Synopsis
After losing his wife seven years earlier, the eccentric Dr. John Dolittle, famed doctor and veterinarian of Queen Victoria’s England, hermits himself away behind the high walls of Dolittle Manor with only his menagerie of exotic animals for company. But when the young queen falls gravely ill, a reluctant Dolittle is forced to set sail on an epic adventure to a mythical island in search of a cure, regaining his wit and courage as he crosses old adversaries and discovers wondrous creatures.
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Cast
- Robert Downey Jr.Dr. John Dolittle
- Antonio BanderasKing Rassouli
- Michael SheenDr. Blair Müdfly
- Jim BroadbentLord Thomas Badgley
- Jessie BuckleyQueen Victoria
- Harry CollettTommy Stubbins
- Emma ThompsonPoly (voice)
- Rami MalekChee-Chee (voice)
- John CenaYoshi (voice)
- Kumail NanjianiPlimpton (voice)
- 58
Entertainment Weekly
The film is so eager to please, so relentlessly quippy and quirky and tipped with antic whimsy, it often feels like visiting a zoo built into a Tilt-A-Whirl. - 51
Polygon
Characters go from one place to the next with no explanation and no second thought, and even single scenes play out as if someone attacked the reel of film with a pair of scissors. - 50
Screen Rant
It's fun enough to keep audiences mostly entertained for its hour and 45 minute runtime, but there's nothing particularly memorable to latch onto - not the CGI animals, not the fantasy world and not even Downey Jr's performance. - 42
IndieWire
The studio did its best to taxidermy this mess into something presentable, but it’s hard to make a Doctor Dolittle movie if you can’t even understand the parable of the scorpion and the frog. - 40
The Guardian
It’s ultimately a miracle that despite the tortured production process, Dolittle can most generously be described as passable for young, undiscerning viewers. It won’t charm or amuse you particularly but it’s not a catastrophe, the highest praise I can muster. - 38
Movie Nation
Sheen and Banderas make their characters fun, but they’re the only ones. - 38
Boston Globe
And while I understand Downey wanting to make a movie for his kids, the world might be better served if, at long last, he made one for himself. - 25
Slant Magazine
Dolittle’s inability to completely develop any of its characters reduces the film to all pomp and no circumstance.