E's Reviews: Doctor Strange

“Power doesn't corrupt. It's neutral. Someone always wants to corrupt power.” - Steve Ditko

Last week, we here at Bearly Coherent mourned the loss of one of the great comic creators, Steve Ditko. He was an artist and co-creator of some of the most iconic comic book superheroes and villains we’ve ever seen, one of the pioneers that put Marvel (and even DC) on the map. Along with one of the greatest writers ever, Stan Lee, Steve created Spider-Man, he helped create the major villains of the Spider-Verse like Green Goblin, Kraven the Hunter, the Sandman, Doctor Octopus, Mysterio, etc. But, he also helped to create something more mystical...If not for him, we wouldn’t have the Ancient One, Dormamu, Baron Mordo, Wong, and the subject of today’s film review...the Sorcerer Supreme, Doctor Strange.

Marvel Studios Doctor Strange is directed by Scott Derrickson and stars Benedict Cumberbatch as Doctor Stephen Strange, a brilliant neurosurgeon that, after a horrific car accident, loses much of the use of his hands. He is unable to perform surgeries anymore, and on a quest to heal himself both physically and spiritually, he is drawn to the world of the mystic arts. The film also stars Chiwetel Ejiofor as Mordo, Rachel McAdams as Dr. Christine Palmer, Benedict Wong as Wong, Tilda Swinton as The Ancient One, and Mads Mikkelsen as Kaecilius.

To get into the meat and potatoes of this review, I have to admit that I’m not the biggest Doctor Strange fan. Before seeing the movie I was never really big on the character, I never read the comics, and I never really was interested in any of the cartoons involving the character as a kid. Scott Derrickson and his team of writers, along with the strong (very strong) performances in this film changed my opinion and made me a huge fan. After seeing the movie, I absorbed as much Doctor Strange material as I could. This is just how good of a movie this really is. The performances, as I said, are extremely good. Benedict Cumberbatch embodies the arrogance that Stephen Strange has at his beginning, and then his fall to rock bottom absolutely brilliantly. Then, as a phoenix rises from the ashes, we see him become the hero he was meant to become, putting himself in harm’s way to protect our very existence. It’s awesome stuff. Chiwetel Ejiofor’s Mordo is amazing. I’ve always been a huge fan of this actor ever since I saw him in Serenity, and I continue to be amazed by just how great he is. He’s very soft spoken, very calm, until he needs to let go all his rage and anger at the same time...then he becomes very scary. I loved every minute he was on screen. Tilda Swinton was fantastic as The Ancient One. She was funny, she was mysterious, she was sad, a great character and a fantastic actress. Rachel McAdams was cute as a button, as usual, and her portrayal as Dr. Palmer actually made me feel bad for her, especially the way Doctor Strange treats her at the beginning of the film. Benedict Wong as Wong was amusing and badass all at the same time. He’s a tremendously gifted actor, and his comedic timing in this movie was spot on. There’s not much praise I can give Mads Mikkelsen that would be worthy of his talents. He is an amazing actor and his role in this film as the villainous Kaecilius was kind of creepy (probably took inspiration from his Hannibal Lecter) and it was also kind of amusing at times (you know which scene I’m talking about).

The CGI at times did, however, kind of take me out of the movie. The colors used were vibrant but every scene had some kind of acid trip quality to it. There were also moments you could clearly tell were green screens or CGI. The movie overall, however, looked very good. The action sequences were well shot, the cinematography was great. The screenplay and directing were also very good. The movie had moments of sadness, comedy that wasn’t overbearing, and some excellent dramatic moments that really brought you into this great world that, if real, was what Ditko was going for. The end credit scenes are great. They tied directly into Thor: Ragnarok and they even tied into the next Doctor Strange film, which I had never seen the second end credit scene. When I did...I got extremely excited for the next movie. It looks like it’ll be huge.

In the end, Doctor Strange is a fantastic film, filled with magic, action, comedy, and amazing performances. It’s a fun film that is great for fans of the MCU and is a must see before checking out Thor: Ragnarok and Avengers: Infinity War.

Final Score: 9/10