3. Doctor Strange
Why I Like It (Marisa Carpico): When I sat down to watch Doctor Strange, I didn’t expect much. Sure, the reviews were positive, but we’d all spent so much of this year being beaten into submission by DC’s superhero output that anything halfway decent would have felt like a godsend. However, Doctor Stange isn’t just decent, it’s actually good.
Ever since Christopher Nolan changed the game with his dark, gritty Dark Knight trilogy, superhero movies have tended toward broody realism. Doctor Strange, however, is unrepentantly comic book-y. Sure, the movie starts with Dr. Stephen Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) brooding over the car accident that ended his surgical career, but once he experiences the Multiverses, it’s all psychedelic cityscapes and magic.
Now, I’ll admit, Doctor Strange probably benefits a little from a recency bias. I liked Deadpool, but it feels like I saw it ten years ago. Moreover, Strange was such a pleasant surprise that I was probably more willing to ignore its faults than usually, because there are definitely a few. Like nearly every Marvel movie, the film lacks a compelling villain. Mads Mikkelson is great, but he’s really more of a henchmen for the mystical evil, CGI force Dormammu than a true antagonist. Instead, Strange’s biggest enemy is his own ego. It’s a comparatively low-stakes goal (except for the whole fabric of time ripping apart thing), but it’s enough for an origin story. Save he pomp and circumstance for Infinity War.
Favorite Scene: The first time Strange experiences the Multiverses. Most movies don’t need to be seen in 3D, but I was genuinely disappointed I didn’t fork over the extra cash to see this in all its hallucinatory glory.
Favorite Performance: Tilda Swinton (The Ancient One)
-Listen, I know there was a lot of controversy over this casting. And while I’m still uncomfortable with the whitewashing, the character’s origins are so rooted in Orientalism that I’m not sure I’d have been any more comfortable with an Asian male in the role. That said, you could do worse than casting Tilda Swinton as a timeless, wise being.
Best Line:“Dormammu, I’ve come to bargain.” – Doctor Strange
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