Zarquon!

Clever, clever…UGO obtains the rumored new Internet-only and Guide-centric Hitchhiker’s trailer. It mostly conforms to the earlier one, but still, it’s nice to finally hear Stephen Fry, as well as Alan Rickman as Marvin.

One of those Days.

Attention, People of Earth…I had a devil of a time downloading it at first, but nevertheless, a 95%-complete version of the long-awaited Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy trailer is now online. I’m really looking forward to seeing this on the big-screen — all the characters look great (sass these hoopy froods), and right now I’m definitely digging the DIY, low-fi aesthetic — that Away-Team moment at the end (on Magrathea, presumably) looks like it could’ve been taken right out of an old Doctor Who or Blake’s 7. Update: It’s now up at the official site.

> Enjoy Poetry.


Some big, swollen, vaguely tumescent Hitchhiker’s news today — IGN obtains several pics of the Vogons (designed by the Henson Company — as one AICN wag put, “OMG! Rygel ate Harry!“), including this one at left of unwitting poetry-enthusiasts Arthur (Martin Freeman) and Ford (Mos Def) in the clutches of Prostetnic Vogon Jeltz. (The Intergalactic Highway Bypass Planning Room is also worth a gander.) Very nice.

That Ol’ Janx Spirit.

“Being asked to do the voice of The Guide is like having your birthday on Christmas Day, discovering a winning lottery ticket in your stocking and having chocolate poured all over you.” Longtime Hitchhiker’s fan and Adams compatriot Stephen Fry talks about his role in the upcoming film. I’d say his inclusion is another touch of class that bodes well for this project.

Groop, I implore thee, my foonting turlingdromes.

In anticipation of Hitchhiker’s, Disney and AICN have banded together to offer a spiffy and brutal Vogon office desk set — mug, stapler, and pen — to whomever composes a lousy poem worthy of the Vogons (or, for that matter, Paul Neil Milne Johnstone of Beehive Court, Redbridge.) The contest notwithstanding, the idea that all Vogon construction is based on the square is exactly the type of clever design flourish that gives me hope for this film. Update: Even more Hitchhiker’s news: ComingSoon talks with Hammer & Tongs (a.k.a. the producer and director) about the movie’s progress.

Arthur’s Amigos.

From the bottom of a locked filing cabinet stuck in a disused lavatory with a sign on the door saying “Beware of The Leopard,” Dark Horizons manages to procure the first two publicity stills from Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy. From left to right we have Zaphod (1-headed Sam Rockwell), Trillian (Zooey Deschanel), Marvin (Warwick Davis, with terrible pain in all the diodes down his left side), and Ford (Mos Def)…In case you were wondering, Arthur (Martin Freeman) is in the other one.

Ask Prosser about head.

BBC airs some behind-the-scenes footage from Hitchhiker’s Guide, which includes our first looks at Arthur (Martin Freeman), Ford (Mos Def), Trillian (Zooey Deschanel), and a big-hair Zaphod (Sam Rockwell)…They all look good, although I was thrown by Zaphod’s lack of second head (Apparently, it’s in his nose…yeah, I don’t get it either.)

Don’t Panic!

This is the way the world ends, this is the way the world ends, this is the way the world ends. Not with a bang but…Vogon poetry? The brief teaser for Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, rumored since Comicon, is now freely available online. Be sure to check out the production slideshow, which shows off the splendid designs of Marvin the Paranoid Android and the Heart of Gold. Oh, and don’t forget your towel. Update: More production art here.