Doctor Strange (2016) Review

"Forget everything you think you know."
-Mordo



After a car accident cripples his hands, neurosurgeon Dr. Stephen Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) tries every method he can think of to regain his mobility.  Out of options, he turns to the teachings of the Ancient One (Tilda Swinton) and studies the Mystic Arts.  He soon discovers he is very gifted and faces a choice; return to his previous life or stop the darkness threatening to consume the world.


What Works:

Doctor Strange is by far the weirdest of the Marvel movies and could stand completely on its own.  It introduces a bunch of new a crazy elements to the MCU and I love it.  It's the Rick & Morty of Marvel with weird dimensions, time loops, and all manner of absurdity.  It's a breath of life into the universe and I can't get enough.

Benedict Cumberbatch is perfect as Doctor Strange and somehow manages to be more arrogant than Tony Stark, yet still likable.  He brilliantly walks the line of likability thanks to his charisma and I find him fascinating.  We can still root for this guy despite his arrogance.

While Kaecilius isn't the best Marvel villain, Mads Mikkelsen goes above and beyond with the material.  After he is captured by Strange, he gives a wonderful, emotional performance.  It's amazing acting and one of my favorite evil plots explanations.

The visual effects are amazing.  All of the magical stuff looks great, but the Inception-esque action sequences are brilliant.  It looks incredible and I can't imagine how they managed to piece it all together.

Finally, the 3rd act is nothing short of incredible.  The time reversal stuff is amazing, of course, but the way Strange defeats Dormammu (Benedict Cumberbatch) with a time loop might be my favorite method of defeating a villain I have ever seen.  It's wonderfully creative, visually stunning, and hilarious in a dark way.


What Sucks:

I will admit, not all of the humor works for me.  The jokey dialogue between Strange and Wong (Benedict Wong) falls completely flat.  This kind of humor is beneath Cumberbatch.


Verdict:

Doctor Strange is one of my favorite Marvel movies because of how unusual it is.  It's wonderfully creative in terms of its story and visuals and the performances of both Cumberbatch and Mikkelsen are excellent.  Not all of the humor works, but it as definitely got it going on no matter what dimension you're in.

 9/10: Great 

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