Previous Post Doctor Strange movie – no specific spoilers but some general impressions that need to offer some reference to the elements of the film and comics: Saw the movie yesterday afternoon in a huge cinema with 12 other people in it! There’s a new Marvel identifier logo-thingie at the start of the movie, replacing the comic-book-flip-art sequence of earlier films with pictures of the movie versions of the superheroes. It distracted me more than it should have. Visual effects were good and unusual, but could have used less landscape kaleidoscopes and more Ditko dimensions (they were there but not there enough) Music was good but at the cinema I was at it was cranked just a notch too loud for comfort. My son had his fingers in his ears at one point. But still no Marvel movies music as memorable as, say the Star Wars stuff or Reeves Superman themes, or indeed anything I would go home whistling – or even recognise again. Surprised that some bad-guy names appear attached instead to good guys. Rachel McAdams’ doctor/romance interest had very little to do except sympathise or be freaked out. She is entirely there to facilitate the main (male) character. Tilda Swanson turns out to actually have been the Ancient One all along and did not previously reveal it. Benedict Cumberbach made me forget that he had played Sherlock and Khan. He turns in a very convincing and authentic Stephen Strange. Movie-Wong is a fine character but has nothing to do with comics-Wong. Movie-Hamir appears to vanish without trace 2/3 of the way through the movie and get forgotten about. Marvel has not yet broken its problem with unfleshed-out bad guys doing bad things because they are generically bad. That may possibly change with Strange 2 after the second post-credits sequence of Strange 1. The Cloak of Levitation is the break-out character. It may be in continuity with Disney’s Aladdin’s magic carpet. Now I want to see it team up with Rocket and Groot. The Cloak acts better than virtually anyone in Superman v Batman: The Dawn of Justice. The relatively small cast made for a tighter, more intimate movie and was stronger for it. All the script focus was still really on Cumberbach and Swanson anyhow. Other talented actors didn’t get too much material to work with. This isn’t really a criticism, though, as the movie placed attention where it needed to. Actor roles served the story, not the other way round. Good discipline. In fact I can’t think of a wasted scene or unrelated moment. The Sanctum Sanctorum looks excellent. The whole movie is very nice to look at. The non-CGI cinematography was notable with great use of framing and colour. There are a few visual Easter Eggs in the props lying around the Sanctum and Kamar-Taj. I’m not sure about some of the revisions made to magic, how it works, and the backstory of Earth’s sorcerers. Two additions to comics-established lore seemed to ring false in what was otherwise a well-realised depiction of the comics series (I may comment on them later when I can include spoilers). A tweak about the purpose of the Sanctum Sanctorum didn’t really bother me. The Eye of Agamotto gets some backstory that necessarily distinguishes it and Agamotto from the comics versions in form and function. I thought astral bodies were done well here. Astral combat in real-world locations was very much in the Ditko manner. The first post-credits sequence had great smile-inducing dialogue. It served its purpose in hooking me on what might come next. The end credits thank a bunch of comics creators. I couldn’t read all of them as they whizzed past but later I’ll be interested to go back and see who got thanked and who got missed off. I know Gene Colan and Roger Stern were in there. There’s also a warning about driving safely. The movie’s finale worked for me because it shied away from the now de rigeur mass city destruction that looked like it might happen and went for something far more Dr Strange-r. This may be the first superhero movie where the hero wins by outsmarting the bad guy – and that’s right for a master of the mystic arts. I enjoyed the movie and it will clearly reward repeat viewing. Recommended. IW

I used to enjoy the very old Dr Strange stories, and I'm pleased that the movie hasn't made a complete hash of things.

I probably won't hit the cinemas, but it sounds like one for the DVD queue.