An angry letter to a faceless utility company in the guise of science-fiction, Douglas Adams’ 1979 novel channeled all his frustrations at the inanities and bureaucracies that govern society into a tongue-in-cheek guide to extraterrestrial life – which is revealed to be just as bogged down in inanity and bureaucracy as our own. This adaptation captures some of that tone but gets bogged down in narrative explication. It’s unnecessary and convoluted in a way that likely would have driven Adams nuts.
