Revisiting this one for the first time in what must be over 25 years, I was sort of surprised to find a double fold of emotions of it being both good and bad. I think the first thing that came to mind was that it's a wasted opportunity to make a truly classic fantasy musical. There is much going for it production wise, the sets, the colour, the cinematography, and the leading man ensure the film keeps its head above the murky water of averageville. Yet the good points are done down by a quite boring plot structure, the meandering pacing, and quite simply awful execution of very average songs by the supporting cast. Clocking in at over two and half hours long, it's not hard to see why critics of the time dubbed it Doctor Does Little.
Rex Harrison plays Dolittle with a sense of grace and charm, and allowing for the fact that he hadn't wanted to do the project in the first place, it's with much credit that he carries the film on his shoulders and makes it certainly worth a viewing at least once. Emma Fairfax (Samantha Eggar) is a pointless character that the film really didn't need, and Eggar's screech like timing with the tunes is almost unwatchable, yet even she isn't the worst thing in the film, that accolade falls to Anthony Newley who is unwatchable as Matthew Mugg. The film was nominated for 9 awards, wining just the one for best song (the chipper Talk To The Animals), which just goes to show the divisive nature of the piece, and in reality the film's appeal to children is understandable. Because it's cute enough with the various scenarios that the good doctor finds himself in, and of course the animals (both real and not). It's just such a shame that a film that nearly bankrupted its studio doesn't realise the potential it obviously had on the page. A frustrating 5/10.
Rex Harrison plays Dolittle with a sense of grace and charm, and allowing for the fact that he hadn't wanted to do the project in the first place, it's with much credit that he carries the film on his shoulders and makes it certainly worth a viewing at least once. Emma Fairfax (Samantha Eggar) is a pointless character that the film really didn't need, and Eggar's screech like timing with the tunes is almost unwatchable, yet even she isn't the worst thing in the film, that accolade falls to Anthony Newley who is unwatchable as Matthew Mugg. The film was nominated for 9 awards, wining just the one for best song (the chipper Talk To The Animals), which just goes to show the divisive nature of the piece, and in reality the film's appeal to children is understandable. Because it's cute enough with the various scenarios that the good doctor finds himself in, and of course the animals (both real and not). It's just such a shame that a film that nearly bankrupted its studio doesn't realise the potential it obviously had on the page. A frustrating 5/10.