Review of Doctor Strange (2016) by Patrick L — 29 Jan 2017

"It is all very strange indeed but "Doctor Strange" succeeds in being just that. It is another worthy addition to the "MCU" menu.".

Movie Review: Doctor Strange.

Date Viewed: November 5 2016.

Directed By Scott Derrickson (The Exorcism of Emily Rose, Deliver Us From Evil, The Day The Earth Stood Still (2008) and Sinister).

Screenplay By Jon Spaihts, Scott Derrickson and C. Robert Cargill, Based on the Marvel comic book created by Stan Lee and Steve Ditko.

Starring: Benedict Cumberbatch, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Rachel McAdams, Benedict Wong, Tilda Swinton, Michael Stuhlbarg, Benjamin Bratt, Scott Adkins and Mads Mikkelsen.

The Marvel Cinematic Universe keeps on growing and getting more creative with "Doctor Strange". The latest movie from director Scott Derrickson (The Exorcism of Emily Rose, Deliver Us From Evil, The Day The Earth Stood Still (2008) and Sinister) explores the life of a very special neurosurgeon and future Republican presidential candidate named Ben Carson, Oops I'm sorry! The story revolves around Stephen Strange, a top neurosergeon who gets involved in a devastating car crash and becomes a Marvel superhero named Doctor Strange.

Benedict Cumberbatch who has been well known in the movie spotlight for a while for his catchy name and surreal screen presence gives an arresting performance in this visually amazing film. Sure, "Doctor Strange" is not one of the best films in the Marvel canon but it carries a great visual depth to it and it is more elaborate and complex than most of the "MCU" movies do. With the DC movies still in creative decline, it's fun to catch up with more stories from Marvel Cinematic Universe because they have a sense of heroic responsibility and more catchy humor than the serious DC movies have. "Doctor Strange" is another worthy addition to the "MCU" menu.

The story centers around a brilliant but not very bright neurosurgeon named Stephen Strange (Cumberbatch) who is by all means really good at what he does. However, a devastating car crash puts his successful life on hold as he tries regain the use of his hands which were badly hurt in the accident.

His friend, fellow surgeon and former girlfriend, Christine Palmer (Rachel McAdams) tries to help him move forward but Strange will not give up his hand use so he tries to find other resources that can help him get the experimental surgery he needs for his hands.

Suddenly, Steven Strange finds himself in Nepal where he is directed to the Karma-Taj, a secret compound which is run by a mystic sorcerer named The Ancient One (Tilda Swinton). When the Ancient One reveals her powers to Strange, he gets transported to the astral plane and other dimensions. Strange really wants to learn about these powers and how to control them so he is taught under the wing of The Ancient One and Karl Mordo (Chiwetel Ejiofor) who is a Master of the Mystic Arts. In order to use and control his powers wisely, Strange must also read books from the compound's library which is conceived by Wong (Benedict Wong) who is another Mystic master.

The villain of the picture is The Ancient One's former apprentice, a powerful Mystic Arts sorcerer named Kaecilius (Mads Mikkelsen). He and his mystic warriors stole a ritual and some pages from a book that belonged to his former master. Kaecilius plots to unleash the powerful dark dimension known as Dormammu and use it to engulf the Earth into oblivion. With spectacular special effects and a story that's just as visually unique and strange like it's title character, "Doctor Strange" marks an unusual spin in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Benedict Cumberbatch is compelling and amazing as Doctor Strange and he creates a character who's articulate and smart but he's also really arrogant at times as well. Nevertheless, we understand his motivations and we sympathize with him.

The supporting players led by Chiwetel Ejiofor, Tilda Swinton and Rachel McAdams all do fine work here and Scott Derrickson's direction does a great job of balancing the dazzling visuals with the character aspect of the story very well. It is all very strange indeed but "Doctor Strange" succeeds in being just that.