This file was generated 2002-10-15 05:03 GMT. This movie's information hasn't changed since 2000-06-22.
Doctor Dolittle is a nice little movie. The run time, kept at a scant eighty-five minutes, doesn't allow things to slack. There's some family development that I didn't find too contrived, a surprise.
The movie centers around Eddie Murphy's character hearing animals speak to him. The selection of human voices behind the animals is excellent. I remember Bruce Willis being the perfect voice for Look Who's Talking's Mikey, and I thought the voice choices were impeccable here as well. I wonder, though, if I would've enjoyed the characters as much if I hadn't recognized the voices of Norm Macdonald as a smart-mouth dog, Chris Rock as a zany guinea pig, Jenna Elfman as an owl, and Albert Brooks as an ailing tiger. These characters aren't great stretches from the other roles these actors have played, which really makes me wonder if I could've enjoyed the script done by unknowns.
Getting back to Murphy, this was a very restrained role. Murphy brings very nice warmth to the screen, even if his father is written to be unusually thick-headed. When Dolittle starts warming up to the animals, the toned-down Murphy is nice.