Movie Review: 'Doctor Strange'
By Bill Wine
KYW Newsradio 1060
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- Call it Doctor Strange love.
And that's not a reference to director Stanley Kubrick's classic black comedy.
It's the way fans are likely to feel about the comic book-inspired adventure fantasy, the origin story, Doctor Strange, about a character that originally surfaced in 1963.
Yes, the Marvelization of Hollywood continues with this 14th film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, yet another franchise launched from the pages of Marvel graphic novels.
But this offering features a central character who is – befitting his name – stranger then what we are accustomed to, less familiar than what we are accustomed to, and less superficially likable than what we are accustomed to.
Of course, it could also be said that, as superheroic protagonists go, he is less predictable, more intriguing, and more complex than what we are accustomed to as well.
Benedict Cumberbatch stars as Dr. Stephen Strange, a brilliant, selfish, egotistical neurosurgeon whose hands are horrifically damaged in an automobile accident.
After virtually going bankrupt by trying various ways of healing, he travels to Katmandu, Nepal, where he is taken under the wing of a sorcerer, The Ancient One, the androgynous character played by Tilda Swinton, who, instead of attempting a medical solution, trains him in the mystical arts with the help of assistant Karl Mordo, played by Chiwetel Ejiofor.
There Strange learns that the Ancient One's society is tasked with defending earth from evil dimensional elements.
The superheroic title character then goes on to become earth's new Sorcerer Supreme and uses his newly gained magical powers, such as casting spells and flying (courtesy of a Cloak of Levitation), as well as his extensive knowledge of medicine, to do battle with evildoers, operating out of his New York brownstone, which is dubbed the Sanctum Sanctorum, one of three sanctums -- the other two being in London and Hong Kong.
Rachel McAdams plays fellow New York surgeon and Strange ex-lover Christine Palmer, while Mads Mikkelsen is Kaecilius, a fellow master of the mystic arts.
Director Scott Derricksen is no stranger to supernatural material, given that his resume includes The Exorcism of Emily Rose, The Day The Earth Stood Still, Sinister, and Deliver Us from Evil.
The irreverent screenplay, which Derricksen co-wrote with Jon Spaihts and C. Robert Cargill, is impressively cerebral and casually witty if not downright esoteric, with a tongue-in-cheek approach that is one of the major reasons that the plight of this latest superhero seems freshly observed.
The special effects deserve mention because they're about as trippy and innovative and mind-bending as effects get, even taking things further in a reality-folding, eyeball-amazing direction than director Christopher Nolan introduced us to in Inception.
But Derricksen is careful to use the effects for more than just showing off the state-of-the-art technology. Instead, they further the story and make the case for their inclusion while dazzling the eyeballs.
Which is to say, see it on a big screen if you can.
Which is also to say, the 3-D process is an asset in this unusual case.
And which is ultimately to say, it's astounding that the film is as thematically and narratively coherent as it is.
The performances are engaging all around, starting with Cumberbatch, who skillfully calibrates the development of Strange so that he shows up and registers as smugly obnoxious but then becomes more and more appealing as the film proceeds, even if he does master his powers a bit too easily.
Meanwhile, we come to appreciate the participation of Oscar winner Swinton and Oscar nominees Ejiofor and McAdams, and recall why we take them seriously in an effects-driven thriller that actually allows for full-bodied performances.
So let's levitate 3 stars out of 4. In a weirdly wild and wonderful way, Doctor Strange serves to introduce us to a Marvel of a strange doctor.
