For nearly a decade now, the Marvel Cinematic Universe has
continuously expanded its, well, ‘Cinematic Universe’ with every new film that
comes out; not just in characters but also the world in general. When the
franchise first started in 2008, the action was restricted to Earth as
primarily seen in the first two Iron Man films
and The Incredible Hulk. But then
came Thor in 2011. That film was the
first in the MCU to go off Earth (not counting the parts of it that WERE set on
Earth) and start to explore the cosmic side of the Marvel Universe, namely the
Nine Realms which include Thor’s home world of Asgard. And then the cosmic
world of Marvel was explored even further, past the Nine Realms, in Guardians of the Galaxy. It just goes to
show that Nick Fury’s speech about ‘being part of a bigger universe’ from the
first Iron Man was very much true. But
for their latest endeavor, Marvel Studios now delves into the mystic side of
the MCU with Doctor Strange, starring
Benedict Cumberbatch in the title role of a famed neurosurgeon whose life
changes when he discovers a group of mystic warriors and subsequently becomes
one in the process. The film is brought to us by director Scott Derrickson, who
to some may seem like an odd choice to direct a superhero film given that he’s
mainly been known for his work in the horror genre with films like Sinister and The Exorcism of Emily Rose. However, this is Marvel Studios we’re
talking about, who have an extensive history of ‘out of left field’ choices
when it comes to directors (e.g. James Gunn, the Russo brothers, etc.). And
once again that method pays off in what is another highly entertaining MCU
flick with the usual things you’d come to expect from the franchise at this
point along with some of the most impressive visuals that the superhero genre
has ever seen.
Dr. Stephen Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) is a world-renowned
neurosurgeon living in New York. However, one night he ends up in a severe car
crash that affects him in the worst way possible; by crippling his hands. Being
the self-absorbed perfectionist that he is, Strange begins to invest in various
forms of surgery in the hopes of fixing his hands, but they all prove to be
fruitless endeavors. With no other options left, Strange learns of a man named
Jonathan Pangborn (Benjamin Bratt) who became a paraplegic but then somehow
regained the use of his legs. When Strange seeks out Pangborn for answers, he
ends up directing him to Kathmandu, Nepal to find a place known as ‘Kamar-Taj’.
Once he gets there, Strange learns that this is the site for a ‘school’ of
mystics led by a sorcerer known as the Ancient One (Tilda Swinton), who shows
him the full extent of their powers. Sorcerers like them can control their
environment and travel across dimensions, including the ‘astral plane’, and
whereas the Avengers protect Earth from physical threats, they protect it from
inter-dimensional threats. And so Strange begins to train under the Ancient One
alongside other students like Karl Mordo (Chiwetel Ejiofor), eventually proving
to be quite gifted in the mystic arts. But soon Strange finds himself having to
combat a dangerous threat in the form of Kaecilius (Mads Mikkelsen), a former
student of the Ancient One who has stolen vital information from Kamar-Taj’s
archive to summon magic, and a certain dark force, from the dangerous realm
known as ‘the Dark Dimension’.
Obviously, the big thing that everyone’s been talking about in
regards to this film are its visuals. And yes, all that hype is warranted.
While the MCU films have always done an excellent job with visual effects, this
film easily outshines them all. All the ways in which the characters utilize
magic, especially the ways in which they manipulate the environment, produce
some truly eye-catching, surreal, and in some cases, very trippy visual
effects. As some have described it, they have quite the Inception vibe to them and they lend themselves well to some truly epic
action sequences. As for the rest of the film, it’s pretty much exactly what
you’d expect from an MCU film at this point. It’s got great humor, with a lot
of the best jokes coming from how characters react to the surreal nature of the
mystic arts, but said humor never overshadows the plot and the overall story.
On that note, admittedly this story may seem a bit familiar to some people
(I’ll delve into the majorly implied comparison momentarily) but the execution
by Marvel and director Scott Derrickson is just as great as any other Marvel
Studios film. Even better, it’s becoming more and more clear that the decision
to ditch the controversial Creative Committee, which was responsible for a lot
of the studio’s most polarizing decisions in the past (e.g. the Edgar Wright-Ant-Man incident), is starting to pay off.
Before, Marvel tended to get a lot of flak for allegedly limiting the control
that directors had over their films. But now that the committee’s gone, I think
it’s safe to say that we won’t be hearing any more issues of ‘creative
differences’ anytime soon.
This film features arguably one of the best ‘character arcs’
of any MCU film to date. As some will no doubt point out, Dr. Stephen Strange
has a lot in common with Tony Stark. He starts off as an arrogant celebrity who
must dial back on his ego to become the hero he’s meant to be. Benedict
Cumberbatch is excellent in the role and the fact that the film kind of speeds
through his origin story helps keep the whole experience from being too much of
a case of ‘been there, done that’. Chiwetel Ejiofor is arguably a bit underused
as Mordo but he does have one of the biggest character arcs in the entire film
that will no doubt pave the way for future MCU films. Rachel McAdams, who plays
Strange’s co-worker/ex Christine Palmer, does have solid chemistry with
Cumberbatch and gets some of the best bits of ‘interacting with weird stuff’
humor but overall she’s just the love interest. Benedict Wong as Kamar-Taj’s
archive keeper Wong… is one of my favorite MCU side characters ever. Just watch
the film to see what I mean because he’s brilliant. And then there’s the
controversial casting of Tilda Swinton, a white actress, in the role of The
Ancient One, a traditionally Asian character in the comics. Anyone who follows
me knows that I don’t like to address ‘whitewashing’ controversies in film so
I’ll just say that Swinton does do a great job in what is a very layered role.
And finally, of course, there’s the one part of any MCU film that gets the most
attention, and not always in a good way, the villain. I’m pleased to say that
Mads Mikkelsen’s Kaecilius is one of the better MCU villains. Granted, he’s
still not exactly the franchise’s best but Mikkelsen does get decent enough
material to work with and, at the very least, he plays off his foil, Dr.
Strange, quite well.
Well, at this point anyone who knows me as the MCU fan that
I am probably predicted that I was going to love this film without even having
to read much into the review. And yeah… you’re right. But at the same time,
this just goes to show how Marvel Studios has continued to deliver quality content
time and time again. And sure, technically some parts of this film’s story are a
little standard at this point given everything that’s happened in the superhero
genre. But, at the same time, the things that this film introduces into the
Marvel Cinematic Universe open up a whole world of the one thing that the
Ancient One sees in Dr. Strange’s future… ‘possibilities’. From a visual
perspective, this film features some of the most eye-popping visuals that the
superhero genre has ever seen. I mean, it’d be a genuine shock if this film
doesn’t get an Oscar nom for Best Visual Effects. And of course, as with any
MCU film, the humor is well handled, the action sequences are amazing, the
story is solid, and the characters are excellent as portrayed by the always
great MCU ensemble. Again, to some people this may come off as being a bit too
familiar in certain parts. This is, after all, the 14th Marvel
Cinematic Universe film. But at the same time, that also means that Marvel
Studios is now 14 for 14 when it comes to their filmography. I think it’s safe
to say that this is a streak that is practically unmatched by any other film
franchise, past and present.
Rating: 4.5/5
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