History Film / DoctorDolittle

* AbsentMindedProfessor: the Doctor to a certain extent, mainly in terms of money.

* AnimatedAdaptation: The 1970 SaturdayMorning cartoon produced by Creator/DePatieFrelengEnterprise was loosely based on this film.

''Doctor Dolittle'' is a 1967 film musical based on the Literature/DoctorDolittle books by Creator/HughLofting. It starred Creator/RexHarrison in the title role and Anthony Newley as his sidekick Matthew Mugg. Script, songs and score were written by Music/LeslieBricusse.

* PerpetualPoverty: The Doctor spends all his money looking after animals. Not helped by the fact that most of his clients are wild animals, who thusly pay him in foodstuffs rather than actual currency.

*** The song itself actually finishes with a few stanzas where Dolittle confesses he still yearns for meat and he hates a lot of the vegetarian food he eats... but his conscience is too strong for him to give up his vegetarian lifestyle, because the distress of his animal friends outweighs his yearning for his old diet.

* PerpetualPoverty: The Doctor spends all his money looking after animals.

'''Dolittle''': Nonsense. Flounders have survived for millions of years.\\
'''Matt''': Yes, ''under'' the water!

The film had a TroubledProduction, with hundreds of animals to wrangle, location shooting troubles, and Harrison throwing his weight around. Producer Arthur P. Jacobs even had a heart attack during production (but was happy to get another pet project of his, ''PlanetOfTheApes'', greenlit by the studio). It was a critical and popular flop, but managed to score two UsefulNotes/{{Academy Award}}s, for Original Song ("Talk to the Animals") and Special Effects.

(For the EddieMurphy films, see ''Film/DrDolittle''.)

The film had a TroubledProduction, with hundreds of animals to wrangle, location shooting troubles, and Harrison throwing his weight around. Producer Arthur P. Jacobs even had a heart attack during production (but was happy to get another pet project of his, ''PlanetOfTheApes'', greenlit by the studio). It was a critical and popular flop, but managed to score two {{Academy Award}}s, for Original Song ("Talk to the Animals") and Special Effects.

* DogsAreDumb: Averted with Doolittle's dog Jip, whose excellent sense of smell provides a wonderful navigation system aboard the Flounder.

** Emma "Fred" Fairfax has one of these, about how she wants to escape the strictures of being a lady in 1845 England. Gets double points because it starts as being about another desire--the fact that she'd like to kill Doolittle.
* JerkAss: General Bellows is cruel to animals, has a blowhard personality, and [[spoiler: tries to get Doolittle committed to the madhouse.]]

* YouNoTakeCandle: Doolittle initially addresses a native of Sea Star Island this way, until he learns the man speaks fluent English.

* HypocriticalHumor: During "The Reluctant Vegetarian," we see Matthew Mugg agreeing that "meat is very unhealthy for you"--while chowing down on sausage.
** Also: "If I weren't late for my fox hunt, I'd report you for cruelty to animals."

* IWantSong: "Talk to the Animals"

* DecisionDarts: How they choose to visit the floating island. The idea is to open an atlas to a random page, close your eyes, and then jab a pin randomly.

** Also: "I weren't late for my fox hunt, I'd report you for cruelty to animals."

** Emma "Fred" Fairfax has one of these, about how she wants to escape the strictures of being a lady in 1845 England. Gets double points because it starts as being about another desire--the fact that she'd like to kill Doolittle.

''Doctor Dolittle'' is a 1967 film musical based on the Literature/DoctorDolittle books by Creator/HughLofting. It starred Creator/RexHarrison in the title role and Anthony Newley as his sidekick Matthew Mugg. Script, songs and score were written by LeslieBricusse.

''Doctor Dolittle'' is a 1967 film musical based on the Literature/DoctorDolittle books by Creator/HughLofting. It starred Rex Harrison in the title role and Anthony Newley as his sidekick Matthew Mugg. Script, songs and score were written by LeslieBricusse.

* DecisionDarts: How they choose to visit the floating island.

** Maybe the money is left over from his days as a physician to humans--well-off ones at that?

* IAmSong: "The Vegetarian", in which he explains how his life has changed since he started talking with animals.

The film had a troubled production, with hundreds of animals to wrangle, location shooting troubles, and Harrison throwing his weight around. It was a critical and popular flop, but managed to score two {{Academy Award}}s, for Original Song ("Talk to the Animals") and Special Effects.

* GiantFlyer: The great moon moth.

''Doctor Dolittle'' is a 1967 film musical based on the DoctorDolittle books by Creator/HughLofting. It starred Rex Harrison in the title role and Anthony Newley as his sidekick Matthew Mugg. Script, songs and score were written by LeslieBricusse.

* AHeadAtEachEnd: The Pushmi-Pullyu.

* SpeaksFluentAnimal: Doctor Dolittle.