously misidentified in the introduction) which included the first known glimpse of the television miniseries as part of a promotional tour.

  
  

  Marvin on Blue Peter (1981) (1080i; 3:21) is a snippet from the popular children's show.

  
  

  Douglas Adams on Paperbacks (1981) (1080i; 6:11) is another vintage television interview. At least this time they get his name right.

  
  

  The Sound of Sypher (1980) (1080i; 14:22) is a fun archival look at the audio production.

  
  

  Saturday Review (Douglas Adams, 1985) (1080i; 9:37) is another vintage television interview with Adams. This features a spoof animated Guide entry on Adams.

  
  

  Douglas Adams on Micro Live (1985) (1080i; 5:55) finds Adams promoting the Hitchhiker's Guide computer game.

  
  

  Simon Jones on BBC Breakfast (2012) (1080i; 5:02)

  
  

  Ten Short Films (1080i; 29:52) were made in 2009 for a Penguin Books launch event.

  
  

  Tertiary Phase Trailer (1080i; 6:16)

  
  

  Marvin and Zem (2004) (1080i; 5:35) features Stephen Moore in a supplement that was originally on the little known 2006 DVD Audio in 5.1 Surround of The Tertiary Phase.

  
  

  Q Phases Trailer (1080i; 5:51)

  
  

  Hexagonal Phase Trailer (1080i; 2:42)

A nice insert booklet is included, though I will say my shipment from Amazon included a really badly mangled one for some reason.

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

There's evidently a new miniseries version of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy in the works, though the pandemic may have delayed its release date. That version will no doubt be able to capitalize upon the technological advances of the past few decades in terms of the special effects, but it might also do better to try to capture the almost baroque intensity of Adams' thought processes, which this particular version only manages to do in dribs and drabs. This is still often rather delightful, and it at least preserves an "early" version of Adams' venerable franchise, though that comes with the built in warning that the look of this release leaves quite a bit to be desired. A propos of nothing other than revealing my grammarian nerdiness, it's almost kind of shocking that this version omits the possessive apostrophe in Hitchhiker's in its opening credits. While video is problematic, audio is great and the supplementary package incredibly enjoyable. With caveats noted, Recommended.