Back in late December, the first trailer for “Dr. Strange in the Multiverse of Madness” released to people around the globe. Many Marvel fans were ecstatic because the trailer alone rivaled the hype around “Spider-Man: No Way Home.” However, when a movie contains so much potential, it needs to deliver the same amount, if not more, energy to the audience. It pains me to say Dr. Strange did not meet my expectations. On one hand, there is beautiful art, cinematography and the spectacular Sam Raimi as the director. Although, there’s one factor that drags the entire movie down, the screenplay.
The art style of this movie sticks out in a unique way. Since the story revolves around multiverse travel and a horror element, the artist did not hold back. Ian Joyner referenced many comics for the development of the costumes. The Scarlet Witch costume design caught my attention because of its grim look. I am proud this movie showed off the costume in full contrast to “WandaVision.” Also, I loved how each multiverse transition looked like a gateway to another universe. Overall, this movie, without a doubt, tops all other marvel movies when it comes to visuals.
“Dr. Strange,” with no surprise, comes off as a very strange character. So it only makes sense there would be some outrageous camera angles in this movie. I can only imagine what people saw in the 3D version because, even in the 2D version, there were moments when I became super dizzy through the camera rotations. Although that’s not necessarily a bad thing, despite the dizziness, I loved how the movie felt like a lengthy roller coaster. It felt like I fell into the film and the characters were right beside me.
I’m glad Marvel chose Sam Raimi to direct the movie, as he’s a great director with spectacular films like the “Spider-Man” Trilogy. His previous films were praised for their humor more than their actual plot. With these expectations, I walked in ready to laugh and some of the scenes succeeded. However, some humor and plot did feel like Raimi handed it over to someone else rather than direct involvement. Then, it’s clear Raimi did not oversee the plot either because that’s where the movie begins to fall.
The average Marvel films follow a story formula and does not drive away from it. The film gets dry quickly and results in many average reviews, “Eternals” encapsulates this concept. Multiverse of Madness also follows the basic formula through its solution and conflict. This disappointed me because the trailers gave me higher expectations. The plot also shifts to focus more on the villain than the main character. All of these problems drag the film down and contrast it from its distinguished style and notable director.
Overall, Dr. Strange in the Multiverse of Madness did good as a movie, but average as a Marvel film. Everything about the movie does extraordinary things, except the story, which should always engage the audience in a noble way. I give this movie three and a half out of five stars.
