7 Faces of Dr. Lao

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7 Faces of Dr. Lao

1964

1h 40m

Fantasy

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Popcornmeter

86%

Tomatometer

7 Reviews

78%

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2,500+ Ratings

When the inscrutable Dr. Lao (Tony Randall) and his mystical Chinese medicine show roll into the Wild West settlement of Abalone, Arizona, he ends up in the middle of an ongoing feud between a ruthless land baron, Clint Stark (Arthur O'Connell), and an idealistic newspaper editor, Ed Cunningham (John Ericson). The shape-shifting Dr. Lao soon weighs in on the battle, as well as the problems of widowed librarian Angela (Barbara Eden) and her ambitious young son, Mike.

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Dennis Schwartz

Dennis Schwartz Movie Reviews

08/30/2021

B-

Joyfully directed by the Hungarian-born animation maven George Pal.

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Josh Larsen

LarsenOnFilm

03/23/2019

2/4

...each set piece is dropped into the film with a thud.

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Emanuel Levy

EmanuelLevy.Com

02/20/2013

B-

A strange, sporadically entertaining fantasy, which won the Honorary Oscar for Makeup: Tony Randall plays seven roles.

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Steve Crum

Kansas City Kansan

10/23/2004

5/5

Tony Randall's best--a whimsical western

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Carol Cling

Las Vegas Review-Journal

10/17/2003

3/5

James Sanford

Kalamazoo Gazette

11/10/2002

4/5

a delightful, imaginative curio

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Greg M.

@GMartin58 Mar 8

I’ve recently read the original George Finney book which led me back to this magical movie. One of the few instances where the movie is far superior to the book. While dated with a stereotype, Tony Randall put in a masterful performance!

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pdw_ART_&_MusiC O

@pphilipp Dec 17

One of the top films of my childhood which I loved in every possible way! After many decades I finally watched it again and fully understand why I have such great memories of it. This is a very magical film which hardly fits in any established category.

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Elwell D

@RT79008248 Nov 23

A delightful tale from a time when innocence was wonderfully presented from cleverly crafted scripts.

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Simon T

@Bucksplit 03/08/2024

One of the oddest of George Pal's features. His final film sees Tony Randall as the enigmatic travelling Chinaman who arrives in the Western town of Abalone and conjures up a circus in order to shake up the local citizens, not least a crook who plans to defraud them all. The best elements - William Tuttle's make-up, Leigh Harline's music - are rather overshadowed by the boring subplots and extended whimsy, but it's still an interesting coda to the Hungarian Pal's career.

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jamisean S

@RT54359308 01/14/2024

Movie is quirky, bizarre and delightful. A little ahead of its time. Shows Tony Randall's talent. Barbara Eden is talented and adds beauty, sex appeal and a soft touch (who doesn't love Ms. Eden in anything). Threads magic, fantasy, wonder, quirky characters and life's questions into a western theme- which is what makes it different and fun to watch. currently on TCM.

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Rich J

@RT45834135 10/14/2023

Probably not conforming to modern views on racial stereotyping; it is a thoroughly enjoyable light relief movie. No car chases, explosions but some very dated special effects which add to the whimsy. You know it is a fish tale when you see it is set in abalone. Glorious fun.

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George Pal

Director

Tony Randall

Dr. Lao

Barbara Eden

Angela Benedict

Arthur O'Connell

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John Ericson

Ed Cunningham

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Synopsis

When the inscrutable Dr. Lao (Tony Randall) and his mystical Chinese medicine show roll into the Wild West settlement of Abalone, Arizona, he ends up in the middle of an ongoing feud between a ruthless land baron, Clint Stark (Arthur O'Connell), and an idealistic newspaper editor, Ed Cunningham (John Ericson). The shape-shifting Dr. Lao soon weighs in on the battle, as well as the problems of widowed librarian Angela (Barbara Eden) and her ambitious young son, Mike.

Director: George Pal
Producer: George Pal
Distributor: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Production Co: George Pal Productions
Genre: Fantasy
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Mar 18, 1964, Original
Release Date (Streaming): Jan 1, 2009
Runtime: 1h 40m

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