Dr. Dolittle: Tail to the Chief
Dr. Dolittle: Tail to the Chief (also known as Dr. Dolittle 4) is a 2008 American comedy film, starring Kyla Pratt and Norm Macdonald. Like its predecessor, Dr. Dolittle 3 in 2006, it was released direct to DVD on March 4, 2008. It is the fourth film in the Dr. Dolittle series, and the second film in the series not to feature Eddie Murphy as Doctor Dolittle, or Raven-Symoné as Charisse Dolittle, although Doctor Dolittle (but not Charisse Dolittle) has been mentioned in the film.
| Dr. Dolittle: Tail to the Chief | |
|---|---|
 Official DVD cover | |
| Directed by | Craig Shapiro |
| Produced by | John Davis Brian Manis |
| Screenplay by | Matt Lieberman Kathleen Laccinole |
| Story by | Matt Lieberman |
| Based on | The stories of Hugh Lofting |
| Starring | |
| Music by | Don Macdonald |
| Cinematography | Ron Stannett |
| Edited by | Michael Trent |
Production company | |
| Distributed by | 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment |
Release date |
|
Running time | 85 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $6,000,000[1] |
| Box office | $6,247,339 (DVD sales) |
Plot
Maya Dolittle is the girl who can talk to animals; so can her older sister Charisse Dolittle and father John Dolittle. John is away on animal expeditions while Charisse is in college. When the President asks for him to help with the Presidential dog and save an African forest, Maya takes her father's place. The dog Daisy has a very hot temper but after a lot of trouble, they begin to get along.
At a dinner with the prince and princess of the kingdom that the forest is located in, things are going well until they suddenly take a turn for the worse. With the help of animals, Maya finds out Chief Dorian was sabotaging the prince to shut down the forest and make millions. He is arrested and the forest is saved.
Cast
- Kyla Pratt as Maya Dolittle
- Peter Coyote as President Sterling
- Niall Matter as Cole Fletcher
- Elise Gatien as Courtney Sterling
- Malcolm Stewart as Chief Dorian
- Christine Chatelain as Selma
- Karen Holness as Lisa Dolittle
Voice cast
- Norm Macdonald as Lucky the Dog (uncredited)[2]
- Jennifer Coolidge as Daisy
- Maggie Marson as Rabbit
- Benjamin Diskin as Anteater
- Greg Ellis as Wallaby
- Richard Kind as Groundhog
- Nolan North as Parrot
- Philip Proctor as Drunk Monkey
- Diana Yanez as Chinchilla
Production
The film's visual effects were supervised by the former head of Industrial Light & Magic's animation department, Wes Takahashi.[3] The estimated budget for this film is about $6,000,000.[1]
Release
On March 4 2008, Dr. Dolittle: Tail to the Chief was released on DVD.[2] It placed 15th for copies sold that week and was priced for $26.98.[4]
Reception
Critical response
Film critic Kevin Carr gave the film a two and a half stars out of 5.[5] Common Sense Media awarded it with three out of five stars.[6] Sloan Freer of Radio Times gave it 2 out of 5 and called it "a sporadically amusing mix of gunge-heavy slapstick, mild adolescent angst and the usual simplistic life lessons."[7]
References
- https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1024724/?ref_=nv_sr_1
- Mavis (February 20, 2008). "Dr. Dolittle: Tail to the Chief". DVDTalk.com. Archived from the original on February 23, 2017. Retrieved January 1, 2021.
The cast is anonymous (tellingly, comedian Norm MacDonald, who I believe has voiced Lucky the Dog in all the Dolittle films, is unbilled here again...
- "Subject: Wes Ford Takahashi". Animators' Hall of Fame. Retrieved 14 June 2016.
- https://global-factiva-com/
- Kevin Carr (4 March 2008). "'Dr. Dolittle: Tail To The Chief' DVD Review". Fat Guys at the Movies.
- Nancy Davis Kho (27 December 2008). "Dr. Dolittle: Tail to the Chief - Movie Review". Common Sense Media.
- Sloan Freer. "Dr Dolittle: Tail to the Chief – review | cast and crew, movie star rating and where to watch film on TV and online". Radio Times.