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(Click
movie title above, to order this DVD)
The Film:
Once again, Eddie Murphy resorts to a
sequel based on a prior recent "hit." Once again, the sequel
adds ad nauseum potty humor for the pre-pubescent. However,
unlike Nutty Professor2, at
least Dr. Dolittle 2 didn't receive Techtite.com's "burnout" rating;
it got only a "near miss" rating, instead. That's because, quite
frankly, its underlying premise is almost a bit noble. Murphy, in a comedy,
with shades of being "noble"? Gee, that is a novel
concept!
The story reprises the one in the earlier
film, where Dolittle can talk to animals. This time around, animals from
the wild need his help, because --awww!-- their forest is about to be
bulldozed to the ground for a few piles of lumber. As in the prior remake
of the Dr. Dolittle classic, animal voices are equally done well, with
acting talent ranging from Lisa Kudrow to Norm Macdonald. I think it was a
little out of touch to imply that some animals --which shouldn't even be
"speaking" to one another-- are suddenly in groups resembling
the mafia. However, at least such jokes aren't another potty joke, so
count your blessings.
The biggest problem with Murphy is his
obsession for the pre-teen laugh. This story is given the Nutty Prof. 2
treatment a bit too much, with more potty humor than you can shake a
litter box at. Get ready for pigeons, dogs, wolves, and even raccoons, all
dying to provide yet another animal potty joke. Sure, the kid next to you
is laughing, though that's because his age is a single digit. Oh well; if
the kid is your own son or daughter, at least dear ol' dad will only have
to pretend to laugh for a mere 85 minutes.
There's an added problem, too; haven't we
all had enough of this "animals lips moving to the voice of a
human" shtick? These days, a film like Babe --with
computer-enhanced animal lips moving in sync with the voice actors--
garners a Best Picture Oscar nomination. However, a lot has
happened since then, with any number of similar films, over and over
again. This summer alone will see yet another talking animal comedy in as
little as a week and a half, titled "Cats and Dogs."
Isn't enough simply...enough?
Much like last year's The
Cell, director Steve Carr is an MTV graduate, which means all
his prior directorial expertise is of 4 minute music video snippets. Well,
at least he isn't making a film as ludicrous as The Cell,
and at least his film even has a good amount of heart to it, with that
forest conservation message sewn into all the potty humor. He also manages
to integrate a sub-story involving Dolittle and his teenage daughter (Kyla
Pratt), though this seems written in simply because the budget could not
afford talking animals for the full 85 minutes. Much like Superman 4: The
Quest for Peace, it's hard to give this film a bad grade, due to
all the good messages it might give to kids. On the other hand, with so
many desired groans from so much potty humor, a low grade is still
unavoidable.
The DVD:
No deleted scenes; sorry. However, there are a few nice additions here,
and not just the obligatory theatrical trailer and director's commentary
(Steve Carr). There are two extended scenes --in other words, scenes where
the deleted footage was so short, it made no sense unless re-integrated
into the scene-- and they might be worthwhile to those who liked the film.
In addition, there are 5 storyboard comparisons, which may be amusing to
the more avid technical buffs.
As for featurettes, there's the HBO
special, "A Kid's Guide to Grizzlies," as well as a "Wild
on the Set" featurette. Music videos of the film's music is offered,
in addition to Making Movie Magic With Rythm and Hughes. All this leads to
a nice bit of bonuses for those who really liked the film. Personally, I
did not like the film enough to recommend it, so I'm off to the next film
review...
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