Thoughts on Doctor Strange
Entry posted by Toa Smoke Monster
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It was strange.
....
Sorry, bad joke. 
Anyways, Marvel's latest movie came out over the weekend. It's definitely a departure from anything that's been done in the MCU before, especially when it comes to its amazing special effects. Here are my thoughts on this movie. Spoilers for the film are contained in this, so don't read this if you haven't seen it yet.
1. Marvel continues with their success at casting the right actors or actresses for their movies. Benedict Cumberbatch does a great job with the role of the title character, Stephen Strange. He kind of reminds me of Dr. House from the TV show House from a few years back, especially at towards the beginning of the film. But he does have more heart in him than House, and he does become a more caring person towards the end of the film. (Then again, that is to be expected from the starring character in a Marvel Movie. ) My point is that he's great here, and I look forward to seeing him in future Marvel movies.
2. There has been some controversy with the casting of the Ancient One in this film in the past. I won't get into it here though. All I will say is that the actress that played her, Tilda Swinton, was great in this movie too IMO. I really enjoyed her performance. It's a shame that she was killed off by the villain, but who knows. Maybe she'll show up somehow in a future movie.
3. Mordo, played by Chiwetel Ejiofor, was another interesting character in the film. I liked that he stayed on the same side as Strange for most of the film, as it could've been easy to just rush him into being a villain. Even though we do see him start down that path in one of the film's after credit scenes, I do like that the film's story showed how he came to the conclusion to go down said path. I'm very interested in see what is done with him in upcoming Marvel movies.
4. The rest of the cast does a good job too. Wong, played by Benedict Wong, is a neat character. From what I understand, he's given a bigger role in this story than what he has in the comics, which I think is pretty cool. Christine Palmer, played by Rachel McAdams, is also somewhat of an interesting character, though she doesn't have the biggest role in the story. But she does good with what she's given to do.
As for the villain Kaecilius, played by Mads Mikkelson, I would say that the Marvel curse of 'every villain besides Loki feeling underdeveloped in their movies' affects him as well. Don't get me wrong, the movie does a good job explaining why he does what he does. And I personally think that he is one of the cooler villains to be seen in a Marvel film. I just feel that he could've been developed a little more.
5. Speaking of villains, Kaecilius isn't the only one in the movie. One of Doctor Strange's greatest enemies, Dormammu, also makes an appearance. It's mainly just a cameo, but he shows up. The way Strange defeats him is actually kind of clever, though to me it also felt a little underwhelming. Still, it's cool to see him here, and it's probably won't be the last time either.
(Fun fact: Benedict Cumberbatch actually did the motion capture for Dormammu's face. So it was like he was facing off against himself. )
6. The film's story has some of the familiar beats of some of the other Marvel origin films, but it also has a lot of things to help separate it from them as well. And one of those things was magic. Like the first Thor film did with introducing the concepts of beings living in other realms aside from earth, Doctor Strange is tasked with introducing the magical side of the Marvel Universe, along with the multiverse, to the MCU. And for the most part, I think it succeeds with that goal. It gives us just enough to keep the viewer entertained without going overboard with it and becoming too confusing for the casual fan. That's an accomplishment IMO.
That's being said, I do think other Marvel movies had stronger stories than Strange. I still liked the story, and it's definitely not the worst movie in the MCU lineup. But I will admit that I enjoyed some of the other films more than this one.
7. The special effects in this movie are great. Really, really great. They're definitely one of the selling points of this film. I've seen people compare the city folding in on itself scenes here from those seen in Inception. While I do see the comparison between them, I will point out that Inception had it's city only fold on top of itself. In Strange, the concept was expanded upon to a greater extent, like having buildings twist around and sink into holes. It's really cool to see. Another standout scene is when the Ancient One shows Stephen the multiverse for the first time. What is shown there is very interesting, to say the least.
8. While this is a mostly standalone film in the MCU, there are a few scenes in it that connect it to the other films. For example, there is a shot over the city of New York that shows the Avengers Tower. In another scene, Stephen is talking to a fellow doctor over the phone about someone to broke their spine in an experimental exo-suit, which I believe is the guy who got his upper body turned 180 from his lower body in a suit made by Justin Hammer in Iron Man 2. Also, while the Ancient One is showing Stephen the multiverse, I believe that he passes briefly through the Quantum Realm first shown in Ant Man. That last one is just a personal theory of mine, but I'm sure that's a realm Stephen is shown.
But the biggest connection this film has to the MCU is in the first mid-credit scene, where Stephen is talking to Thor about is brother Loki and about finding Odin in New York. I personally think this is a scene from the next Thor movie that they added to this film, similar to how a scene from Captain America: Civil War was added as an end credit scene to Ant Man. There have been rumors about Doctor Strange making a cameo in Thor: Ragnarok. So if this is a scene from that movie, it looks like that rumor is now confirmed.
So overall, I think Doctor Strange is a really entertaining movie. It's not the best film that they've made, but it does open the door to a new side of the MCU that I can't wait to see explored in upcoming movies. I recommend checking it out, just to see how strange it is.
Sorry, another bad joke.
Will you see Doctor Strange? And if you have, what did you think of it?
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