BootDigest Such a frustrating disappointment

KnotStronger This is a must-see and one of the best documentaries - and films - of this year.

Nayan Gough A great movie, one of the best of this year. There was a bit of confusion at one point in the plot, but nothing serious.

Donald Seymour This is one of the best movies I’ve seen in a very long time. You have to go and see this on the big screen.

Bella As an animal lover, I very much enjoyed Dr. Doolitle (1967). It's an enjoyable Comedy/Adventure/Musical/Fantasy movie about Dr. Doolitle, the animal doctor, and his journey to find the Great Pink Sea Snail in order to improve on his skills in animal languages. I gave this film a 6/10 because the vintage settings are authentic and beautiful, the overall message of the film, and the cinematography is excellent. The criticisms that I have are that some of the characters were boring, some songs were dull and there are some very corny and unfunny moments. The movie begins on a fishing deck in the middle of a town where the houses are yellow-brown brick and conjoined together with triangular rooftops, chimneys, and a sign reading "Fundlesy Clay". Dr. Doolite's home is not how you would expect an average veterinarian's home to look. Across the bridge and past, a small garden is Dr. Doolitle's brick house. There is a large doorbell and an engraved wooden and brass sign with his name on it on the wooden door. Inside his home, you will find all kinds of animals, such as pigs, monkeys, parrots, roosters, horses, donkeys, owls, sheep, ducks, rabbits, hedgehogs, cats, and dogs walking and sitting inside and outside.The message of the film is about why we treat animals different from humans even though humans are animals as well. Dr. Doolite is a proud vegetarian who speaks to animals. When he was in court and presented his case in an attempt to prove that he is able to speak to animals, the judge decided to sentence Dr. Doolite to an insane asylum. He claims the reason in that he treats animals like humans and then Dr. Doolite goes into a song explaining why we should not kill and eat animals, and rather treat them like people.The cinematography of the film is great. The director cuts to the new actors very smoothly when a new person is speaking or when something new has been introduced. The camera pans slowly onto Dr. Doolitle while he speaks the most important parts. While reading this book in the library after he is released from jail, the camera switches back and forth between Dr. Doolitle and Emma while they are conversing in a very smooth and professional manner. The film is 152 minutes long. Adults may find some parts to be very immature humour or very corny. For example, there is a scene where Dr. Doolitle is singing what appears to be a love song to a baby seal in a stroller. Also, although some of the songs are humorous, short, sweet, and catchy, others are not. There are some songs in the film that I think should have been taken out completely. The characters, other than Dr. Doolitle, are boring and uninteresting. Their motives, strengths, and weakness are unclear as most characters in the film are not very dynamic.I would recommend this movie to people who enjoy musicals. The film definitely gets better after the 1-hour mark. It is a good film to watch when you had a long day and just want to shut off your brain and enjoy a film with your family. The comedy is light and easy but there are definitely some funny moments. The animals are enjoyable, especially the two-headed llama.I gave this film 6/10 stars because it was not nearly as good as I was hoping that it would be. The areas that I think that could be improved would definitely be that Tommy, Lady Petherington, and Matthew were all very boring characters. Some more detail could have been added to bring them to life. There were only 1 or 2 songs that I really enjoyed and found catchy in the film and some of the jokes made in the film seemed a tad lazy. The parts that made the film good were the cinematography, the settings, and the overall message of the film.

TheBlueHairedLawyer I think one of the things leaving a bad rep on this movie is that most of the reviewers are adults. Well sure, watching it as an adult I found this movie to be cheesy, lame and weird, not at all like the books I fell in love with as a little kid, but when I was a kid I remember seeing this on VHS and I loved it. I found the acting to be excellent, the stories were funny and exciting and I still remember the lyrics to songs like, "My Friend The Doctor" right out of the movie. I do agree with most reviewers that Dr. Dolittle is pretty bad by most standards, but it's a movie for children, and it was very effective for me as a child. I recommend watching this for nostalgic value or for fun, don't watch it expecting something amazing, but just watch it to laugh at it and you might be surprised.

Spikeopath 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.

kosmasp The Remake of Doctor Doolittle is better known than the original. But despite the fact what you think of the Eddie Murphy staring vehicle (I kinda liked it), this is the original. And almost every time the original is better than the remake! (there are of course exception of the rule, see Ocean's 11 for instance).But Rex Harrison is a great actor and even with animals as partners he's on top form here. The story isn't that easy to follow or better said, you're not sure where this is going. Does it have a goal or is it aimlessly drifting along? Of course it does have one, but it's difficult to spot. I enjoyed it, but it's just not everyones taste!Edit: I finally figured out, why it seemed a bit off. Because it actually was more than "a bit off". The making of this movie is far more interesting than the end result we can watch. There was a "back story" on this movie in the magazine Empire. It shed quite some light on the difficulties the makers were confronted by, while making this movie. Rex Harrison was one of those "problems". It's too long a story to list here, but search for it and you will be amazed ... or utterly disappointed