Ryan Shoots First: Dr. Strange in the Multiverse of Madness
Spring is in the air, the weather is warming and blockbuster season is upon us as Marvel kicks things off with Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. The multiverse is Marvel’s shiny new toy that everyone is playing with so let’s see what Sam Raimi’s return to comic book movies has in store…
As is typical, reviews started coming out earlier in the week and I stayed away from spoilers but I did take a few looks at the general reaction and it was mixed. One thing I kept hearing was 1. It was too weird and Raimi and 2. It was short on cameos and teamups.
Well I can say that only got me more excited. While I don’t mind the Marvel formula I’m glad this seemed to be different. And it very much was in many ways. First Raimi is definitely flexing his muscles here. He pulls from all corners of his filmography. There are moments that will remind you of Spider-Man of course but there is a lot of elements pulled from his horror filmography. Some shots seemingly pulled straight from Evil Dead. So many creative sequences and camera shots that really are not like anything we’ve seen in a Marvel Movie. The movie is also particularly brutal…not for horror fans but for sure more than any other marvel series has featured. Some moments really shocked me that they were so against playing it safe. Again props to Marvel for letting Raimi have some freedom here and I feel the hero in Doctor Strange and the premise of the movie was a perfect fit for him. Probably even more than Spider-Man I would say. The magical elements and dark mystical side play perfectly into his wheelhouse.
To the second note…I don’t know what movie those people saw, maybe Marvel cut some stuff out of press screenings or something cause woah this movie had some pretty huge cameos. All of them were a lot of fun and huge moments for fans. My theatre was pretty tame not like a typical marvel screening but I can imagine some theatres got pretty raucous. One in particular I swear they took straight out of fan edits that have existed for years. The story itself didn’t really rely on these cameos however and it very much is a Doctor Strange story. Regarding Strange, Benedict Cumberbatch is what you would expect, he has found his groove with the role and has confidence now in his performance. The multiverse aspect of the film does allow him some ability to do some new things though and the idea of infinite other realities is used well to reflect on our characters paths that have led them where they are. His co stars in this film are Elizabeth Olsen’s returning as Scarlet Witch fresh of Wanda Vision and newcomer America Chavez played by Xochitl Gomez. Olsen is great again and as well really has command of her character now that had an up and down start. Gomez is good as well she doesn’t take too much attention away from the other stars but is given her moments to make a mark in the MCU going forward.
The movie is a lot of fun. It starts off right away and never slows down. It’s non stop for the entire run time. It’s crazy multiversal shenanigans and utter madness. The title is a perfect fit. It doesn’t completely upend the entire MCU but that’s ok. They don’t all need to do that. I talked about this in my Moon Knight review that the streaming series allow Marvel a way to debut new character while avoiding the lofty weight having a marvel movie brings. For better or worse people expect certain things from a marvel movie now and I think that led to some of those early reviews for the film. Raimi seemed to have a lot of fun making the film and Marvel let him push the envelope resulting in a fun, crazy thrill ride that should please Marvel fans.
