Publisher's Synopsis
A four-volume set of comedies. In 'Dr. Dolittle' (1998), as a boy, John Dolittle (Dari Gerard Smith) finds he can talk to animals, but his disapproving father forces him to repress his gift. Now a doctor with a young family, John (Eddie Murphy) rediscovers his ability after accidentally running over a dog. He begins to communicate with animals again and soon has a queue of ailing pets in his waiting room. However, John's colleagues, worried for his sanity, have him committed to an asylum. In the sequel, 'Dr. Dolittle 2' (2001), Dolittle (Murphy) has to save an endangered species, the Pacific Western Bear, and its natural habitat, a forest that is under threat from the lumber industry. The trouble is he only has three weeks to find a mate for the lone female of the species (voiced by Lisa Kudrow) left in the wild and the only candidate he can come up with is a performing bear (voiced by Steve Zahn) with a penchant for junk food. Not only has Dolittle got a massive task on his hands he also has to contend with the forest's animal version of the Mafia. In 'Cheaper By the Dozen' (2004) Tom (Steve Martin) and Kate Barker (Bonnie Hunt) are hardworking parents trying to juggle careers and a household amid the chaos of raising 12 kids. When Tom gets a job in Chicago, he moves the entire family but Kate then has her memoirs published and she has to go on a book tour. This creates many problems for the children of the Baker family, who react in various ways. Finally, in the sequel, 'Cheaper By the Dozen 2' (2005), Tom (Martin) and wife Kate (Hunt), hoping to bring their family together for a memorable summer vacation, take their 12 offspring to rustic Lake Winnetka, Wisconsin - their longtime family vacation home. But their retreat soon turns cutthroat when they enter into a competition with the over-achieving members of a large family headed by Tom's longtime rival, Jimmy Murtaugh (Eugene Levy).
