Film Review: Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness | Great Hexpectations

When I first saw the trailer for Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness in theatres having watched Spider-Man: No Way Home, I was excited. But when I started reading reviews of Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, I dropped my expectations significantly. But what also tempered my expectations was how much I was not enjoying Moon Knight on Disney+. And also remembering that Phase 4 of the MCU has been as patchy as the edges of Cynthia from Rugrats.

Marvel Studios has a real problem with its fourth phase of the MCU. Most of its shows and films thus far has been a case of a great story buried in typical Marvel Studios-isms, smothered with lots of things to make the film as generic and wide-appealing as possible. Whilst simultaneously being so tied to a decade worth of movies, that you can’t even fully enjoy the damn thing if you’ve not watched at least five of the films that had released prior.

Phase 4 has given us a taste of Marvel taking some pretty big swings, but WandaVision and Shang-Chi & The Legend of the Ten Rings are the only releases in phase 4 which felt like home runs, and even they had their share of problems. And WandaVision doing what it did it is a significant part of what makes Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness so…strange.

Many reviews have cited Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness as being too messy, too long, too cobbled together and not featuring enough cameos. I don’t agree with any of these things. The film isn’t messy (even though it does do messy things). The film actually needed to be longer. It certainly doesn’t feel cobbled together. And if anything, it needed less cameos.

One of the biggest problems FOR ME with Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, is that it doesn’t delve enough into any of the things in its own title. We don’t get any character development for Doctor Strange. There’s no commitment to the Madness. And there’s no expansion on the implications and consequences of the tampering with the Multiverse.

And then there’s Wanda. But we’ll get to her.

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness | Disney, Marvel

Based on the film title, the trailers, and the the Disney+ series’ Loki and What If...?, you’d probably think that this film would have this crazy, multi-threaded narrative. But Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness is surprisingly simple and linear in its plot. Wanda wants to take America Chavez’s multiversal powers (which would kill her) so that she can be with her kids after losing them at the end of WandaVision. I don’t get why Wanda would need to take America’s powers to travel through the multiverse. She could just be nice and ask her. ‘Sweetie, can you buss open a star portal so I can see my babies?’. And when America says ‘I would, but I can’t control my powers’, Wanda can be like ‘That’s fine sweetie. My boys couldn’t control their powers at first, but I taught them how’. But I guess that would mean giving Wanda actual nuance, which this film doesn’t seem to want to give her for some strange reason.

I’ve got nothing against a simple plot. Simple plots are the MCU’s bread and butter. But make it make sense. And at the very least lay the groundwork for things to break the way in which they do. Everything in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness just…happens. There’s no build up to anything. There’s no deepening of relationships. There’s no slow burn. There’s no real tension which is built between any of these characters.

And how the film chooses to do Wanda is at the heart of each of these things.

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness | Disney, Marvel

Marvel Studios just can’t seem to get Wanda right in a film. WandaVision did so much for Wanda as a character. It did so good a job in fact, that it created a fervent Wanda fanbase who will absolutely show up for this film. And they will eat it up, because we get a whole lotta Wanda doing a whole lotta shit, and a hearkening back to how creepy and unnerving she was when she was introduced in Age of Ultron - something I always wanted the MCU to revisit. But her character still isn’t where it should be. And the direction in which this film chooses to take Wanda may divide the #ScarletBitches.

Marvel Studios have always struggled with their villains, and they continue to struggle with them. Multiverse of Madness sees Marvel Studios doing that thing they always do, which is to just shove a character into a villain role on a whim. And whilst the character they pick as the villain makes sense, the groundwork for the villain is non-existent. So they just have them kill lots of people, so that it’s easy for everybody in the film and the audience to point at them and say ‘villain’. It’s lazy. And in Multiverse of Madness, it’s a type of character assassination for Wanda.

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness | Disney, Marvel

The issue isn’t that Wanda is a villain. Wanda makes a GREAT villain. One of the most formidable we’ve seen in the MCU thus far. Multiverse of Madness goes some way towards expanding the lore of The Scarlet Witch that many thought that we’d get in WandaVision; concerning her link to demonic forces. Therefore, villainy being on Wanda’s cards isn’t a stretch or an unfathomable reach. Especially given that she’s been a villain in the MCU before, and has been one plenty of times in the comics. The issue is that her characterisation doesn’t align with where we last left her, and we’re not given enough as to why.

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness | Disney, Marvel

When Multiverse of Madness starts, Wanda is already a full blown villain. We’re given nothing other than Wanda just really wants her kids back; which as a motivation, is fine. But we’re not given anything on what exactly happened to Wanda between WandaVision and Multiverse of Madness for her to just turn. And thereby, her characterisation in this movie completely wipes any growth we got for Wanda over the course of several films and a Disney+ show. It just walks Wanda’s character right back to Age of Ultron. ‘I’m just gonna be a villainous bitch, because I want what I want’.

Let’s get one thing crystal clear. Wanda was absolutely a villain in WandaVision for doing what she did. I’m not disputing this at all. Her ass shoulda been thrown in magic jail. But we at least had a reason as to why Wanda did what she did, and what led to that point. Wanda herself wasn’t even completely sure of how she was doing what she was doing. She just…did it. In a moment of utter grief, Wanda created this whole entire life for herself, which ensnared other people. And she became so smitten with the WestView Kool-Aid, that she couldn’t stop drinking it. Regardless, Wanda was still a villain. But we got why. And yet, for all of the fuckery Wanda did, she wasn’t evil. Where-as in Multiverse of Madness, she truly is evil. And all that we’re given is that after reading a copy of some demonic bible in some Norwegian cabin, she’s suddenly an evil mass murderer.

Bitch. What!?

And this here is another problem. The use of a MacGuffin to explain foolishness. Multiverse of Madness takes the Darkhold and makes it the ‘Turns a person evil card’ in conjunction with the Scarlet Witch being an entity, to separate The Scarlet Witch from Wanda. But just as the film doesn’t truly deliver on any of the things in its own title, it does the exact same thing with the Darkhold and The Scarlet Witch being an entity. And because of this, it fuels how much this film flies in the face of the journey Wanda had made over the course of the past decade. Wanda does things in Multiverse of Madness that we knew she was capable of, but would never actually do unless she was truly pushed. But the problem here, is that we don’t see what that push was. It’s like a massive piece of Wanda’s story in this film is missing, or it was told in the wrong order.

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness | Disney, Marvel

After WandaVision, you could at least argue some form of a redemption arc for Wanda. But after the shit she does in THIS film!? It’s harder to fathom what that path would be. Wanda being so readily willing to kill a child is bad enough. But Wanda’s body count throughout this film is too high. She’s a straight up mass murderer. Wanda seemed to detach herself from the awareness of what she was doing in WestView, and wasn’t even sure at how she was actually doing any of it. But in Multiverse of Madness, Wanda makes a decision to hunt somebody, kill everybody in her way to get to them, and is sadistic in how she goes about it. I don’t see how Marvel Studios are going to walk Wanda back from any of it. I’d actually argue that they shouldn’t bother. At least not for a while. Just pull a Magneto. Keep her as an anti-hero who is willing to cross the line.

It’s wild to me that Marvel Studios would spend several films and a whole Disney+ series turning Wanda good and then into a bit of an anti-hero, to just walk her hell-toe back to being a villain. Some would argue that Marvel Studios did a similar flip-flop with Loki. But Loki’s moral alignment was always flip-flopping, ambiguous and self-serving from the start. Where-as with Wanda, her moral alignments were always pretty clear. Even when she was a villain in Age of Ultron, we knew why. So for her to just become the villain of the story in Multiverse of Madness just because, it doesn’t track. It could have done, had the film taken the time to explore the hows, but it doesn’t. And I can’t see how fans of the MCU, or those coming to this film fresh off the back of WandaVision would be okay with how it handles Wanda, regardless of how much of a badass she is.

But there’s more y’all.

One of the, if not THE most bizarre thing about Wanda’s characterisation here, is that she only seems to care about her kids, and not Vision.

HUH!?

The whole entire reason that Wanda did all of that fuckery in WestView in the first damn place was to have a life with Vision. So it’s weird to me that the family Wanda is in a fierce pursuit of does not include him. I’m sure that there is some explanation as to why it’s not possible to find a universe which has a Vision in it (despite WandaVision ending with there being AT LEAST one), but the film sure as hell doesn't give it. We’re just supposed to accept that White Vision from the WandaVision season finale just flew out of the multiverse altogether.

Okay then.

Vision not being in this film at all, even via a flashback in the form of footage from any of the films or episodes of WandaVision is bizarre and glaring; especially given that Wanda mentions him twice. Wanda went to too extreme a length for Vision to not still entertain the possibility of having a life with him. And with Wanda living through the fallout of WestView, and seeing how her poor judgement led to not only people being hurt, but having to live through losing Vision AGAIN, you’d think she’d think thrice before attempting anything of the sort again. But, nope. A bitch learned nothing. Because of the Darkhold. Allegedly.

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness | Disney, Marvel

Multiverse of Madness is as much Wanda’s film as much as it is Doctor Strange’s. But the story makes zero effort to draw parallels between Strange and Wanda, which is...*Looks into the camera* strange. There is usually some form of relationship between the hero and the villain of the story in some form. It’s what helps create emotional tension between them. In The Winter Soldier it was Steve’s best friend. In Avengers Assemble, it was Thor’s brother. In Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 it was Peter’s father. In Black Panther, it was T’Challa’s cousin. In Black Widow, it was Natasha’s hit, who happened to be her old boss’ daughter. Wanda should have been more to Strange than just some person to stop.

There’s no real comparison made or spoken of in regards to Strange and Wanda both being practitioners of magic. Something that you think would intrigue Strange, given that coming across magic users is far from common. Also bundled in with the fact that Strange now knows that Wanda’s powers are actual witchcraft, and not just some augmented ability given to her from an infinity stone. Magic so easily could have been used as something that brings Strange and Wanda together in a platonic manner; especially given that they both chose to practise it for personal gain, and are so reckless in how they use it. They are pretty much the same damn person, with only a hairs difference between them. That difference being their approaches to love.

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness | Disney, Marvel

Strange and Wanda should have become friends first before becoming enemies. They could have even shared a common enemy in Mordo for a minute - who strangely only appears in this film as a variant, despite the first Doctor Strange film featuring a post-credits scene which set OG Mordo up as a hunter of sorcerers. Strange even encounters a version of himself who not only uses the Darkhold, but protects it. But no connection or moment of reflection is served up between Strange and Wanda through that.

There is this constant distance between Strange and Wanda which just doesn’t feel right. Strange doesn’t even try to offer Wanda a solution as to how she could be with her children again, which feels out of character, given what Strange did for Peter in No Way Home. It’s just ‘Oh, you’re trying to kill America. Nope. I’mma fight you now’. And Strange’s lack of tact and research into Wanda becoming The Scarlet Witch is what leads to Wanda being able to wreak the havoc that she does. You would think that Strange and Wong would have an awareness of who The Scarlet Witch is, and know that having a bunch of students put up glowy orange shields is not going to stop a bitch. Especially given that we discover that Wong not only has an awareness of the Darkhold, but knows the origins of it. Which means he likely would have known about the prophecy of The Scarlet Witch and how powerful she is. I mean...shit. Wong ends up spending more time with Wanda than Strange does. We don’t even get to see Strange and Wanda properly fight. Literally everybody else in this film gets to square up against Wanda except Strange himself, and this is also weird. A final battle which really shows Strange and Wanda testing each others magic skills to the limit would have not only been a fucking spectacle, but what you would expect in a film which stars them both and being at odds.

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness | Disney, Marvel

An issue with Doctor Strange throughout every movie has always been his lack of heart. Something which was explored in the badly titled What If…? episode What If... Doctor Strange Lost His Heart Instead of His Hands?. It would have been great to have used Multiverse of Madness as a vehicle for Strange showing more of his heart and letting people into it. The seeds are there. Strange and Wong are always great together, but there is a real sense of trust and camaraderie between the two of them here. Strange also develops a really sweet relationship with America Chavez. And he has a really touching moment with Christine, where he drops the cute banger of a line ‘I love you in every universe’. But we don’t get enough of these moments to feel that Strange is changing and developing a greater compassion for others.

Drawing parallels between Strange and Wanda both choosing to use magic based on love or a lack thereof would have created a cool comparison / contrast; with them both learning lessons on love from one another, and having their approaches to it being highlighted as blind spots for the two of them. Wanda acts too impulsively and selfishly based on love and attachments that she feels. Strange acts too impulsively and selfishly based on avoiding love and any form of attachment. But nope.

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness | Disney, Marvel

Whilst seeing Wanda go full villain is fun, her power set is pretty basic in this film. And once again, pretty much disregards what Wanda was able to do in WandaVision. When we first meet Wanda in this film we find that she is living in a hex, which Strange doesn’t even clock. Yet despite having the ability to re-write reality, all she does is blast things with red energy. It would have been really cool to have seen Wanda use her reality altering magic as she did in WandaVision. To see her place a hex on Kamar-Taj, or the whole of New York. Shit. A whole entire universe! And for her final battle with Strange and America to be this trippy clash of multiversal travel and hexes, where everything keeps changing; leaving us all confused as fuck as to what is a real and what is Wanda altering the fabric of reality. So much more could have been done with Wanda’s magic to show her doing things we’ve never seen her do before, and to really show the evolution of her powers following becoming The Scarlet Witch and reading the shit out of the Darkhold. We get a taste of it at the start. But then it’s just a case of Wanda having really powerful red blasts, and nothing more. And we already knew Wanda’s red blasts were not to be fucked with, because we saw how she had Thanos’ purple ass on the ropes in Avengers: Endgame. And once again, we get WandaVision erasure, because why did Wanda not just cast powerful ass runes around Kamar-Taj to stop anybody there using magic?

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness | Disney, Marvel

Nothing in Multiverse of Madness really connects in the way that they should, which causes a lot of problems which could have easily been fixed. But the way in which this film also feels so detached from the rest of the MCU also presents a problem. I think Marvel Studios creating more self-contained stories is actually a good thing at this point. The need to know SO much of the MCU lore is something that I feel has hurt some of the Disney+ shows in particular. It’s all about achieving a balance - using the history you’ve built to create these worlds, and acknowledging what has happened in them as part of the continual world building, without making the viewing experience feel exclusionary. But Multiverse of Madness choosing to detach itself SO MUCH from the films and shows felt nonsensical here, given that Doctor Strange and Wanda have had arcs in them, which are somewhat disregarded here. The viewing experience of this film will probably be better if you’ve not watched any MCU anything, because it will make Wanda’s sudden evil turn and the decisions Strange makes far less questionable. But for those that have? This film is going to have you scratching your head, and wondering what the point is of Marvel creating interconnecting stories for over a decade, if they’re not going to weave them into stories which would benefit from such.

In Multiverse of Madness we’re dealing with characters who have been a part of some of the MCU’s biggest and most consequential story lines. If Multiverse of Madness had taken into account all of the things that Strange and Wanda had experienced, then this would have been a different film and story altogether. It’s like we’re watching a film which stars a variant of Strange and a variant of Wanda. Shit. It’s like we’re also watching a variant of America Chavez, given that her characterisation is NOTHING like she is in the comics. Going the variant route would have been a better solution, as opposed to some of the troublesome canonical characterisations we get here. ‘Oh, it’s variant Strange and variant Wanda’ would have been lazy as hell. But it would have protected the characters without flying in the face of what we know of them. And it would have explained the disregard for all that had transpired in prior films and show.

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness | Disney, Marvel

This also leads into another one of the films’ problems, and something that I think also hurt Black Widow massively. The need to balloon the cast. America Chavez wasn’t needed here. She was nothing more than a plot device to enable multiversal travel. How can a former Sorcerer Supreme and The Scarlet Witch not have ways to enter other universes, given their mastery of magic? You’d think the eye of Agamotto and the Darkhold would allow them both to do this in some form. But nope. So we have America. And her having to tag along with Strange also feels like a re-tread of Spider-Man: No Way Home. Why do Marvel Studios keep insisting on making Strange a babysitter?

I wouldn’t have minded America (lack of comics accurate bad bitchery and all) if she felt more crucial to the story. But she was nothing more than a plot device, and an unnecessary one. If we really needed a plot device character, we should have gotten an older variant of Billy / Wiccan, who has mastered the ability to travel through the multiverse, but is from a universe where he grew up not knowing his mother. This way, Strange could have acted as a mentor to him, given his magic abilities. And when Wanda discovers that Wiccan is actually the son of a variant Wanda who died when he was young, leaving him to be raised by a variant of Vision. This would have had Wanda question absolutely everything, and thrown her entire life into jeopardy (again), as it dawns on her that she’s been trying to kill somebody who is effectively her son, and then raised the red flag that Wanda’s love makes her blind to a point that she could hurt the ones she loves. It’s a bit sloppy. And there are some kinks to work out for sure. But I woulda taken this over America, as Billy / Wiccan would be a character who not only works as plot device, but has a connection to Wanda. And it would also have people wondering if he will turn up again for the MCU assembly of the rumoured Young Avengers.

And this sentiment of unnecessary characters also extends to the Illuminati. This was not the film in which to introduce them, because it means nothing unless you’ve read the comics. And even then, the members of the Illuminati are in the comics are different to who is a part of it here. But ‘Multiverse’, I guess. As great as it was to see Jean-Luc Picard reprise his role as Professor Xavier, complete with his West Coast customs yellow wheelchair, along with Captain Carter, Maria Rambeau as Captain Marvel, and Black Bolt; their appearances all felt so inconsequential. They were just there…to be there. Because, cameos and multiverse. And because ‘Well bringing back older characters worked in No Way Home, right!?’.

What made Peter Maguire and Peter Garfield’s appearances in No Way Home so great, wasn’t just that it was fan service at its finest, but story service which played a pivotal role in Peter Holland being able to overcome his initial grief and find his place in the world. It also managed to show how the multiverse works without having to show us the actual differing universes themselves, because we’re seeing three very different versions of the same character and hearing about their differing experiences, and this is enough. Here we just get different versions of characters, because ‘Multiverse’.

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness | Disney, Marvel

In Multiverse of Madness, the Illuminati for the most part are just random characters. There’s no weight given to their appearance whatsoever, because none of them are variants of characters we’ve been introduced to in this film, and none of them serve the story. Their appearances have no real lasting consequence, even though they had the potential to. And the Illuminati’s appearance is also undercut by the fact that they are all killed off mere seconds after they are introduced. Despite being presented as these all knowing, extremely powerful beings, Wanda picks them off one by one like they ain’t shit. Watching Captain Carter get sliced in half by her own shield completely diminished how much of a powerful and tactical fighter she was in What If…?. I find it hard to believe that the Captain Carter we saw defy all of the odds in What If…? would go out so easily in the manner in which she did. And for Captain Marvel to be killed by a falling statue!?

Wow. 

I don’t think the cameos in Multiverse of Madness did as great a job as Marvel Studios thought they would. Captain Carter was far better in What If..?. Maria being Captain Marvel did absolutely nothing. And despite the long rumoured casting of John Krasinski as Reed Richards in the MCU now being a reality, he had zero impact on me. I was like ‘So what?’. We barely see him use his powers, and his suit looks trash. And as for Professor Xavier, he NEVER would have made a dumb choice which led to the whole of the Illuminati dying.

The only cameo I thought was genuinely cool was Black Bolt. But I don’t think a lot of people really know who he is, or that it was a cameo at all. I didn’t even figure out who the actor was until Black Bolt died. But when I did, I smiled, because I realised it’s Captain ‘Strange New Worlds’ Kirk playing the very same character he did in the flop show Inhumans. The implication of this is huge, given that it’s Kevin Feige acknowledging a non Marvel Studios Marvel show that many never thought he would. But again, it’s undercut, because barely anybody watched Inhumans, you can barely see Anson Mount’s face because of the mask, and he gets the least screen time and lines out of all the Illuminati members. So maybe Kevin did it as ‘Fuck you’. A better choice of character to bring in would have been Daisy from Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D, given it was a more popular show, and she has somewhat of a similar power set to Black Bolt. It also would have had fans wondering if she’ll also show up in upcoming Disney+ show Secret Invasion; given her history with Nick Fury, and that her being a part of S.W.O.R.D would track with where things were left in Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. But maybe that’s just me.

I’d have much rather spent more time with a Strange or Wanda variant than any cameo. But if cameos had to be a thing, then we needed ones that would make sense for the characters and the story. Which is why the only cameos should have been from Vision or Pietro. But I’d honestly rather have had cameos taken off the table, and just gotten more screen time with Wong and Mordo. 

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness | Disney, Marvel

Despite me seemingly dragging this film for paragraphs upon paragraphs, I did actually enjoy Multiverse of Madness. The pace of the film is so brisk, and so much is thrown at you to take in, that you’re rarely given a chance to focus on the problems. And for all of Multiverse of Madness’ shortcomings, it does get some things right. As aforementioned, the pace is brisk, which helps cover a lot of the cracks. There was no moment during this film when I was bored. The film could have benefitted from taking a breather at times, and could have even done with an extra 20 minutes of runtime. But on the whole, I thought the pacing was solid.

As was the case with the first Doctor Strange film, we get another gorgeous score; this time courtesy of Danny Elfman, who takes over the reins from Michael Giacchino. Some OG Doctor Strange fans may be a little pissed at the Doctor Strange theme not being all that prominent. And some WandaVision fans may be a little peeved at Wanda’s theme also not being prominent. (Not the WandaVision jingle y’all. THIS one). But the score is solid regardless.

The sound in this film is used in really cool and inventive ways to heighten what we see. Silence is frequently used to punctuate moments of chaos whenever Wanda is around, and it creates this sense of unease that anything could happen. And there is a really cool fight between Agamotto Strange and Darkhold Strange which uses music. I don’t entirely know why either of them ended up fighting with music scores and instruments, but it was cool to watch and listen to. It was like something out of a Legend of Zelda game, with each strike being accompanied with a musical flourish of some sort, and it all building and becoming louder as the fight intensifies. The music they fight with is the score. When blows aren’t being landed and spells aren’t being cast, we just get silence. It's weird and it’s unexplained. But it’s cool.

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness | Disney, Marvel

I feel a little for Sam Raimi. Because I do think that Multiverse of Madness is going to get torn to pieces, divide many a fan, and he’s probably going to get blamed for every single thing wrong with it. People are already trying to drag him for the post-credits scene, which was a dumb scene, but that was the whole fucking point. It’s Sam Raimi as fuck. And it’s a cute wink to his fans who really know his shit. But for all of the faults with this film, Raimi’s directing is not one of them. In fact, it’s one of Multiverse of Madness’ saving graces. This might just be one of the most strikingly directed MCU films. Raimi’s eye, penchant for horror, camera moves and shot methods are littered throughout this film, and it gives Multiverse of Madness a look and feel that sets it apart from other entries in the MCU. It’s pretty surprising how much of Raimi comes through in this, as Marvel Studios films often have a habit of feeling very nondescript, regardless of the style of the director in the chair. So it’s nice to see Marvel Studios just allow directors to do their thing in phase 4, and to see this pushed more and more with each film they put out. Even if you’re not necessarily a Marvel fan, and are coming into this film as a pure Sam Raimi fan, you will definitely be rewarded. Raimi quite literally chose violence. He really pushed that 12A rating to its limit. And the precedent that is set with it in this film leaves me hopeful about what Marvel Studios will do with the likes of Daredevil and Blade.

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness | Disney, Marvel

Multiverse of Madness is a really nice looking film. Even the VFX shots aren’t as noticeably raggedy as I’ve found them to be with most Marvel Studios releases. We’ll see how they hold up on home release. But there were no shots which jumped out at me as looking terrible on the big screen, as was the case with Black Widow, Shang-Chi & The Legend of the Ten Rings and Spider-Man: No Way Home. Multiverse of Madness is also free from the horrid washed out MCU grading that we get with MCU films. Everything about this film pops. Colours are vibrant. Visuals are punchy. And this film also features some really nice editing choices, which aren’t conventional in Marvel Studios films.

Multiverse of Madness definitely reaps the benefits of a director like Sam Raimi, who not only has an identifiable style, but has the experience of directing big comic book blockbusters. I just hope that we get to see Raimi helm something from Marvel Studios which has a better screenplay and script. Because Loki head writer Michael Waldron dropped the ball big time, and I think Raimi may be the one who takes shots for him. Sam Raimi is a big part of the reason why there is even a Marvel Studios and a Marvel Cinematic Universe. And the fruits of his work continued to bear in Spider-Man: No Way Home. So it’s nice to see him get some form of vindication here. It’s just a shame it’s in a film where the screenplay and story let it down. But Raimi does a great job with what he was given, and makes his presence known. Y’all better leave that man alone.

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness | Disney, Marvel

Phase 4 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) has been…pretty wonky. But one thing that I have admired about it, is that it’s been anything but safe. Phase 4 has taken some pretty wild swings that I never thought Kevin Feige would allow Marvel Studios to take. But the issue each and every time, is that each story chooses to pull away from the most compelling parts, with setups for future films and Disney+ shows taking precedence over the core story - something which is also affecting Star Wars. So I wonder how much of it is a Marvel and Lucasfilm thing, versus a Disney thing. Regardless. It hurts Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness.

This film needed to be an exploration into the lore of magic, the true implications of the multiverse for those who travel through it, with deep dives into Strange and Wanda through both of these things. But the one thing this film needed to focus on was loss, because it is the one thing which unifies all of the characters. Strange lost Christine. Wanda lost her family. America lost her parents. Wong lost dozens of people who were supposed to be under his care. Loss is also what the film focuses pretty heavily on for the first 10 minutes - we see a version of Strange lose his life, America lose who she thought was a friend, and find out that Strange’s old surgeon buddy was blipped and then returned to find those he was closest to had died. And yet loss is shoved off the table, and everything is reduced to ‘Wanda bad. Stop Wanda’.

I should have come out of this film feeling that I knew more about Strange, Wanda, their powers in relation to who they are, and the multiverse. But I didn’t. But what I do know is that America is coming back, Dormammu is probably also coming back, and Charlize Theron is now part of the MCU (who looks fucking GREAT by the way). These are cool things. But they have no impact or bearing on what actually happened in THIS story. And this is the problem. Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness is a film where stuff just happens and everything just goes back to normal. Except Strange now had a badly VFX’d third eye.

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness | Disney, Marvel

It’s a real shame that Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness ended up the way that it did. Because the pieces were on the board for this to be truly great. Especially after all of the work that Marvel Studios did to get everybody to become fans of Strange and Wanda. Benadryl Carbamazepine and Elizabeth Olsen are both fantastic in their roles, and their commitment to them are the most defining parts of this film, as is Sam Raimi’s directing. But these aren’t enough to gloss over a film which drops the ball on such basics things that Marvel Studios be catching in their sleep. This film would have flown in MCU phases 1 or 2. But not now. Not after the groundwork laid for Strange and Wanda leading up to this film, and the world being shown us with their Disney+ shows that Marvel Studios can absolutely deliver solid character driven stories along with spectacle.

I’m still here for Strange and Wanda. But it’s a shame that I’m anticipating what comes next to see the handling of the course correction, and not because I’m excited at what this film could potentially springboard them to.

Verdict: Poor Wong