By Brett Blake The newest hero to enter the Marvel cinematic pantheon has arrived in the form of DOCTOR STRANGE, and there’s no way around it: this is another terrific movie from the fine folks at Marvel Studios. A very strong visual approach, solid (if a bit well-worn) narrative plotting, inventive action setpieces, and a legitimately phenomenal cast combine to make this the best solo hero “introductory” film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe since the first IRON MAN back in 2008. After a horrific car accident, renowned surgeon Stephen Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) embarks on a journey around the world in hopes of regaining the use of his hands. His search brings him to the far east, where he meets and learns from the Ancient One (Tilda Swinton), the “Sorcerer Supreme” presiding over a cadre of sorcerers who protect the earth from dark forces hiding in alternate dimensions. With the help of Mordo (Chiwetel Ejiofor), Strange regains his sense of purpose and attempts to thwart Kaecilius (Mads Mikkelsen), a fallen sorcerer who seeks to unleash a nefarious evil onto our world. If that brief summation wasn’t enough to spell it out, this is unquestionably the weirdest entry so far in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Director Scott Derrickson and his co-writers Jon Spaihts and C. Robert Cargill have embraced all the odd and metaphysical aspects of Strange’s comic book heritage, and the result is a massively entertaining experience. In many ways, it’s the total package: thrilling, funny, and satisfying on emotional and thematic levels. It’s basically a home run, and coming on the heels of Marvel’s CAPTAIN AMERICA: CIVIL WAR from earlier this year, DOCTOR STRANGE’s unique qualities stand out in stark and refreshing relief. It essentially looks nothing like any other Marvel movie, and it doesn’t tap dance around or make apologies for its unabashedly goofy subject matter. Parallel dimensions, alternate universes, astral planes, time travel, teleportation, magical spells, sentient capes... they’re all in here, and brought to life in viscerally exhilarating ways. The action sequences, which often involve physical spaces folding in on themselves, are delirious in the very best way, and the movie’s presentations of some of the different dimensions Strange visits look to be ripped directly from some of the most acid-trippy pages of Steve Ditko’s classic artwork from the comics. The movie’s finale, which I dare not even hint at, combines the action and big, colorful iconography in ways that are an obscene amount of fun; there are things in this finale that I never imagined could be put on film, and yet here they are. A game that inevitably gets played whenever a new Marvel Studios movie comes out is the ranking exercise. Something compels people to place each new installment into an order relative to all the others. Personally, I try to avoid this. I’ve only seen DOCTOR STRANGE once at this point. I don’t know where I would put it in relation to the other movies in the MCU. Is it better or worse than CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE FIRST AVENGER? What about IRON MAN 3? I don’t know yet! The movies are so different, how do you really judge? What I can say for certain is that DOCTOR STRANGE joins GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY as the two films which deviate most - in terms of look and feel - from the larger Marvel Cinematic Universe. This movie doesn’t fully adhere to the “house style” that has been established up to this point; it has a far quirkier and more esoteric vibe, befitting its focus on mysticism, magic, and ancient lore, and it feels grander in ambition than any of the other Marvel movies (save for the two AVENGERS outings). You can sense there was a real desire behind the scenes to use the Doctor Strange character to shake things up a bit. The film may owe a tip of the hat to the first IRON MAN in terms of its basic structure, but the execution of that structure feels far different. More than anything, the movie feels truly fresh. If all DOCTOR STRANGE had to offer were its inspired and cool visual elements, then it would still be a success. It has more to offer than that, however, in the form of its pretty incredible cast. As brought to life by Benedict Cumberbatch, Stephen Strange is a character instantly capable of shouldering his own story, and Cumberbatch gets a tremendous arc to chart; he sells the character’s initial arrogance and need for absolute control, his subsequent profound humbling and quest for new meaning, and - finally - a return of confidence, now backed up with powers he would have never dreamed of before the story begins. There’s no question that - as the MCU inevitably begins to phase out stalwarts like Robert Downey Jr. in a few years - Cumberbatch is more than ready to pick up the baton and become the MCU’s new lynchpin. Tilda Swinton delivers another of her signature performances as the Ancient One. In lesser hands (and with poorer writing, admittedly), the character could have been the embodiment of a cliche; in Swinton’s hands, we have a fascinating and rich portrait, one peppered with a playfulness that is unexpected, but very welcome. Chiwetel Ejiofor is on board for what is probably the most complex character of the tale, and he makes Mordo feel profoundly human, something that should pay off as the character is set to move down interesting directions moving forward. As the villain of the piece, Mads Mikkelsen doesn’t get quite as much to play with as one might like, but he makes a meal out of what he is given, including a fabulous sequence where he lays out his motives. The least well-served character, by design, is Rachel McAdams as Strange’s colleague/potential love interest, but that’s not necessarily a problem; McAdams has an effortlessly naturalistic vibe that plays really well off of Cumberbatch’s energy, and she’s a nice presence in a role that feels included (mostly) in order to set up developments to come in the future. One of the movie’s greatest attributes is its musical score, which comes courtesy of Michael Giacchino. Much has been written and said about the strengths, weaknesses, and consistency of the soundtracks of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and though I’ve more or less been a fan of most of the previous films’ scores, there’s no question that Giacchino’s work here is easily the best of the bunch. Not only does he bring several strong themes to the table, but he also incorporates interesting electronic textures and playful orchestrations and instrumentation, which is appropriate for the Ditko-inspired trippy visuals. It’s one of the year’s best scores. I have no major reservations to report with DOCTOR STRANGE. If you can get past the weirdness, you will find as ambitious and inventive a blockbuster as you’re likely to see this year. No film is perfect, but I loved every second of this one, and can’t wait to see where Doctor Strange goes from here.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
Archives
January 2023
Categories
All
|