7 Faces of Dr. Lao

1964
Approved
1h 40m

IMDb RATING

7.1/10

5.5K

YOUR RATING

Barbara Eden and Tony Randall in 7 Faces of Dr. Lao (1964)

Play trailer3:10

1 Video

33 Photos

Fantasy Mystery Western

A mysterious circus comes to a western town bearing wonders and characters that entertain the inhabitants and teach valuable lessons.A mysterious circus comes to a western town bearing wonders and characters that entertain the inhabitants and teach valuable lessons.A mysterious circus comes to a western town bearing wonders and characters that entertain the inhabitants and teach valuable lessons.

See production info at IMDbPro

IMDb RATING

7.1/10

5.5K

YOUR RATING

See production info at IMDbPro

Nominated for 1 Oscar
- 1 win & 2 nominations total

Trivia
Tony Randall shaved his head for the role of Dr. Lao. It also made it easier to apply the make-up for the different characters he played. The studio publicity department wanted to photograph Randall getting his head shaved but arrived at the barber too late. They had the make-up artist glue hair back on Randall's head so Randall could pose for photos while getting the hair cut off again.

Goofs
When the little boy comforts Merlin the Magician, the balloon he is holding appears and disappears depending on whether he is shown from the front or the back.

Quotes
Apollonius of Tyana: Tomorrow will be like today, and the day after tomorrow will be like the day before yesterday. I see your remaining days as a tedious collection of hours full of useless vanities. You will think no new thoughts. You will forget what little you have known. Older you will become, but not wiser. Stiffer, but not more dignified. Childless you are, and childless you will remain. Of that suppleness you once commanded in your youth, of that strange simplicity which once attracted men to you, neither endures, nor shall you recapture them.
Mrs. Cassin: You're a mean, ugly man!
Apollonius of Tyana: Mirrors are often ugly and mean. When you die, you will be buried and forgotten, and that is all. And for all the good or evil, creation or destruction, your living might have accomplished, you might just as well never have lived at all. I'm sorry, but, you see, it is my curse to tell the absolute truth.

Connections
Edited into The Naked Ape (1973)

Soundtracks
Sumer is icumen in
(uncredited)
Traditional 13th century English round

User reviews83

Review

Featured review

7/10

Fresh and inventive! An excellent fantasy-tale!!

I hadn't seen or even heard of this film ever beforeAnd 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 filmlots 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!