7 Faces of Dr. Lao

Woah...

I just saw this by chance. If you have the chance to see it, by all means don't pass it up. This is an extremely bizarre movie, but contains a few scenes of absolute brilliance. You just have to give it a chance.

Considering that it was made in 1964, it's really a masterpiece of "modern" cinema. Granted, by today's standards it is at times a little corny or dated, but overall it holds up.

You simply cannot miss this if it comes along on cable. There is nothing else quite like it.

In the turn of the Twentieth Century, the Chinese Dr. Lao (Tony Randall) arrives in Abalone, Arizona, riding a donkey carrying a fishbowl with a small fish and goes to the local newspaper Diary Star. He asks the owner Ed Cunningham (John Ericson) to publish one-page advertisement for two days for his traveling circus. Ed has unrequited love for the widow librarian Angela Benedict (Barbara Eden) and opposes to the powerful rancher Clint Stark (Arthur O'Connell) that wants to buy the lands of the inhabitants of Abalone. He uses the argument that the water supply pipe is decayed and needs to be replaced and it will be very expensive. However Stark has inside information that the railroad will pass by Abalone and will increase the value of the lands. There is a meeting in the town to decide whether the locals will sell their real estates to Stark or not but the decision is postponed after the arrival of Dr. Lao. During the night, the dwellers go to the circus to see The Abominable Snowman, Merlin the Magician, Apollonius of Tyana, Pan, The Giant Serpent and Medusa. Each attraction gives a lesson to each resident, changing their future and behavior for the better.

"7 Faces of Dr. Lao" is a delightful and magic cult-movie, with a beautiful and entertaining story and great direction of George Pal. Tony Randall "steals" the movie performing seven different roles. Barbara "Jeannie" Eden is gorgeous and her encounter with Pan the God of Joy is wonderfully erotic. Apollonius of Tyana telling the truth about the future of his clients is hilarious. My vote is eight.

Title (Brazil): "As 7 Faces do Dr. Lao" ("The 7 Faces of Dr. Lao")

I saw this film again yesterday, just when I needed to. I was a bit depressed and the film, with its essentially Taoist philosophy, picked me up. Is Dr. Lao really Lao Tsu, famous Taoist immortal? Maybe, maybe not. What matters here though is the message that the movie gives, and the charm with which it delivers this. There is a quote from the film that sums it all up:

"The world is a circus if you look at it the right way. Every time you pick up a handful of dust, and see not the dust but mystery, a marvel, there in your hand. Every time you stop and think, 'I'm alive. And being alive is fantastic.' Every time such a thing happens, you are part of the circus of Dr. Lao."

Go see this film, but not more than once in a while. Its message can be considered a bit "corny" by today's standards, but still has merit when taken at face value.

A movie produced in the great times of Ameican movie making. Simple themes were required, for general entertainment, but that did not stop the writers and directors from putting in their own often very insightful comments.

The conversion by Dr Lao of Arthur O'Connell from a cynical property developer to "good guy" - "I've always hoped that someday a town would have enough get-up-and-go to band together and do the right thing" is, of course a simple and basic one.

So, to is the awakening of the love interest between John Ericson (if I have things the right way round) - by Pan, his pipes stirring the hormones of widow Angela Benedict (Barbara Eden, I Dream of Jeannie 15 Year Later amongst others).

And the simple lessons given to the young boy by the enigmatic Dr Lao, the wise philosiphising fool also fit a simple pattern.

But I've never seen anything quite like the short scene between (if I have it right) Sarah Benedict (Rose of Cimmaron, 1952) and Apollonius of Tyana, where she is told in no uncertain terms that her life is of no import, and she will grow old "without gaining wisdom, will die alone, and when dead, no one will mourn your passing". Her reporting of that fortune telling as a positive one, "I'm sure to marry Mr .." is one I will always remember.

For some reason, Tony Randall who plays 7 roles in this one never liked the film. A pity. It's played reasonably often, and I never tire of it.

I hadn't seen – or even heard of – this film ever before…And I think that goes for many film fans with me. That's an awful shame, since this neat little film deserves some praising. It's playful, original and moralizing feel-good fun for all the family. Directed by cinema's pre-eminently fantasist George Pal. The legendary director who already shot a few delightful myths and fairy-tales such as `The Time Machine', `Atlantis' and `The Wonderful world of the Brothers Grimm'. This time, he bases his film on a famous novel and it's a successful adventure with unlimited imagination. Tony Randall puts on quite a show as the multi-faced illusionist, Dr. Lao. He arrives with his circus in a near-dead little town. A greedy magnate wishes to buy the entire town and makes the inhabitants believe their properties are worthless. With a little help from a news reporter, Dr. Lao faces the townies with some of the smaller joys of life and their own consciousness. Both fortune-telling sequences are fascinating and remarkably written and - in order to be complete - the story foresees a touching romance. There are tons of educational and mythical aspects to discover in this film…lots of facts about the Greek Mythology, for example! The creature effects and make-up are terrifically kitschy and rather charming. Recommended for sure! Seven Faces of Dr. Lao is some of the most pleasant fantasy adventures of the sixties and it has the right to a larger fanbase!