Doctor Doolittle with Sophie the Seal in cognito
Sophie the seal illustrations from the book Doctor Doolittle's Circus (The plot of Dr. Doolittle is an amalgam of episodes from the book series. Circus is the one where the infamous Pushmi-Pullyu--a two-headed dancing llama--is introduced.)
The doctor treating a cow
Fitting the General's horse with glasses for his astigmatism
Checking the horse's eyesight with a special equine-themed alphabet chart
Straightening a mouse's bent tail with a specially designed device
A Dr. Doolittle lunchbox and a Great Pink Sea Snail ring, memorabilia sold when the movie came out
This movie just plain makes me happy.
And I don't mean the remake with Eddie Murphy, which seemed to be an excuse for animals voiced by hip comedians to make childish jokes about body parts and functions. No, I'm talking about the original 1967 musical in all its glory. A non-Disney "children's" movie musical in the same vein as Mary Poppins, Bedknobs and Broomsticks, and The Sound of Music. (Editor's note: why do most of the '60's musicals feature British performers--Juie Andrews, David Thomlinson, Angela Lansbury, Rex Harrison--is that a trend or a coincidence?)
I'm not going to write a synopsis-review, because that would mean spoilers for those of you who haven't seen it (go rectify this problem immediately. Netflix!) So I'll just mention some of the memorable details which make it so enjoyable, and my thoughts therein:
I love Dr. Doolittle's comfortable house, where animals have rampant run of the place. Cats lounge on scrolled Greek columns, rodents nest in Oriental vases, in the linen closet, in the cupboards, in the desk drawers. There are not merely cat-flaps and dog-doors but fox-, sheep-, and horse-doors.
(This reminds me of that woman I love whose name I can never remember, much to my consternation, who lives in South America and has a rehabilitation center for injured and abandoned river otters. Her house has a huge blue pool for them to swim in, ramps so that they can climb up onto countertops, and so forth. She is a Dr. Doolittle in her own right, hand-feeding the pups, teaching them their lost instinctive behavior like hunting and gathering food...if any of you know the public television special I'm referring to, please let me know.)
This charmingly slapdash arrangement suits the doctor and his patients just fine, but not his high-strung, neat-freak sister, who keeps house and seems to be rodent-phobic...
The shiny, bubblegum-pink Great Sea Snail--"The only snail in the world with four bedrooms!"--I want to live in his shell, a huge, watertight Nautilus equipped with a winding staircase and circular couches strewn with throw pillows. Apparently the Great Pink Sea Snail is prone to head colds and bears an impressive lineage, being cousin to Nessie, the Loch Ness Monster.
I also love "The Flounder", their schooner. Dr. Doolittle has a windowbox garden and a fishtank which can be released to provide the fish with fresh seawater.
I love the whimsicality of this film, the wordplay of the song "A Devoted Vegetarian", and never fail to be moved by "When I Look In Your Eyes". This song reminds me of Paul McCartney whispering to harp seal pups with his wife (Paul, how could you go from Linda to that gold-digger?)
What does Emma Fairfax have to do to get the doctor's attention? He's a misogynist (so it's no surprise that Rex Harrison played Henry Higgins afterwards. In fact, both characters are tactlessly male and optimistic), but really, when a girl adapts to vegetarianism for your sake and bakes you a spinach pie...Frankly I think she'd be better off with Matthew Mugg, who expressed interest in her from the start, seems closer to her age, and is a romantic. He paints carousels, calls cats "darlin'", and is utterly loyal, plus he has a sense of humor. (His nickname for Emma is "Fred".)
Which leaves the good doctor for myself. His methods may be a bit reckless, but he is creative and inventive, he treats kids like Tommy with respect, and any guy who smuggles a depressed seal (sea lion, technically--I think they are generally used in films because they are easier to train. Proof: I have seen upwards of three or four dozen sea lion performances at aquariums in my life, and only once was there a harbor seal in the performance) out of a circus to reunite her with her husband is my kind of guy.
Note: Doctor Doolittle is one of Jane Goodall's favorite books.
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