Dolittle

At one point in “Dolittle” (2020), Robert Downey Jr.’s doctor must sail to a place that’s never been found. The film itself also ends up in no man’s land – too formulaic to be interesting yet too quirky to have broad appeal. There’s lots of CG animals voiced by Hollywood celebrities. A couple of kids coax zoo-bound Downey out of retirement. High seas hijinks ensue. Downey channels Johnny Depp and tops it with a delicious crypto-Scottish accent. Antonio Banderas plays some kind of pirate. He’s fascinating to look at and listen to but, like the film, doesn’t do anything particularly memorable.

Brad’s Status

I wasn’t sure renting “Brad’s Status” was a good idea. Throughout 2017, I’d seen the trailer probably a dozen times prior to watching other films (films I chose to watch instead of “Brad’s Status”). And the trailer kinda overshares: Somewhat estranged dad takes son on college visits, possibly heartwarming hijinks ensure, yada, yada, yada. Another forgettable Ben Stiller vehicle. Anyway, it turns out it’s even worse than I thought. In fact, there’s a scene in the middle of the film where a character basically tells Stiller to get over himself, thus bringing into question why the film exists at all.