Dr. Strange and the Madness of Multiverse (Movie Review)

Marvel's latest phase of movies and tie-in television series on Disney+ has been a mixed bag of experiments. A few hits, lot more misses. But have to give it to Kevin Fiege and his team, they are definitely not afraid to experiment. Take their latest Moonknight series. Brilliant, definitely un-marvel like and totally kickass! (More on this to come!)  

Dr. Strange's new solo outing as well, the psychedelic trip into the Multiverse, aptly named Dr. Strange and The Madness of the Multiverse is something that seems experimental. But in reality, is more couched within the frameworks of familiar tropes of the Marvel Universe. And so, the question is: Does this succeed? 

Well, not for most parts, am afraid. It is at the end of the day a forgetful trip into a maddening and colourfully rended (Absolutely GOD level CGI!) multi-verse with an endearing version of Benedict Cumberbatch ( A national treasure for sure, one heck of a talent!) along with some of his cronies ( Wong as Supreme Sorcerer in supreme form!) and a new talent (Xochitl Gomez) to save the universe. Oh my bad, the Multiverse, this time. As Dr. Strange himself surmises about his trip into the Multiverse, it eventually wears out. For me, it did - as soon as I walked out of the theatre. So yes, a daring experiment, tons of denouement we have come to expect from MCU, a happy adventure for most times but an ultimately, underwhelming addition to the MCU franchise. 

The barely-there-plot is thus : A young girl who has cracked the ability to traverse the multiverse, lands up in Earth # XYZ (Doesn't matter, so many out there!) right outside the church where Dr. Strange's ex-girlfriend Christine (Rachel McAdams) is getting married - being chased by a demon with instructions to kidnap her. Dr. Strange saves her and takes her to Kamar-Taj along with Wong. And then, enlists the help of the most powerful witch alive on earth, Wanda Maximoff or the Scarlet Witch (Elizabeth Olsen in a searing performance). And that's where things start to go off-rail. 

For Scarlet Witch is actually the one who wanted this teenager America Chavez to be kidnapped, so she can take on her multi-verse hopping prowess for herself. So she can actually make those dreams of living peacefully with her two boys, a reality in an alternate universe. 

So much for the premise. This leads to a chaotic mix of adventure, horror and mind-bending bizarre as Doc 'Are you happy' Strange and his new mentee, America ( I wonder if this was on purpose. Like Strange saves America, lol!) explore the multiverse to find a solution to this predicament. Namely, stop the Scarlet Witch and her plans. Director Sam Raimi is back for this edition of Dr. Strange and his handiwork is of course very clear, especially in that first monster attack scene. The mono-eyed Squid like demon and the fabulous fight scene. Very reminiscent of the original Peter Parker movies of Toby Maguire. I couldn't figure how much of a fan-service that Sam Raimi was dishing out, but there are some fantastically cool moments in the movie, that I felt were under-utilised. That first multi-verse hop across so many interesting different universes ( including one where they are different coloured paints!) was startling. So is the usage of musical notes in a fight unto death between Strange and his counterpart from another universe. The so-called "madness' referred to in the title, actually comes out pretty lame. Or tepid, shall I say. There are some dark grim universes, subject to Apocalypse but the ones where we spend more time is just a normal NYC, where the only rules are that 'you go on red'. 

Benedict Cumberbatch is restrained, almost vulnerable in a few of his early scenes of 'loneliness' and slips into this role very comfortably. The charming know-it-all asshole, who is surprisingly caring and selfless.  Benedict Wong is a blast of fresh air. Olsen is the human dilemma, the central force behind this quest-movie. She delivers an absolutely standout performance as the conflicted witch, sympathetic and tragic at the same time. There are quite a few cameos, all of them disappointingly brief and even wasted opportunities. (That set of 'Avengers' on Universe # 1234 is called Illuminati. Illuma-whati? Exactly!) Sam Raima's horror movie roots are on full display here towards the end as we veer off into jump scares and a clutch of fleeting ghostly zombie spirits that join the fray. If there are implications from WandaVision to the overall storyline, I frankly didn't feel the pressure of wanting to know the details. Sam and his writing team have gleefully thrown in elements like Book of the Damned, Vishanti (Some mangled Vedic attempt am sure) or the Darkhold or Shadow-walking etc. Don't worry, just go with the flow. 

Doctor Strange-2 is a lot more violent and darker than its predecessor. It's also a departure from the Marvel framework we know, to a certain extent. But ultimately, this is only going to be side-quest in the larger multi-verse of MCU I think. ( Not withstanding that surprising post-credit introduction of a new character!) Sam Raimi at the helm has definitely been a happy welcome back but maybe he chose the wrong movie, is what I think. This multi-verse based expansion of the MCU hasn't frankly got us all fired up and cheering. Watch for the thrills and the horror-movie feels.