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If we could talk to the animals, just imagine it
Chatting to a chimp in chimpanzee
Imagine talking to a tiger,
chatting to a cheetah
What a neat achievement that would be.
That is the beginning stanza to the song
"Talk to the Animals" from the 1967 film
Doctor Dolittle, sung by the title character
Rex Harrison. Now, more than five decades
later, Robert Downey Jr. is doing just that,
talking to the animals, and this time, it really
does seems as if the animals are talking too,
thanks to the advancements in computer
graphics technology.
In Universal Pictures' Dolittle, Downey
assumes the role of England's famous but
eccentric vet who can converse with all
types of creatures, big and small. Aer his
beloved wife, Lily, dies, the doctor becomes
a recluse at his manor house, in Victorian
England, with only his patients (former and
present) to keep him company. When the
young Queen Victoria falls mysteriously ill, he
is summoned to help. A rare fruit from a far-
away land may provide a cure, so the doctor
sets sail with his animal friends and a young
Lions and Tigers and Bears,
Oh My!
DOLITTLE CHARMS AUDIENCES WITH A REALISTIC TALKING ANIMAL CAST
BY KAREN MOLTENBREY
In Dolittle, CGI makes us believe that these animals really can talk.
