Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness — Review Thread

But even then...at least acknowledge them.

This was great. Tons of Raimi touches. Somewhere between 8 and 9/10.

Definitely a lot of Raimi touch in this, which were the best parts. On the whole, not sure how much I loved the overall product.

Thought the Strange/America relationship could have been stronger.

She is a new version of a Golden Age character named Miss America, who was basically a female Captain America. That will presumably be her hero moniker at some point.

The big question going into Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (at least among cinephiles and not the MCU apostles) is to what degree it would feel like a Sam Raimi movie. Marvel is known to maintain a pretty rigid house-style that rarely gives their directors a chance to express themselves. With Doctor Strange, I'd equate the experience to hearing Metallica on the radio. You're not getting the pureness of Creeping Death or No Remorse, and are more likely to hear stuff like Enter Sandman or Nothing Else Matters or Until it Sleeps. Watered down songs that lack the Thrash Metal ecstasy of the band at their peak. But at the same time, it's still Metallica, and the music retains the style of heavy riffs, gravel vocals, and electrifying solos. And sometimes, if you're lucky, you do occasionally get the full 8 and a half minutes of Master of Puppets, and it rules.

What does that mean for this movie? Basically that while Multiverse of Madness is still unmistakably another MCU episode, it does bear Sam's signature style, particularly with regard to his energetic camera movement and aggressive angles. While the early set-pieces feel like fairly traditional Marvel action scenes with a bit of flavour (akin to the more radio friendly Metallica songs) the set-pieces start to blend horror and ghoulish comedy more and more frequently, to the point that the climax feels a direct descend to Evil Dead-era Raimi ("MASTER! MASTER! Where's the dreams that I've been after?"). And it's a whole lot of fun. I can't say there's anything here as sublime as the best of Spider-Man 2 or the deranged lunacy of Evil Dead II, but it comes closer than I expected. I also was pleasantly surprised by the relative restraint when it came to fan-servicey cameos. There basically retained to one section of the movie and while I can't say I loved their inclusion, there is a subversive element to their inclusion which does ultimately raise the stakes.

If the movie has any stumbling block, it's that I never really bought that much into the emotional beats of the story. Doctor Strange is a fun enough character, but I really don't give a crap about his personal life and a lot of this film is dedicated to his romantic anguish. It's not actively bad or anything but it's pretty uninspired. The movie's really fun final shot is also undercut by a bafflingly terrible post-credits scene. The first post-credits scene, mind you. The second one was awesome. Ultimately though, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness is easily the most fun I've had with a Marvel movie in years, an exciting romp full of stylish set-pieces and imagination. That music fight is not a scene I'll likely forget anytime soon. Hopefully we don't have to wait another 9 years for Sam to make another film.

A-