Dr. Dolittle (1998)

Movie review by Ed Grant, Common Sense Media
Dr. Dolittle (1998) Poster Image

Common Sense says

age 9+

Gimmicky animal tale with Eddie Murphy is crude but funny.

PG-13 1998 85 minutes
Rate movie

Parents say

age 10+

Based on 14 reviews

Kids say

age 8+

Based on 14 reviews

Common Sense is a nonprofit organization. Your purchase helps us remain independent and ad-free.
Rate movie

Did we miss something on diversity?

Research shows a connection between kids' healthy self-esteem and positive portrayals in media. That's why we've added a new "Diverse Representations" section to our reviews that will be rolling out on an ongoing basis. You can help us help kids by suggesting a diversity update.

A Lot or a Little?

The parents' guide to what's in this movie.

What Parents Need to Know

Parents need to know that Dr. Dolittle is a crude but funny Eddie Murphy vehicle that takes the name and basic concept from Hugh Lofting's famous stories about a man who can "talk to the animals." There is an enormous amount of rude humor -- innuendo, potty humor, iffy language -- involving the animal patients added to the mix. Because many of the jokes include toilet humor and crude references to the human body, parents may want to decide whether or not they feel comfortable with this type of content for younger kids, though those children will certainly be charmed by the animal characters. Older kids will enjoy the jokes, but parents may still wish to exercise discretion, due to the nature of the humor and some language ("ass," and one use of "s--t").

Community Reviews

Reversethecurse
Reversethecurse Adult
April 20, 2020
age 12+

Full of sexual references and near sex scenarios

We watched this movie because it said 9+ and I live Eddie Murphy. The movie is funny but there are way too many sexual references (sexual innuendos, near sex scenarios, jokes, etc) for kids under 12. If your 8-10 year old doesn know what parents do in the bedroom, they'll pretty much figure it out after watching this movie. I come to this site constantly for age recommendations on movies and this is one of the few I think is totally wrong. I was totally embarrassed watching this with my 10 year old.

This title has:

Too much sex
Too much swearing
1 person found this helpful.
michaelf
michaelf Adult
January 19, 2019
age 12+

Has adult themes not appropriate for small children

We got this to watch with our children ages 10, 7 and 7. We had read reviews and knew it had language, so we used Clearplay (which skips the bad stuff). But even with the language being muted, it had some stuff we didn't think was appropriate for small children: A bedroom scene that never happens, although the animals sing songs about lovemaking. A very loooong vet scene where a thermometer gets stuck in an animal's butt. (I lost count of the butt jokes.) We turned it off when an animal was seemingly getting ready to jump off a ledge and commit suicide. I'm assuming the animal doesn't jump, but it was over the top for small kids. We turned it off.

This title has:

Too much swearing
1 person found this helpful.
See all 14 parent reviews

What's the Story?

DR. DOLITTLE (Eddie Murphy), an upwardly mobile San Francisco doctor, only wants the best for his wife and two daughters. One night driving home, Dolittle almost hits a dog and is subsequently gifted with a unique ability: he can "hear" the thoughts of any animal he encounters. Dolittle ignores the upcoming sale of his clinic to a conglomerate in order to care for the injured and sick animals who invade his house and office, having heard of his gift. After a stay in a mental institution, Dolittle avoids the animals completely, but his humanitarian instincts soon reemerge. On the night of the big press conference that will announce the sale of his clinic, Dolittle must perform an operation on a sick circus tiger. The operation is a success, and Dolittle's family accepts his peculiar "talent." The sale of the clinic falls through; henceforth, Dolittle will treat humans and animals.

Is It Any Good?

This gimmicky talking animal comedy contains many rude jokes, some of which are actually amusing, thanks to a talented voice cast. Although it's unexceptionally directed, with unimpressive songs on the soundtrack, the star-studded voice cast brightens up the proceedings. Norm MacDonald and Chris Rock entertain with their popularly-established personas, and other comic actors (Albert Brooks, John Leguizamo, Jenna Elfman) affect colorful tones for their animal alter egos.

The moment when two pigeons (voiced by Garry Shandling and Julie Kavner) discuss the male pigeon's impotence is clearly meant to amuse adult viewers -- who will have long since tuned out or left the room, having been numbed by the chronic repetition of animal butt jokes. Dr. Dolittle's message ("be who you are and love who you are") is lost amid the crude humor. Similarly, Dolittle's transition from money-hungry yuppie to altruistic animal lover is unconvincing, due to sloppy scripting and the fact that Murphy is still a better comedian than he is an actor.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about the relationship between Dr. Dolittle and his animal patients. How does it compare to the way he treats his human patients?

  • Families can also talk about what they think it would be like to be able to talk to animals. What animal would you most want to communicate with? What questions would you ask?

  • What role does Dr. Dolittle's family play in this movie? How does his relationship with his wife and kids change throughout the story?

Movie Details

Our Editors Recommend

Themes & Topics

Browse titles with similar subject matter.

  • Cartoon picture of a dog and mouse
    Cats, Dogs, and Mice
    See all

Common Sense Media's unbiased ratings are created by expert reviewers and aren't influenced by the product's creators or by any of our funders, affiliates, or partners.

See how we rate