DOCTOR STRANGE IN THE MULTIVERSE OF MADNESS
2022 | Dir. Sam Raimi | 126 Minutes
"If you knew there was a universe where you were happy, wouldn't you want to go there?"
Stephen Strange protects a young refugee from another world with the ability to break through the barriers between universes against a supernatural natural threat seeking to steal her unique power. However, Strange soon discovers that the adversary is a former ally wielding treacherous magic with relentless determination. Together with his new charge, Strange journeys across the multiverse in search of a way to save it.
Directed by Sam Raimi, best known for his gory Evil Dead slapstick horror films and his pre-MCU Spider-Man trilogy, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness perhaps surprisingly plays more like the former with Raimi leaning as far into body-horror and the macabre as a Marvel Studios film may allow. Serving the tall order to function as a direct sequel to Doctor Strange, Avengers: Endgame, and the WandaVision streaming miniseries, the creepshow spectacle of a picture unmistakably carries both its director's strengths in gruesome style and eerie atmosphere as well as his weaknesses particularly in failing to present emotionally satisfying character dynamics, though writer Michael Waldron is at least partially responsible for the elements of the story that don't quite resonate. While Strange finally learns to accept the end of his romantic relationship with Christine Palmer, and perhaps to question his tendency for coldly calculated decision-making, his character doesn't change in any way that feels significant by the end of this story. Meanwhile the film's secondary lead character, Wanda Maximoff, regresses considerably as a character, transformed into a magic-powered terminator hell-bent on being a mother no matter the cost, turning heel in a way that practically negates her character development from her previous stories. The introduction of a girl who can travel between worlds at will is fascinating conceptually, but disappointingly America Chavez is less a character in this story and more walking MacGuffin.
The film's greatest strengths lie in its imaginative, bizarre, and often creepy visuals courtesy of Raimi. Standout sequences include Strange and Wong's eye-gouging battle against a cyclopic squid monster, Wanda's arms emerging through mirrors attempting to capture America, and Wanda's possession of her variant shot and edited in true Evil Dead fashion. Strange and America falling through various alternate universes is perhaps one of the most visually mind-blowing sequences of the Marvel mega-franchise thus far. Strange possessing the corpse of his variant swarming with the souls of the dead is perhaps the most Raimi visual outside of his own original films. However, the battle sequences generally leave a lot to be desired, most noticeably in Wanda's shockingly one-sided fight against the team of variant superheroes and the finale of the picture.
Despite the overall lack of character development, Benedict Cumberbatch is better than ever as Stephen Strange, settling into the role enough at this point to even play distinctive alternate versions of the character with ease. Doing her best with the material, Elizabeth Olsen manages to present Wanda Maximoff as a sympathetic antagonist and is believably terrifying as a nigh unstoppable adversary. As Wong, Benedict Wong is reliably likeable, once again sharing excellent comedic chemistry with Cumberbatch. Though she plays a larger part in this story than in the first Doctor Strange film, Rachel McAdams does what she can with the paper-thin role written for Christine Palmer and her variant. Chiwetel Ejiofor convincingly plays a variant of Karl Mordo who amusingly turns out to be as sympathetic and treacherous as his counterpart. Xochitl Gomez is fine as America Chavez but she doesn't leave much of an impression due to the limited depth of the role as it was written and not to her talent as a performer. Of note, Patrick Stewart, Hayley Atwell, Lashana Lynch, Anson Mount, and John Krasinski play variants of heroes both new and old to the Marvel Cinematic Universe in cameo appearances.
Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness both delivers the goods as a wildly entertaining big budget Sam Raimi horror film and disappoints as a flawed sequel to several Marvel Studios productions. As an isolated experience, the feature is engaging and a lot of fun with a wealth of exciting visuals. Within the overarching narrative of the shared universe it inhabits, it is a sometimes confounding chapter with questionable story turns.
MID-CREDITS STINGER
Strange encounters a visitor from the Dark Dimension (Charlize Theron) in need of his assistance to undo an interdimensional incursion.
Strange encounters a visitor from the Dark Dimension (Charlize Theron) in need of his assistance to undo an interdimensional incursion.
POST-CREDITS STINGER
To his relief, the spell Strange cast on the rude Pizza Poppa vendor expires and he gleefully declares "It's over!"
To his relief, the spell Strange cast on the rude Pizza Poppa vendor expires and he gleefully declares "It's over!"
FRAGMENTS
- The film's writer Michael Waldron makes a cameo appearance as a guest at Christine's wedding
- The film's writer Michael Waldron makes a cameo appearance as a guest at Christine's wedding
- While it's nice to see Julian Hilliard and Jett Klyne reprise the roles of Wanda's twins Billy and Tommy from WandaVision, particularly accompanied by one of the musical themes from that series, their ice cream song was more cringe-inducing than endearing
- Frequent Sam Raimi collaborator Bruce Campbell is a welcome sight as the Pizza Poppa vendor
- Here's hoping Hayley Atwell appears as another live-action Captain Carter variant at some point
- Glad to see Lashana Lynch as an variant Captain Marvel though I wouldn't be surprised if this was a one-and-done deal and we never see her again as another variant
- Anson Mount appearing as Black Bolt acknowledges the much-derided Inhumans Marvel Television series but the unceremonious excessively violent way the character was dispatched in this film speaks volumes
- Charles Xavier's appearance accompanied by a rendition of the theme from the X-Men animated series is just sublime
- It is honestly hilariously melodramatic that there is apparently no universe in which Strange and Christine are together
007 CONNECTIONS
- Lashana Lynch (Nomi in No Time To Die)
- Lashana Lynch (Nomi in No Time To Die)
