Dr. Dolittle 2

A few months ago, I saw "Doctor Dolittle" (the 1998 remake) for the first time in years. I liked it when I was twelve years old, so I was curious to know what I would think after growing up, despite having low expectations. My expectations were surpassed slightly, but if I had never seen "Dr. Dolittle 2" before, its predecessor wouldn't have been enough to make me interested in seeing it, but I did see it about four years ago, and enjoyed it. I was seventeen, past this movie's targeted audience, but didn't tend to watch a lot of movies at the time. I just watched this sequel again, and my once again low expectations were not surpassed at all.

Dr. John Dolittle has become famous for his ability to communicate with animals, but lately, he has also been having trouble with his family. One day, he is brought to the forest to see the Godbeaver, and learns that the forest is rapidly being cut down. The animals who live in this forest are counting on Dr. Dolittle to save their habitat, and in order to do so, the doctor must attempt to get a female Pacific Western bear in the forest named Ava together with a male so he can save the species! He gets a male bear of this species named Archie from a circus, and begins his attempt to get him adjusted to life in the wild and teach him how to win Ava's heart, both of which are easier said than done! It doesn't help that Archie has to compete with a Kodiak bear named Sonny, and logging company owner Joe Potter is determined to get his way!

Although I found no huge laughs in "Doctor Dolittle", I did find some minor ones. However, in this sequel, I found none. I smiled at times, but VERY rarely and briefly. Like its predecessor, "Dr. Dolittle 2" contains some juvenile excretion jokes, though it is a TAD cleaner, for better or worse (since it was aimed at kids, many would probably say it's for the better). These jokes are usually lame, if not always, a good example being the scene where Archie has diarrhea. There are also some embarrassing lines in the script, such as the one Dr. Dolittle has, humiliating his daughter, Charisse by telling her boyfriend how she tried to get out of diapers early and made messes around the house. Fortunately, the movie isn't totally filled with these problems, but most of the film is basically average and forgettable in my book.

Both Dr. Dolittle films starring Eddie Murphy are rather cheesy, and would definitely appeal to kids more than anyone else, but this one more so than the original. If you don't like the 1998 film, then you probably wouldn't like this one, either, but if you do, then you STILL might not like this sequel. "Dr. Dolittle 2" may have a slightly better plot than its predecessor, but overall, it is inferior, not that I'm saying the original is really that good. If you ask me, 1998's "Doctor Dolittle" is very close to being strictly for kids, and this sequel is right there. Remembering the film's targeted audience, I guess it deserves some credit, but if you're not part of that audience, and are not a parent of anyone who is, I wouldn't say there's any need to bother. After watching this, I definitely won't be watching the straight-to-video "Dr. Dolittle 3".

Dr. Dolitle has Murphy back as the doctor who can talk to animals once again comes back, this time he has to help a bear become a, uh, man of a bear in order to save a forest. While the first one had as many fart and poop jokes as this one, it didn't have it's vivacity and it's effect to be funny to both kids and adults. This time, it's strictly for kids and it is below par for Murphy; if you want to see him in an exceptional comedy see Shrek again. Various stars give voices which keep this movie afloat including Steve Zahn, Lisa Kudrow, Isaac Hayes, Kevin Pollack, Cedric the Entertainer, Andy Dick and above all, Norm MacDonald. C+

Loose non-musical adaptation of the 1967 movie has Eddie Murphy in this follow-up playing straight man to a group of furry friends voiced by the likes of Steve Zahn, Lisa Kudrow, Mike Epps, Jacob Vargas, Michael Rapaport, Isaac Hayes, Andy Dick, Joey Lauren Adams, David Cross, David DeLuise. Here Murphy Dr. John Dolittle the beloved doctor is back, living with his intimate family, wife (Kristen Wilson and children (Raven-Symoné, Kyla Pratt), but this time around he plays cupid to bumbling circus bear Archie as he's so smitten by a Pacific Western bear female, Ava. Dr. Dolittle must help a group of forest creatures to save their forest against enemies (Kevin Pollak, Jeffrey Jones) who want to destroy it . The good doctor goes back, persuaded to save the forest from human developers. With the aid of his mangy, madcap animal friends, Dr. Dolittle must teach Archie the ways of true romance in time to save his species and his home before their habit is gone. Dolittle is reduced to reacting lamely and is upstaged throughout by the wisecracking critters. He doesn't just talk to the animals!.Dolittle Is Back !. The doctor is in again !. The Doctor Is Back! For thousands of year animals have been trying to tell us something, but their cries have fallen on deaf ears...until they found John Dolittle !. This Summer...The Doctor is In Learn to talk in 500 animal languages from a parrot who speaks 1000!.The most joyous entertainment for the whole family! You've never seen anything like it in your life!.

An enjoyable adventure about a botcher doctor, regaining his wit and courage as he makes friends, crosses adversaries and encounters wondrous creatures created by Jim Henson's Creature Shop. The marvelous and agreeable premise suffers, at times, from a poor and weak script, this time Dolittle is faced with the challenge of reintroducing a circus bear into the wild in order to save a forest . Children will find this flick very amusing thanks to Eddie Murphy 's stunning acting, a lot of beloved animals, colorful cinematography and sympathetic script. May pack a bit too much bathroom for some family tastes. Gastrointestinal, flatulence and other bodily functions dominate the humor and subplots involving Dolittle's daughter nearly undoes te charm, but it's a passable entertainment. No animals were harmed during the making of this film, but there was probably cruel and unusual treatment of the interns involving pooper-scoopers. Murphy's well accompanied by Kristen Wilson, Raven-Symoné, Lil' Zane, James Avery, Andy Richter, Kevin Pollack, the always likeable Kyla Pratt who stars the sequels, among others. Traditional values and great movie for families, resulting to be an exciting movie from beginning to end, this is an amazing feel nice film and I was hoping to see more like it. Direction by Steve Carr (Movie 43, Iznogoud, Rebound, Paul Blart: Mall Cop , Are We Done Yet?, Next Friday) is ordinary, fitting to comedy film. Rating 5/10 . Average but amusing.

Other versions about Hugh Lofting's acclaimed tales were starred by Eddie Murphy, made in 1998, 2001 and 2006, such as : The first ¨Dr Dolittle¨ (1998) by Betty Thomas with Murphy, Ossie Davis, Oliver Platt, Peter Boyle, Richard Schiff, Kristen Wilson, Jeffrey Tambor, Raven-Symoné. ¨Dr Dolittle 2¨ by Steve Carr. ¨Dr Dolittle 3¨ with Kyla Pratt, Kristen Wilson, Walker Howard, John Amos. ¨Dr. Dolittle 4: Tail to the Chief¨ (2008) by Craig Shapiro with Kyla Pratt, Peter Coyote, Malcolm Stewart, Niall Matter. And recent ¨Dolittle¨ (2020) by Stephen Gaghan with Robert Downey, Antonio Banderas, Michael Sheen , Jim Broadbent, Jessie Buckley, Emma Thompson , Rami Malek. And the 1967 classic ¨Doctor Dolittle¨ by Richard Fleischer with Rex Harrison, Anthony Newley, Samantha Eggar, Peter Bull , Muriel Landers, Portia Nelson, William Dix and Richard Attemborough. Wholeheartedly recommend for a great family movie. Fun enough and great adventure for kids and adults. Doctor Dolittle is one of the most joyous entertainment for the whole family.

Dr. John Dolittle (Eddie Murphy) is more successful than ever honing in on his new animal communication skills. With his dog Lucky (Norm Macdonald) at his side, he is able to help multitudes of animals. His daughter Charisse Dolittle (Raven-Symoné) is annoyed with him. It's her sweet sixteen and two rats pop out of her cake. To appease her, he promises to take the family on an European vacation away from the animals. He drives to the woods to meet the Godfather beaver. The animals are concerned about encroaching humans and the clear cutting of the forest. He needs an endangered animal to save the forest. Eugene Wilson tells him about unique female bear Ava (Lisa Kudrow) but they need to reintroduce male circus bear Archie (Steve Zahn) into the wild. Oppositing them are lumber company owner Joe Potter (Jeffrey Jones) and his lawyer Riley (Kevin Pollak).

It has some functional kids' movie aspects. The talking animals are funny sometimes although Steve Zahn may not be the best wacky voice actor. There is a lot of low brow humor. It could be good but the situation is too manufactured and the cabin setting is too fake. It has some good laughs but the story gets too tiresome. Kids might like this but even they should be bored by courtroom drama and corporate powerplay.

A couple of nights ago, I rented two movies at my local Blockbuster Video out of curiosity. Being someone who loves animals, I rented "Ace Ventura: When Nature Calls" and "Dr. Dolittle 2" just for the heck of it (the former because I think Jim Carrey is hilarious but had avoided that particular title out of fear of it being a disappointment, the latter because I was interested in seeing the talking animal effects). After loving the first title far better than expected, I had the pleasure of writing it up with compliments here for other IMDb readers.

"Dr. Dolittle 2", however, was a flop for me.

Now, I do have to admit that I was basically prepared to be disappointed for this one the same way I was with "When Nature Calls". I grew up with the beloved original "Dr. Dolittle" movie starring the talented Rex Harrison and adored the original books. I was absolutely convinced that this movie would be a dumb attempt to cash in on the original and make it "marketable" and "hip" in that lousy, gross-out way that only Hollywood marketing executives can when digging for dollars. But I watched it anyway, hoping that I could at least enjoy the talking animals, and I would have been spared a lot of headaches if only someone had been around to talk me out of this temporary lapse of better judgement.

Let me start by saying that this movie has nothing to do with the original concept. Nothing. The animals talk and the main character has a famous name along with the ability to understand them, and it's there that any similarities end.

How bad was this film? Let me put it this way: it was a heap worse than I had anticipated, so much so that I shut it off two-thirds of the way in. It was simply too much of an embarrassment, and I found myself plotting to return it in the middle of the night after work when Blockbuster would be closed so no one would see me carrying it!

The absolute worst problem with this film has to do with Eddie Murphy himself--a strong reminder of why he didn't have a hit film for something going on a decade. Simply put, he isn't likeable: he plays this role the precise same way he has played nearly all of his roles, as an obnoxious "Why do I have to be stuck in this position, I wish I was doing something else better with my time" jerk who merely puts up with his dilemma. He also seems so ANNOYED in most of his movies.

In the grossly overrated "Beverly Hills Cop" films, he was an annoyed cop who had to have everything his own way. In "The Golden Child", he was an annoyed locator of missing children who put up with his job as well as his mission simply because he was stuck with it. Except for the occasional "Mulan" (the only performance of his I liked, by the way), he always whines, snarls, screams, curses and is generally pessimistic. And in this film, he is annoyed at the mere idea of being the world's most unique animal doctor.

Eddie Murphy has managed to accomplish the impossible here--he has actually managed to make the idea of being able to talk to animals into a thoroughly unenjoyable and miserable routine. Simply put, he takes all the fun out of such a concept.

What child HASN'T wanted to talk to animals? It was the one thing I wished I could do for as long as I could remember. If given the choice of any one magical ability (even if I were to include the ability to fly in a would-be list to choose from), it would easily be being able to converse with animals. But here, you get the impression that God simply plopped this amazing talent on precisely the wrong individual. Murphy doesn't even seem to genuinely *care* about animals--it's all an "Okay, okay, I'll do it, but only because I feel like I have to and not because I have any heart for it" sort of arrangement for him. All the while, what with that expression on his face, you keep expecting him to mutter, "God, why ME? This is such a pain in the NECK!!!" And in this attitude while conversing with the various animals on screen, he does everything except slap them with his "I'm always right, so you'd better listen to me" sharpness.

There is something seriously wrong with a script when Dr. Dolittle is overly annoyed in dealing with, much more so being the only person on the planet able to talk to, animals.

Here's my say: if this material had to be remade at all, it should have at least been given to a comedian who could have worked wonders with its concept and genuinely enjoyed it. Imagine Robin Williams, or Steve Martin, or (you guessed it) even Carrey himself portraying this role. Heck, even the late John Candy. Any of them as well as dozens of others could have made this work because they have something which Murphy has always lacked--a sense of lightheartedness and joy when given the opportunity to work with fantastical and outlandish material.

Watching this dreck, though, I seriously get the impression that Eddie Murphy picked the project simply because he knows he had nearly killed his own career with portraying annoyingly selfish, self-centered bores and wanted to do something to change his image into something lighter in an attempt to save it. Or at least his agent did. Whatever. All I have to say is--Eddie, if you want to convince us you can do something fun then you need to lighten yourself up first. Talking animal effects and potty humour do no automatically make you a whiz at family entertainment. Basically, you're just doing your same old "Beverly Hills Cop personality" routine with gimmicky windowdressing, and it doesn't work.

But such a long review on my behalf was far better than this film deserves. If it weren't for the fact that I wanted to share my feelings on it with others, I would have otherwise simply written one line here: "I'll pass on this movie."