DbcultAccessing Vault...
6.4/10
Senior Film Conservator
A definitive 6.4/10 rating for a film that redefined the boundaries of cult cinema. Doctor Bull remains a cornerstone of transgressive art.
If you like Will Rogers, you’re going to love this. It’s basically 80 minutes of him walking around, chewing on his lines, and acting like the only sane person in a room full of idiots. If you need fast pacing or big drama, stay away. This is pure, low-stakes comfort food.
Doctor Bull feels like a movie made by people who actually liked their neighbors, even the annoying ones. It’s not trying to be a masterpiece. It just wants to show you how a guy like George Bull manages to keep a town from eating itself alive.
Rogers plays the doctor like he’s playing himself. He doesn't really 'act' so much as he just exists in the frame. There’s this one scene where he’s talking to a patient, and he just starts fiddling with his hat. It’s not in the script, probably. It just feels like he was bored and decided to make it look real.
It’s kind of funny watching him deal with the town's high-society types. They try to be all fancy and he just stares at them like they’ve got a third eye. It’s very satisfying.
The movie is a little all over the place. One minute we’re dealing with a serious medical crisis, and the next we’re watching some weird comedic bit that feels like it wandered in from a totally different film. It reminded me a bit of the chaotic energy in Freaks, but way less scary and way more 'folksy.'
The pacing is… well, it’s not there. Sometimes a scene ends before you feel like the point was made. Other times, it just drags on until you start looking at your phone. It’s a bit like a conversation with an elderly relative who forgets where they were going with their story halfway through. You don't mind, though.
Is it a classic? Maybe not. But it’s got a heart. It’s a reminder that sometimes you don't need a massive plot to make a movie worth watching. You just need a guy like Bull who isn't afraid to tell someone to go home and get some sleep. 🩺