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Dr. Dolittle 2: Special Edition
Fox // PG // October 23, 2001
List Price: $26.98 [Buy now and save at Amazon]
The Movie:
Earlier this Summer, Eddie Murphy provided the voice for the Donkey character in "Shrek". It was a freeflowing, funny, sharp performance that was one of the actor's most lively in recent years. The film has gone on to become the year's biggest hit, passing the 200 million dollar mark. Now, Murphy is talking to the animals in this sequel to the hit from a couple of years ago. One of the elements that helped the original tremendously was the direction of Betty Thomas (who also did a fine job with the Howard Stern film "Private Parts"), who showed a strong ability to guide the comedy to its potential.
This time around, the director is Steve Carr, whose only previous work has been "Next Friday". The results, with a somewhat weaker plot, are less interesting, only generating a few infrequent laughs - not that the original was a laugh-riot, but the jokes seem slimmer here. This time around, the Doctor is called upon to save the animals of a forest, which is planned to be completely cut down by the evil Mr. Potter (Jeffrey Jones, doing his usual bad-guy routine). To save the forest, Dolittle must get a city bear (Steve Zahn) to mate with a country bear (Lisa Kudrow). If Dolittle can get the two endangered species to mate within a month, disaster is averted.
Dragged along for the ride are Kristen Wilson as Dolittle's wife Lisa; Kyla Pratt as Dolittle's daughter Maya; Raven Symone as his other daughter Charisse. In a dismal subplot that's out of a bad sitcom, Charisse is getting to "that age" where she's wanting to be away from her parents. She also has her first boyfriend, Eric (L'il Zane), which prompts a lot of "I'm watching/warning/keeping an eye on you" from the Doctor when he shows up at the cabin.
What little humor involved comes from the talking animals - mainly Jacob Vargas as a talking chameleon who can't seem to blend in with the furniture. Returning is the always amusing Norm McDonald as the voice of Lucky the Dog, who also finds romance during the journey. It's too bad that the human stars couldn't be as energetic. Murphy often seems to be on autopilot throughout the picture, providing a few energetic moments, but mainly keeping low-key. Neither the screenplay, nor the direction provide any help, though. Carr and cinematographer Daryn Okada provide bland, unenergetic cinematography that doesn't help things move along, nor do some of the sets look like more than just...sets.
The PG rating signals that this would be okay for kids. There are some jokes that are purely bathroom humor, but certainly nothing kids today haven't heard before at this point. What I was suprised about is that there's really nothing for the adults in the audience - this is really geared completely towards the younger crowd, unlike Murphy's "Shrek", which provided equal helpings of humor for both sets.
The DVD
VIDEO: "Dr. Dolittle 2" is presented by Fox in a 2.35:1 anamorphic widescreen edition. I usually expect nothing but at least a strong effort from the studio when it comes to image quality. Since their turn-around a while ago, the studio has been cranking out excellent work. Yet, there's been a few instances here and there where the studio doesn't quite live up to expectations - unfortunately, "Dr. Dolittle 2" is one of those efforts. There certainly weren't any problems with sharpness and detail as the movie looked consistently crisp and well-defined, with no instances of noticable softness or haziness. The film looked crisp enough at times that it made the effects where the animals were inserted in the image with Murphy's character more apparent than they were on the big screen.
Yet, there were a few problems that, on their own, weren't too heavy, but together they did make the picture suffer somewhat. Print flaws were fairly noticable at times, as some minor speckles and marks were apparent at various points throughout the movie. Although I didn't see any instances of pixelation, there were a few slight instances of edge enhancement.
Yet, colors throughout the film looked really quite good. The forrest sequences provided strong greens, blues and other earthy tones. Colors appeared natural, bright and well-saturated, with no instances of smearing or other flaws. Actually, they appeared a little richer and stronger here than I remember colors appearing when I saw the film in the theater. Black level appeared solid and flesh tones looked accurate and natural. There's some minor flaws and blemishes throughout "Dr. Dolittle 2", but much of it also tended to look very good. Overall, a bit of a mixed bag.
SOUND: "Dr. Dolittle 2" suffers from that common illness known as "comedy audio". Although it's been previously noted that comedies really don't have a great need for agressive sound use, there's been several comedies in recent years that have proven that they can still put sound to good use. "Dr. Dolittle 2" could have been one of those instances, as the forrest sequences could have provided stronger ambient sounds from the surrounds. In fact, the surrounds really weren't used much at all throughout "Dr. Dolittle 2", with the exception of a couple of random sound effects and slight music re-inforcement. Audio quality was respectable throughout the picture; whenever the rap music came into the soundtrack, it really filled the front speakers nicely and provided some respectable bass. Dialogue, on the other hand, sounded merely okay - although much of it sounded clear and easily understood, some of it tended to sound thin.
MENUS:: The DVD's menu starts off with a clip of the little raccoon character voiced by Michael Rappaport asking us if "we want to see the beaver" Uh, ok - those who have seen the movie will understand. The main menu itself provides some fun animation and transitions between menus.
EXTRAS::
Commentary: This is a commentary with director Steve Carr and co-producer Heidi Santelli. The commentary track is alternately informative and annoying, as the two spend a little time discussing how the particular scene was accomplished, then tend to spend some time discussing how wonderful everyone involved was. There's some interesting tibits and funny stories here, though, so those interested in hearing more about how the film was made may want to give the commentary a try.
HBO: Making Of: This is a 25 minute "Making Of" documentary that starts off with Murphy discussing why "you can make these Dr. Dolittle movies forever". (Uh oh.) Seriously though, this is actually a mildly entertaining promotional documentary that takes a look not only at Murphy's career in comedy, but the film's production. Murphy seems able to freely and honestly discuss his feelings on several subjects about his career, which is fun to listen to. Well worth a look.
Deleted Scenes: 2 deleted sequences from the film - neither of which really were that helpful to pushing the film along, but there are a few laughs in the 2 scenes.
Bear Necessities: A Guide To Grizzlies: This is an eight minute featurette where we're taught more about the various bear species and their habits. Very interesting stuff and it's nice that Fox has produced something that's rather informative that's not about the film's production, but its subject. In the middle of the documentary, there's a hilarious fake commerical and the last half of the documentary has a very, very (very) weird bit about a guy who's come up with a protective suit that allows him to get closer to bears.
Making Movie Magic With Rhythm & Hues: This is a 5 minute featurette where the effects supervisors talk us through the process of getting the animals to speak and show the viewer visually the steps that had to be taken.
Storyboard Sequences: 5 storyboard-to-scene sequences are presented in this section.
NUON-Enhanced Features: Only a few players are NUON-capable at this point, but Fox has produced two titles that offer features that these players can use - "Dr. Dolittle 2" and "Bedazzled". Unfortunately, I'm not sure what the features are in this case, because they're not listed on the menu or on the box.
Music Video: "Cluck Cluck" by Product G & B featuring Wyclef.
On The Set With Tank: This 10 minute featurette offers the viewer a chance to watch the lead bear trainer work with star "Tank". The trainer is able to get the bear to do a great deal of amazing little stunts, but it's obviously because the trainer has gained a bond with the creature and remains very kind to it.
Trailers/TV Spots: There are 2 trailers and 12 TV spots included for "Dr. Dolittle 2". There's also a trailer included for Fox's upcoming "Ice Age", a computer-animated feature that looks very entertaining. The "Ice Age" trailer is presented in Dolby Digital 5.1, but seemed to provide a less surround-heavy sound experience than I remember it having when I saw it in the theater, for some reason.
Final Thoughts: "Dr. Dolittle 2" provided an occasional mild laugh or two, but the material is simply lacking in comparison to the original. Director Steve Carr also doesn't display same kind of strength raising the material above its origins that original director Betty Thomas did. Still, Fox has put together a DVD that will certainly please fans of the picture, as it offers fairly good audio/video and a fairly packed supplemental section.
Earlier this Summer, Eddie Murphy provided the voice for the Donkey character in "Shrek". It was a freeflowing, funny, sharp performance that was one of the actor's most lively in recent years. The film has gone on to become the year's biggest hit, passing the 200 million dollar mark. Now, Murphy is talking to the animals in this sequel to the hit from a couple of years ago. One of the elements that helped the original tremendously was the direction of Betty Thomas (who also did a fine job with the Howard Stern film "Private Parts"), who showed a strong ability to guide the comedy to its potential.
This time around, the director is Steve Carr, whose only previous work has been "Next Friday". The results, with a somewhat weaker plot, are less interesting, only generating a few infrequent laughs - not that the original was a laugh-riot, but the jokes seem slimmer here. This time around, the Doctor is called upon to save the animals of a forest, which is planned to be completely cut down by the evil Mr. Potter (Jeffrey Jones, doing his usual bad-guy routine). To save the forest, Dolittle must get a city bear (Steve Zahn) to mate with a country bear (Lisa Kudrow). If Dolittle can get the two endangered species to mate within a month, disaster is averted.
Dragged along for the ride are Kristen Wilson as Dolittle's wife Lisa; Kyla Pratt as Dolittle's daughter Maya; Raven Symone as his other daughter Charisse. In a dismal subplot that's out of a bad sitcom, Charisse is getting to "that age" where she's wanting to be away from her parents. She also has her first boyfriend, Eric (L'il Zane), which prompts a lot of "I'm watching/warning/keeping an eye on you" from the Doctor when he shows up at the cabin.
What little humor involved comes from the talking animals - mainly Jacob Vargas as a talking chameleon who can't seem to blend in with the furniture. Returning is the always amusing Norm McDonald as the voice of Lucky the Dog, who also finds romance during the journey. It's too bad that the human stars couldn't be as energetic. Murphy often seems to be on autopilot throughout the picture, providing a few energetic moments, but mainly keeping low-key. Neither the screenplay, nor the direction provide any help, though. Carr and cinematographer Daryn Okada provide bland, unenergetic cinematography that doesn't help things move along, nor do some of the sets look like more than just...sets.
The PG rating signals that this would be okay for kids. There are some jokes that are purely bathroom humor, but certainly nothing kids today haven't heard before at this point. What I was suprised about is that there's really nothing for the adults in the audience - this is really geared completely towards the younger crowd, unlike Murphy's "Shrek", which provided equal helpings of humor for both sets.
The DVD
VIDEO: "Dr. Dolittle 2" is presented by Fox in a 2.35:1 anamorphic widescreen edition. I usually expect nothing but at least a strong effort from the studio when it comes to image quality. Since their turn-around a while ago, the studio has been cranking out excellent work. Yet, there's been a few instances here and there where the studio doesn't quite live up to expectations - unfortunately, "Dr. Dolittle 2" is one of those efforts. There certainly weren't any problems with sharpness and detail as the movie looked consistently crisp and well-defined, with no instances of noticable softness or haziness. The film looked crisp enough at times that it made the effects where the animals were inserted in the image with Murphy's character more apparent than they were on the big screen.
Yet, there were a few problems that, on their own, weren't too heavy, but together they did make the picture suffer somewhat. Print flaws were fairly noticable at times, as some minor speckles and marks were apparent at various points throughout the movie. Although I didn't see any instances of pixelation, there were a few slight instances of edge enhancement.
Yet, colors throughout the film looked really quite good. The forrest sequences provided strong greens, blues and other earthy tones. Colors appeared natural, bright and well-saturated, with no instances of smearing or other flaws. Actually, they appeared a little richer and stronger here than I remember colors appearing when I saw the film in the theater. Black level appeared solid and flesh tones looked accurate and natural. There's some minor flaws and blemishes throughout "Dr. Dolittle 2", but much of it also tended to look very good. Overall, a bit of a mixed bag.
SOUND: "Dr. Dolittle 2" suffers from that common illness known as "comedy audio". Although it's been previously noted that comedies really don't have a great need for agressive sound use, there's been several comedies in recent years that have proven that they can still put sound to good use. "Dr. Dolittle 2" could have been one of those instances, as the forrest sequences could have provided stronger ambient sounds from the surrounds. In fact, the surrounds really weren't used much at all throughout "Dr. Dolittle 2", with the exception of a couple of random sound effects and slight music re-inforcement. Audio quality was respectable throughout the picture; whenever the rap music came into the soundtrack, it really filled the front speakers nicely and provided some respectable bass. Dialogue, on the other hand, sounded merely okay - although much of it sounded clear and easily understood, some of it tended to sound thin.
MENUS:: The DVD's menu starts off with a clip of the little raccoon character voiced by Michael Rappaport asking us if "we want to see the beaver" Uh, ok - those who have seen the movie will understand. The main menu itself provides some fun animation and transitions between menus.
EXTRAS::
Commentary: This is a commentary with director Steve Carr and co-producer Heidi Santelli. The commentary track is alternately informative and annoying, as the two spend a little time discussing how the particular scene was accomplished, then tend to spend some time discussing how wonderful everyone involved was. There's some interesting tibits and funny stories here, though, so those interested in hearing more about how the film was made may want to give the commentary a try.
HBO: Making Of: This is a 25 minute "Making Of" documentary that starts off with Murphy discussing why "you can make these Dr. Dolittle movies forever". (Uh oh.) Seriously though, this is actually a mildly entertaining promotional documentary that takes a look not only at Murphy's career in comedy, but the film's production. Murphy seems able to freely and honestly discuss his feelings on several subjects about his career, which is fun to listen to. Well worth a look.
Deleted Scenes: 2 deleted sequences from the film - neither of which really were that helpful to pushing the film along, but there are a few laughs in the 2 scenes.
Bear Necessities: A Guide To Grizzlies: This is an eight minute featurette where we're taught more about the various bear species and their habits. Very interesting stuff and it's nice that Fox has produced something that's rather informative that's not about the film's production, but its subject. In the middle of the documentary, there's a hilarious fake commerical and the last half of the documentary has a very, very (very) weird bit about a guy who's come up with a protective suit that allows him to get closer to bears.
Making Movie Magic With Rhythm & Hues: This is a 5 minute featurette where the effects supervisors talk us through the process of getting the animals to speak and show the viewer visually the steps that had to be taken.
Storyboard Sequences: 5 storyboard-to-scene sequences are presented in this section.
NUON-Enhanced Features: Only a few players are NUON-capable at this point, but Fox has produced two titles that offer features that these players can use - "Dr. Dolittle 2" and "Bedazzled". Unfortunately, I'm not sure what the features are in this case, because they're not listed on the menu or on the box.
Music Video: "Cluck Cluck" by Product G & B featuring Wyclef.
On The Set With Tank: This 10 minute featurette offers the viewer a chance to watch the lead bear trainer work with star "Tank". The trainer is able to get the bear to do a great deal of amazing little stunts, but it's obviously because the trainer has gained a bond with the creature and remains very kind to it.
Trailers/TV Spots: There are 2 trailers and 12 TV spots included for "Dr. Dolittle 2". There's also a trailer included for Fox's upcoming "Ice Age", a computer-animated feature that looks very entertaining. The "Ice Age" trailer is presented in Dolby Digital 5.1, but seemed to provide a less surround-heavy sound experience than I remember it having when I saw it in the theater, for some reason.
Final Thoughts: "Dr. Dolittle 2" provided an occasional mild laugh or two, but the material is simply lacking in comparison to the original. Director Steve Carr also doesn't display same kind of strength raising the material above its origins that original director Betty Thomas did. Still, Fox has put together a DVD that will certainly please fans of the picture, as it offers fairly good audio/video and a fairly packed supplemental section.
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