Dr. Dolittle 2 (2001)

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

Director:

Steve Carr

Writers:

Hugh Lofting (Doctor Dolittle stories), Larry Levin

Stars:

Eddie Murphy, Cedric the Entertainer, Kristen Wilson

3 wins & 6 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
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 J. Taylor	...	Eldon's Wife
Andy Richter	...	Eugene Wilson
Kevin Pollak	...	Riley / Alligator
Victor Raider-Wexler	...	Judge B. Duff
Jeffrey Jones	...	Joe Potter
Mark Griffin	...	Logger / Nature Show Narrator
Ken Hudson Campbell	...	Animal Control Officer / Dog / Animal Groupie #3 / Forest Animal (voice) (as Ken Campbell)
Anne Stedman	...	Woman

Storyline

Dr. John Dolittle the beloved doctor is back, 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. But 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. So John held a meeting for every animal in the forest to not give up without a fight no matter what kind of animal expression they have and everyone agrees to do it and save their home.

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Plot Keywords:

second part | california | sequel | veterinarian | sequel to remake | 

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Taglines:

The doctor is in again.

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Genres:

Comedy | Family | Fantasy

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG for language and crude humor

Details

Official Sites:

Fox

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

22 June 2001 (USA)

Also Known As:

DR2

Filming Locations:

Alpine Lake, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$70,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$25,037,039, 24 June 2001, Wide Release

Gross USA:

$112,952,899

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$176,104,344

Company Credits

Production Co:

Twentieth Century Fox, Davis Entertainment, Joseph M. Singer Entertainment

Technical Specs

Runtime:

87 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.39 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

When Archie gives the Doc a bear hug it was really the trainer who is quite bonded with Tank the bear. The scene was done using split screen and a man in a bear suit for one point of view.

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Goofs

The animal referred to as a weasel in the movie is actually a ferret, a completely different species.

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Quotes

Animal Control Officer: Now, there's nothing more dangerous than a half-sedated, half-unsedated bear. They have big, sharp teeth and claws and...
Dr. Dolittle: [interrupts] Excuse me, I'm Doctor Dolittle. What happened in here?
Animal Control Officer: Oh, well, he broke down the back door and then we found him ransacking the kitchen.
Dr. Dolittle: No...
Animal Control Officer: Yeah, sorry Doctor Dolittle, I was rooting for you.

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Crazy Credits

for Ellie

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Connections

References Top Gun (1986)

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Soundtracks

Truly
Written by Lionel Richie

User Reviews

Tripe. Trash. Pick your fave negative noun or adjective.

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."