A lot of backtracking

[sniffnoy]

Obviously, today HHGG opened. Acting on what Nick and Petmar had told me, I drove up to Matthew's Diner at about 14:00, carrying Mike Baumstein and Mike Epstein, and, of course, with my bathrobe and towel. There I met up with Petmar and Jess and a bunch of people from NJIT that I didn't know.

Afterward, to the theater! The one in Washington Township. I follow the other cars (now carrying Mike Baumstein and one of the people I don't know) to Route 17, specifically, the entrance on Hollywood Ave (never been there before). School zone! I have to wait while kids cross, while the car in front of me gets way ahead of me. I'm going to follow this guy on the highway? I don't think so. Luckily Nick had told me I can get there by taking Linwood all the way down, make a left on Pascack. So, I turn, quickly relocate Sheridan/Maple, and start heading down Linwood. Meanwhile the guy I don't know is talking on the phone to Petmar to find out what we should be doing. Apparently they're not heading to the theater, but rather are at the big Barnes & Noble. On Route 17. How to get there? Turn around. (We're at Van Dien at this point.) So, I turn around, I head back to Maple, I don't make a right at the Maple-turns-into-Sheridan intersection despite a sign saying that's the way to Route 17, because I don't see the sign in time. But, I remember Hollywood Ave! So I go there. Get to the entrance to Route 17, and...

I freak out. I don't like driving on the highway very much and I've never done it without my mom there. I turn into the last driveway, make a K-turn in what I would think would be a very unsafe place (i.e. right next to the entrance/exit (but then, whoever lives there has to do that every day! Well, not make a K-turn, but pull out of that driveway)), turn around... and head back to Linwood, and just go to the theater, ignoring Barnes & Noble. The guy whose name I don't remember calls up Petmar and he says that they're leaving B&N in 15 minutes, so OK. Nick's directions get me to the theater fine, and yay.

One of the workers at the movie theater, seeing my bathrobe (which I was wearing by this point) and towel, asked, "How was the shower?"

So, we killed time until the others arrived, and then several others who hadn't met us at Matthew's, namely, Pethog, Nick, Ziggy (who I didn't recognize, I haven't seen him in so long... Nick told me he was there afterward) and DK (someone I don't know, and still don't, as again, I didn't know he was there till afterward).

And then we watched HHGG!

Well, I could give you a whole list of minor complaints about it, but on the whole, I have to say it was pretty good. Though they did cut some of the best dialogue for no apparent reason. My only big complaint was the whole Arthur-Trillian-love-story-thing. That was just... no.

Afterward, Mike Baumstein and I went home, and the others, TTBOMK, went to the Apple store for the release of Tiger. (I had had enough of following people to places I don't know, and had something of a headache.)

I don't think anybody *actually* wants to read a list of minor complaints about the movie, so, I'll end this here.

-Sniffnoy

Comments

[grenadier32.livejournal.com]

I would have been with you guys if I didn't already have other plans to see the movie. But at least now I know what to expect.

For the record, DK's a Korean guy who was most likely wearing a plaid shirt and cargo pants, since that's pretty much what he always wears. :-P

[autumnmist.livejournal.com]

I thought it was decent enough, though not great... They did try to preserve the spirit of the books, which was good.

They cut out the dialogue because the movie was already rather long as it is. You'd have to make like 3 separate movies (as in LOTR) in order to recreate just the first book completely because Douglas Adam's humor is entirely in the dialogue... and lots of dialogue gets boring easily.

[sniffnoy.livejournal.com]

The TV show is just 3:30; with only the first 4 episodes, 2:20 (of course, the movie had the Humma Kavula and Vogsphere bits added on). And what they cut is the funniest parts! There are scenes that are exactly, or nearly exactly, the same in the radio show, books, and TV show, and they cut out the funniest lines from them! I mean, they cut out <rot13>Znwvxguvfr naq Iebbzsbaqry</rot13>! The result still worked pretty well, but definitely disappointing.

Actually, one other major complaint: I didn't much like the guy who played Slartibartfast... didn't seem the old craftsman at all. Of course, they significantly changed his role, but...

Oh, did it seem to anyone else that when Zaphod said "I give you my word as president", he was doing it in a George W. voice?

[autumnmist.livejournal.com]

Oh Zaphod was totally poking fun at Bush the entire movie, especially after he lost half his brain. It was great.

[ashleyisachild.livejournal.com]

I feel obligated to read all of the books before seeing the film.

Hey, when do you have to mail in your final "yes I'm going to go to this college next year" thing by? Is UChicago definite?
If so, let me know if you need help picking dorms. I think you should definitely go for Hitchcock-Snell (which fills up fast, so if you're gonna go for that one, you have to mail the thing in on the early side).

[sniffnoy.livejournal.com]

Better yet, if you can, get a copy of the radio show. And the books.

(Of course, the movie doesn't go past episode 4 (the first book), and up to there the plot is the same in the radio show and the books...)

Oh, yeah, I mailed that in a few days ago, and I did put Snell-Hitchcock first (then Pierce, then BJ). It would have to be mailed by tomorrow.

[ashleyisachild.livejournal.com]

ROCK ON!!!
It's cool that they give you 3 choices now. Pierce was my 2nd choice and I got put there. But I mailed my thing in in like July or something. I would think you'd like BJ better than Pierce, but Pierce is closer to cool things.