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The Hitch Hiker's Guide to the Galaxy
tania:
i really disliked mostly harmless too, to be honest. i mean i can't count how many times i've bought/read the hitchiker's guide to the galaxy series and still i could never bring myself to read the last book a second time. even douglas adams admits in the salmon of doubt that it was written during a really hard time in his life and that he was disappointed with how dismal the end product turned out. it really doesn't feel the same at all as the other books in the series.
but yeah, the film was absolutely terrible.
Trillian:
--- Quote from: zerodrone on 02 Feb 2008, 15:08 ---words
--- End quote ---
Well I just think that it is generally a fallacy to generalize a group of people as such. You don't enjoy the books as much as when you were younger, and that is fine. I just don't think they are as pointless as you make them out to be. Adams, at least in my opinion tends to do things in a more subtle manner. What I think is generally written off as just idle silliness will often have an underlying point that lies within Adams' philosophy on life (the universe and everything...I couldn't resist). I also think that to write them off as being just children's books is actually missing the point entirely.
Because you find Pratchett to be more humorous than Adams does not mean that it is invariably so. You have a difference in opinion and taste, that is valid, but it doesn't mean that everyone that thinks otherwise has to fit into a neat little category that you have designated for them. I think Pratchett has a tendency, in some of his novels, to be rather "low-brow". This does not mean, however, that I don't enjoy reading his novels. I just think that Adams has a wider variety of character elements, and that despite how off the wall it is, he is cynical and he appears to be laughing at the folly of mankind. It really is just a matter of preference, and neither preference is superior to the other.
Also I don't believe that age must dictate when to "move-on" from something you once enjoyed. If by becoming an adult I must write off things that I enjoyed previously as childish silliness, I will have none of that nonsense. Frankly, I much prefer perspective. So, I will continue to read and enjoy Adams at 21, and probably as I get older as well.
tommydski:
I suppose I should say that the Radio shows were the best thing ever.
I used to listen to them every night. Incredible editing and sound effects, great scripts and voice acting. Just all round amazing.
Neskah:
Oh I wish i could get my hands on some of the original recordings.
I think where most new fans go wrong with the movie is that they think the movies should have been a visual interpretation of the books. Not so. Especially if you consider that the radio show came first and great changes have been made in every interpretation. Adams changed many things himself, taking the origional concept and growing it into something more.
I personally prefer the books, then the BBC series, then the movie. In that order. I always prefer books as a medium, the TV series had that fantastic british humour, and yes, things do get lost in translation when Americans try to remake things... though I will always love the song, So long and thanks for all the fish. I still enjoyed the movie. It won't be a cult favourite like the books or TV show, but it was entertaining in it's own way.
I'm surprised people are attempting to compare Adams and Pratchett. I love both authors dearly. There's no comparison. How could there be? The only thing these two have in common is they have the ability to make me laugh out loud (which can be embarrassing when riding public transport). Otherwise they are literally worlds apart. Why attempt to diminish one against the other by having a ranking system?
Jackie Blue:
I wasn't comparing Pratchett directly to Adams. Nor did I say that Hitchhiker's is a "children's series". I said that it impressed me a lot more when I was a child who hadn't been exposed to much other writing. And as far as adult die-hard Hitchhiker's fans (note the die-hard) I was just speaking from my experience.
Nor did I say that Pratchett is, as a matter of fact, funnier or more poignant than Adams. I believe he is, but that's just my own experience. See: my comments on the lack of objective reality in whatever thread that was in the Music forum.
I don't see how anyone can say the movie was "horrible" without applying a liberal dose of hyperbole. Zaphod, Ford and Arthur were all well-played, Marvin was good, the entire segment with Slartibartfast was pure gold (Bill Nighy is just great in everything, though)... I've seen a lot of movies that were far, far worse.
Oh well, I'll stop now. Despite being a fan of the books, I guess I'm not "enough" of one, or I don't "get it". This is kinda what I meant by my Trekkie comment. For some people, liking Douglas Adams is some kind of all-or-nothing proposition, which frankly I don't go in for, in literature or in any other area of life. Kinda like talking to certain kinds of Christians:
Me: I think the things Jesus allegedly said in the Gospel of Matthew were pretty good, and interesting.
Christian: BUT DO YOU ACCEPT HIM AS YOUR LORD AND SAVIOR
Me: Er, well, not as such...
Christian: JESUS SAID I AM THE WAY AND THE LIFE YOU KNOW
Me: Well, really, we don't know what he said, since the Gospels were written so long after he was killed...
Christian: NO YOU'RE GOING TO HELL THE DEVIL IS CLOUDING YOUR MIND READ YOUR BIBLE
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