Dr. Dolittle 2 (2001)

User Rating:

4.7/10   

Director:

Steve Carr

Writers (WGA):

Hugh Lofting (Doctor Dolittle stories)
Larry Levin (written by)

Release Date:

22 June 2001 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Family | Romance

Tagline:

Dolittle Is Back

Plot:

Dolittle must save a forest and a bear's life.

Plot Keywords:

Bear | Doctor | Urination | Skunk | San Francisco California

Awards:

2 wins & 5 nominations

US TV Schedule:

Fri. July 17	8:00 PM	FX
Sat. July 18	4:00 PM	FX

Cast

Eddie Murphy	...	Dr. John Dolittle
Kristen Wilson	...	Lisa Dolittle
Raven-Symoné	...	Charisse Dolittle
Kyla Pratt	...	Maya Dolittle
Lil' Zane	...	Eric
Denise Dowse	...	Secretary
James Avery	...	Eldon (as James L. Avery)
Elayn Taylor	...	Eldon's Wife (as Elayn J. Taylor)
Andy Richter	...	Eugene Wilson
Kevin Pollak	...	Riley / Voice of Alligator
Victor Raider-Wexler	...	Judge B. Duff
Jeffrey Jones	...	Joe Potter
Mark Griffin	...	Logger / Nature Show Narrator
Ken Hudson Campbell	...	Animal Control Officer / Voice of Dog / Voice of Animal Groupie #3 / Voice of Forest Animal (as Ken Campbell)
Anne Stedman	...	Woman

Also Known As:

DR.2 (USA) (promotional abbreviation)
DR2 (USA) (promotional abbreviation)
Doctor Dolittle 2 (USA) (alternative spelling)

MPAA:

Rated PG language and crude humor.

Runtime:

87 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital

Certification:

USA:PG (certificate #38316) | Iceland:L | Malaysia:U | Australia:M (DVD rating) | South Korea:All | Argentina:Atp | Australia:PG | Brazil:Livre | Canada:PG | Chile:TE | Finland:S | France:U | Germany:o.Al. (w) | Netherlands:AL | Norway:A | Singapore:PG | Spain:T | Sweden:Btl | Switzerland:7 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:7 (canton of Vaud) | UK:PG

Filming Locations:

Alpine Lake, Marin County, California, USA

Company:

Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation

Trivia:

Cameo: [Freckles, the Dalmatian]who played Pongo in 101 Dalmatians (1996) and the sequel, 102 Dalmatians (2000) makes a brief cameo as one of the animals that go on strike.

Goofs:

Continuity: Dr. Dolittle's tongue changes color in opening scene with stray dogs.

Quotes:

[doing a somersault down a hill in the forest to show off, Archie rolls right onto a pinecone]
Archie: Hey look at me, I've filled for you! Ah! Pinecone!

Movie Connections:

Featured in "HBO First Look: The Making of 'Dr. Dolittle 2' (#8.7)" (2001)

Soundtrack:

Do U Wanna Roll (Dolittle Theme)

Yes, it's better than the first, because Eddie Murphy has a bigger and more active role in the plot. *** (out of four).

DR. DOLITTLE 2 / (2001) *** (out of four)

I am often cautious when I walk into a theater to screen a sequel, but even more so when it's the sequel to a family comedy. Family comedies are so lazy these days. Many filmmakers seem to think their target audience isn't analytical, therefore, they do not take the proper precautions. The 1998 hit "Doctor Dolittle" wasn't a great movie, but it was entertaining and amusing. Steve Carr's "Doctor Dolittle 2" is even better. The film works because it doesn't waste time explaining what we already know. It relies on the first film for the character development and circumstances, and also creates a story that stands on its own. The plot drifts a little here and there, but it's new material, not a duplication of "Doctor Dolittle." This is the kind of movie that revives this struggling genre.

Eddie Murphy takes center stage again as Dr. John Dolittle, but he has a more important role in this film. In the original, he was upstaged by the talking animals; he simply reacted to their various crude and witty comments. Here, he's the main focus of the plot, thus, the film provides us with a stronger central character. I like the way the movie gives Dolittle dimension by incorporating his family into the story. We learn more about his wife (Kristen Wilson), and his lovely daughter Charisse (Raven-Symone), who learns of a new ability and forms a love interest with a young man. Some of these family aspects work well, and others fall flat. Charisse's relationship with her father is involving, but the subplot dealing with her boyfriend does not pay off.

John Dolittle is a world-famous veterinarian who can talk with animals. The premise involves Dolittle's attempts to save a forest that is about to be leveled by a powerful forester (Jeffrey Jones). A slick attorney (Kevin Pollak) represents our enemy, while Dolittle recruits his lawyer wife to defend his case in court. Dolittle's only true argument depends on a protected species of bear. Unfortunately, there's only a single female bear who cannot reproduce by herself, so why save her habitat? But wait! There's a circus performer male bear of the same species. Dolittle rushes to persuade the animal to come to the wild and mate with the female bear, but will he want to leave his circus home?

"Doctor Dolittle 2" is not an extremely funny movie; its more amusing than hilarious. A lot of the film's humor comes off as surprisingly dual and annoying. Such humor evolves from a lizard's inability to blend with his environment, a canine's attempts to pick up a wolf, convincing the two bears to mate, and a monkey's drinking problems. These jokes lack the sharp impulse, the zest, the perfect timing, and the wit we encountered in the first film. Until the creative, prosperous final act, "Doctor Dolittle 2" invokes very few laughs.

Eddie Murphy supplies his character with the perfect amount of wit and energy. He is the funniest thing in the movie. The filmmakers decided to tone down some of the crude humor and sexual entendres to warrant the movie family-orientated PG rating. Murphy still takes advantage of the mildly risqué material present, however, as he makes the film more viewable and entertaining. The filmmakers learned from the first film, where Murphy was too passive and reactive. Here, they put him on screen whenever possible, and that's why "Doctor Dolittle 2" is better than the original.