Marvel has a great track record of making movies. Every year it seems that they add a new character that increases the scope and variety of their ever-expanding universe. Despite this, it is not always that Marvel steps outside their comfort zone with ambitious tones and story lines. In 2016, Marvel looked to change this. Captain America: Civil War worked to uproot the status quo of the relationship between society and its superheroes, and, Marvels latest edition, Doctor Strange, aimed at adding an entire new real of possibilities for its heroes.
Going in to the movie, my
expectations were high. Watching the
trailers for Doctor Strange left me
in awe, seeing matter distorted and manipulated in a way I would imagine
mirrors a really good acid trip. I was
expecting a movie full of scenes that resembled these trailer, and Marvels
usual dedication to establishing its heroes.
Unfortunately, I left let down as a viewer. Doctor
Strange felt very much like a rushed, underachieving attempt at molding a
complex new tone into the already establish MCU. Instead of focusing on developing the character
of Stephen Strange and his ascension into true heroism, the movie replaces
character arc with forced comedy and oversimplified plotlines.
At the offset of the
movie we are introduced to Stephen Strange as a brash and egotistical surgeon, who’s
skills in the field are unmatched. This
pre-superhero version of Stephen Strange does not last long, however, and we
are soon thrust into plot. Stephen gets
into a horrible accident that leaves his hands useless with a surgeon’s tools,
and Stephen is left to figure out what he is to make of his life. In this first act, we get a great scene of
tension between Rachel McAdams, who plays Strange’s love interest Christine
Palmer, where a broken down Strange is shown angry and without understanding of
what is important in his life. And
although this point is lectured to him at various times through the movie,
there is never any real payoff to show how much his abilities have changed his
perspective.
Continuing into the
second act, the movie begins to fall into the lull of quick plot points and
plugged in comedy bits that plague it throughout. Strange goes to the temple of the Ancient
One, played by Tilda Swinton, and there he learns the ways of the sorcerers in
a swiftness that can only be matched by Rey’s in Star Wars: The Force Awakens. At
this point, the movie would have greatly benefited from spending more time on
Strange as a student. To see his
character be broken down to his lowest point, stripped completely of his
previously dominating arrogance, and learn to be humble and heroic would have
made for a much more interesting second act.
Instead, the movie trudges on and gives little mention to or hint at anything
exceptional about Strange as a sorcerer.
We learn of the villain, whose name and purpose are almost unessential,
and the fate he looks to bring on humanity.
The villain is almost a side note in the film, reminiscent of a shoe in
meant more to give the protagonist something to fight against than to serve any
other purpose.
In the end, the villains goal was to bring the
Earth into the dark dimension, where it would live on eternally. I believe the movie would have been better
off fighting a small scale, more personal battle, than bringing the fight
immediately to the fate of all of mankind.
It would have served the characters better and would allow the stakes to
grow throughout the trilogy, which I am assuming there will be one.
Overall, I did enjoy Doctor Strange. I thought the action was extremely unique and
intriguing, and opened up many possibilities for the Russo brothers to work
with in Infinity War. I specifically enjoyed seeing the Ancient One
fight. Her style and abilities reflected
that of someone who has a true mastery of the art, and the mind bending illusions
that she created were a true spectacle. Benedict
Cumberbatch was also a perfect fit for the role as Doctor Strange. I thought that he exemplified the Doctor both
before and after his accident, and that he certainly looked the part. Although this movie will not make it into my list
of tier 1 Marvel movies, like Guardians
of the Galaxy, Iron Man, Civil War, or The Winter Soldier, I can still say that it is a very fun movie
that, hopefully, points towards even greater things to come in the MCU.
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