Doc Hollywood is a typical late 80s/early 90s comedy. While the story is fairly predictable, it’s the quirky characters and funny one-liners that make this movie memorable. The romance storyline isn't the best, but the movie is full of lighthearted fun and comedy. It's worth seeing at least once.
Yes, Doc Hollywood. If you’re thinking, “Wait, isn’t that a comedy from the 90s?” you would be correct. Or maybe you haven’t seen or even heard about this movie. Well, now is your chance. Warner Bros. has released Doc Hollywood on Blu-ray as part of their Archive Collection.
Here’s their official description:
“’Beverly Hills. The most beautiful women in the world. Plastic surgery. What do these three things have in common?’ asks Dr. Ben Stone (Michael J. Fox). ‘Me, in less than a week!’ It turns out to be an eye-opening week.
And Doc Hollywood turns out to be a witty charmer. Stone is a newly minted MD whose medical fast-lane cruise takes a small-town detour. Grady, South Carolina, Squash Capital of the South, is home to salt-of-the-earth folks (Julie Warner, Woody Harrelson, Bridget Fonda, David Ogden Stiers, Barnard Hughes) who give the West Coast-bound hotshot the seasoning he lacks.
Doc Hollywood is a surefire prescription for comedy cheer!”
Personally, I had not seen Doc Hollywood before this Blu-ray release, but when I mentioned the movie to three different friends each one of them smiled and recalled a different scene or character that they loved from the movie. After seeing the movie, I understand why they found it to be so memorable.
Doc Hollywood feels a bit like the movie version of Northern Exposure. The two came out around the same time and both feature a doctor who is out of his element in a town of quirky and offbeat residents. The Doc Hollywood counterpart to Rob Morrow’s Dr. Fleischman is Michael J. Fox’s Dr. Ben Stone. This is a post-Back to the Future and pre-Spin City Michael J. Fox. Unlike Fleischman, Stone has no interest in small town medicine. In his first scene, we learn that he is leaving his current job and on his way to LA. He plans to make fortunes performing plastic surgery. While his coworkers through him a party, they don’t seem too upset to see him go.
The story really begins when Stone has a car wreck on his way to LA that strands him in a small town called Grady. The local judge finds him at fault for the accident and requires him to perform hours of community service as the town’s doctor while his car is being repaired. Their current doctor is no longer doing small appointments and checkups; he is only to be called if there is an emergency.
Stone is less than thrilled by the arrangement but agrees to it. A large portion of the movie’s humor is provided by Stone’s patients and his reactions to them. At first, he takes a very professional, non-involved approach, but he doesn’t expect their odd requests and needs. One family, for example, can’t read and ask him to simply read letters to them sent by their relatives. Stone is resistant to his unusual patients, but gradually comes to like and understand them. He begins to fit in quite well and even seems to start enjoying his time in Grady.
The female lead, Lou, is played by Julie Warner. While Warner’s performance is fine, her character is actually one of the movie’s biggest weaknesses. Lou is, quite frankly, a confusing character. In some scenes, she’s very serious and by the book, yet we first see her (randomly) swimming naked and carefree outside Dr. Stone’s temporary house. We aren’t told everything about Lou right away, and this is likely intentional; however, her personality seems to change every time we learn something new about her. First encounter – swimming carefree and teasing Dr. Stone. Second – she’s the ambulance driver and takes her job quite seriously. Third – she has a family that she wants to care for and protect. Oh, and now she’s a student. The character’s motivations and goals are never entirely clear and seem to shift as needed by the movie’s plot.
Though Lou is a mostly serious character, the rest of the people in town are certainly not. Leading the town is David Ogden Stiers’ goofy Mayor Nick Nicholson who in one scene dresses as squash to show his town spirit (see below). Bridget Fonda plays his daughter. Her character is tired of small town life and wants to know all about Dr. Stone and life in the city. One of the highlights of this movie is a young Woody Harrelson who plays a gun-savvy insurance salesman who is in love with Lou. He serves as Stone’s main romantic competition, but the two characters have little interaction or confrontation. Rounding out the outstanding supporting cast is Barnard Hughes as the town’s primary physician, Dr. Hogue. Hogue has little tolerance for Stone’s formal education and book knowledge, believing instead that his years of practice and common sense are the best tools a doctor can use. Despite his rough and cynical nature, some of the movie’s most heart-warming moments are provided by Dr. Hogue. Other fun characters include the town’s local mechanics, the hilarious welcoming committee, and thoroughly unimpressed Nurse Packer.
The story itself falls into two genres: it’s both comedy and romance. While the characters are funny, the conflict is really grounded on the romance side. Once Stone’s car is fixed and his community service is finished, will he continue on his way to LA or stay in Grady? He develops feelings for Lou, but are they enough to keep him in Grady? While the movie excels in the comedy department with smart one-liners and fun characters, it comes up short on the romance. Stone and Lou feel forced together throughout most of the movie and only really seem to connect in the movie’s final act. It’s a rather forgettable romance surrounded by an entertaining comedy.
Doc Hollywood is also rather predictable. You know where the story is going as soon as Stone crashes his car, but it’s still entertaining. This movie does not intellectually challenge its viewers, but it doesn’t need to. Doc Hollywood is meant to be a fun, light, comedic feel-good movie. And it is. While the story is predictable, there are some genuinely funny moments throughout.
All in all, this is a fun movie. I understand why my friends remember it twenty-some years later. It may not be one you watch over and over again, but it’s worth seeing at least once if only for the quirky characters and memorable funny moments.
(As a warning – though this movie is PG-13, it’s what one of those friends I mentioned earlier calls “80’s PG-13.” There is some nudity and brief language that you could not put in today’s PG-13 movies. Even though it feels like a light comedy and a family-friendly movie, parents may want to consider this before sharing it with children. Okay, I’m done . . . carry on.)
Blu-ray
The movie has a nice transfer to Blu-ray. Nothing looks grainy or out of place. While the movie obviously wasn’t shot for Blu-ray, the transfer does make each scene look a little brighter and sharper. They’ve done a nice job here.
Special Features
The re-release comes with only the original trailer as a special feature. While this is technically more features than the original release had, new features would have been interesting to include. It could have featured a look back from some of the cast and crew now that allowed them to share how they got involved with the movie, fun memories from set, and how the movie impacted their future career. Having the trailer as the only special feature feels like a missed opportunity.
Takeaway
Doc Hollywood is a typical late 80s/early 90s comedy. While the story is fairly predictable, it’s the quirky characters and funny one-liners that make this movie memorable. The new Warner Bros. Blu-ray release is a nice transfer, but they could have included some new special features. The movie itself is full of lighthearted fun and certainly worth seeing at least once.
