Saturday, November 5, 2016

Doctor Strange (2016) review

Image result for Dr STrange poster

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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