Doctor Dolittle
June. 26,1998 PG-13A successful physician and devoted family man, John Dolittle seems to have the world by the tail, until a long suppressed talent he possessed as a child, the ability to communicate with animals is suddenly reawakened with a vengeance! Now every creature within squawking distance wants the good doctor's advice, unleashing an outrageous chain of events that turns his world upside down!
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Reviews
Good movie, but best of all time? Hardly . . .
It is not deep, but it is fun to watch. It does have a bit more of an edge to it than other similar films.
By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.
An old-fashioned movie made with new-fashioned finesse.
Doctor Dolittle (1998)I was surprised to see this movie got such a low rating—it's not so bad. Oh, for sure it's not so great, either. But Eddie Murphy alone makes it something worth watching (he's one of the few perfect-pitch comedians out there). And the story, a 1920 classic for children, is something of its own.What falls apart is the slightly pushy sentimentalism and the generally mediocre secondary cast. That might be enough to push it into mediocrity, for sure, but it's not meant to be a deep classic, and it plays with the story nicely.That story is not just about a doctor (of the human type) who can hear animals talking. It's more about how society condemns hims and tries to help him with psycho-care. His bland wife (with the gorgeous eyes that get overplayed) is typical of his "friends," all nice people with distractions and no time for the possibility that he might, in fact, hear animals talk.The talking animals are of course great fun, from the rats to the tiger. This is the part of the movie that is meant to appeal across the board, and it does, including its good special effects. The feeling of family, not dysfunctional, is another bit of warmth, not to mention that the family is African American, a nice twist on the original story based on an English doctor.And though the movie was not liked by critics, it has made a third of a billion dollars, which speaks for itself. Not a masterpiece, and not even a classic, it still has wonderful aspects including a very wonderful basic concept.
Eddie Murphy was hilarious in this movie,, I like the little back-story where they show how he learned to talk to the animals when he was a little kid. all of the animal characters were just delightful. like the idea of the little camping trip and stuff for him to get away from it all and try to think things thru. he has to convince his family that he is not totally crazy, at first he doesn't wanna believe that he can actually talk to animals, and for the longest time he tries to deny it.. but as the film slowly progresses he has a special gift, and that he can help animals especially when they are sick and need medical attention.. this is a great movie from Walt Disney, and they seem to be getting better and better every time a new one comes out.
Too bad neither the animals or Eddie Murphy had anything to say worth saying. this movie is just bland.Children's movie? Well, if you're trying to get them to take a nap, then maybe. It's just 90 minutes of some eye-wrenchingly poor animal lip animation to quips that aren't funny. And the lip-sync'ing makes the old Godzilla films look brilliantly done by comparison. Meanwhile, Eddie "Pluto Nash" Murphy drones on with a suppressed understated delivery that is painful to experience. Apparently, he's trying to modify his old manic persona, but to what? In short, all the magic and wonder of the 1967 original version is lost in this re-imagining, or whatever it is. A town wants to bully some forest creatures and blame them for doing bad stuff. No, really. And Pluto Nash can psycho-babble with them. Things chain along with some stale jokes to a dull uninspired conclusion with no surprises.Rent the '67 movie. Or some old Yogi Bear cartoons.
Dr. John Dolittle (Eddie Murphy) is a gifted physician taking care of his human patients. He is so talented that offers of financial backing for he and his partners are coming in from unexpected sources. This is great news for John, his lovely wife and their two sweet daughters. However, when John was a boy, he could talk, truly, to his pet dog and spent time having long conversations with the canine. This made his father (Ossie Davis) so worried that he summoned the preacher to their house. There, the minister tried to call "the devil" out of John's body, an exercise that caused John's beloved dog to bite the holy man. When his father gave away the dog, John was heartbroken. No longer would he talk with animals. Yet, on a rainy night, Dr. John nearly hits a dog and brakes quickly, causing him to bump his head. Suddenly, John can hear what the animals around him are saying, much to his initial dismay. From rats to owls to tigers, animals are coming to ask for his help. With so much distraction, can he concentrate on his human medical treatments? This is a very nice family film, especially for those who adore animals. Murphy is great as the doctor and the rest of the cast is also nice, with Davis a pleasure to see and hear. Watch out, too, for Paul Giammati as the shrink summoned to examine John's mental health! The sets, costumes, and production are first rate. But, it is the lovable animals, and their human voices, that are the big stars. From the cute guinea pig to the lovable dog to the tipsy monkey, these critters are out to capture the hearts of the viewers. And, they succeed very, very well.