DOCTOR STRANGE Spoiler Review: What You'll Love and Hate


Marvel Studios' DOCTOR STRANGE has finally arrived in the U.S. and it's projecting to be another huge hit for the studio and their ever-expanding Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU). We reviewed the movie and it as seen in IMAX 3D (here and here) but let's look at a few things that you'll love and hate in the movie.


***SPOILERS INCOMING!***


You'll love the Cloak of Levitation. If you're not familiar with the cloak, it chooses its wearer and once it picks Dr. Stephen Strange the cloak immediately becomes its own character and steals every scene. It has its own personality, remembers it is magic, and it's really funny! When Strange gets thrown over a railing, the cloak chases after him, catches him and levitates him to safety. But there are two funny moments with the cloak that stand out. The first is what you've seen in the trailers when the cloak is actually wiping tears from Strange's face and the other is a fight scene where the cloak wraps the head of a Zealot and continues to bash his head into the ground while Strange seeks to heal himself. There are several other fun and funny moments with the cloak but let's not ruin everything for you before seeing it.

You'll hate that Kaecilius is just another typical carbon copy villain in the MCU for our hero. It's something that is needed in this being an origin movie, but there are darker things in play here which is why his eyes are so creepy.

You'll love the Ancient One, Mordo and Wong. All three are outstanding performances and regardless of all the white-washing drama, the Ancient One is one of the most developed characters in the film outside of Strange. Mordo is a great buddy for Strange but as comic fans may have guessed, there are bigger things in store for him down the road in the MCU. Wong is absolutely fantastic. From his one-liners to re-imagining of the character from being a simple manservant in the comics to a legit badass in the movie has the makings of a fantastic team-up for Strange in future DOCTOR STRANGE sequels.


You'll hate how fast Strange becomes so powerful. Sure, this is an origin movie so things need move quickly with the pacing of the film, but it felt like there were some missed opportunities during Strange's training. Showcasing some embarrassing moments during his training could have brought some more humor into the movie with more "magical mishap" moments.

You'll love Benedict Cumberbatch. He is Dr. Stephen Strange on a level like how Robert Downey Jr. is Tony Stark or how Chris Evans is Steve Rogers. It's all about casting and when you see Cumberbatch as Strange you'll understand why Marvel Studios had to push back this movie from a summer 2016 release to its fall release to accommodate Cumberbatch's busy schedule last year. He is perfect.

You'll hate yourself if you don't see this movie in IMAX 3D. It's hard to watch most live action movies in 3D because it usually isn't shot with IMAX cameras and the 3D conversion is done in post-production. The majority of DOCTOR STRANGE was shot for IMAX and its larger format screen and the 3D sequences are easily the best seen in any previous Marvel Studios film. It's a must to see this at least once in IMAX 3D... trust me.

You'll love the mid-credits and post-credits scenes. Of course there are two credits scenes. The first teases fun banter between Strange and Thor, who is seeking to find Odin. Strange agrees to help — while magically refilling Thor's beer over and over — but with the understanding that Thor and Loki need to leave Earth because of the danger Loki has brought to Earth and his dangerous presence. The end credits feature Mordo and sets him up as a soon-to-be villain in what should be a DOCTOR STRANGE sequel, probably releasing when Phase 4 begins in 2020 as long as this movie makes enough in the box office. (It will.)

You'll hate that you'll want to continue Strange's adventures through the Multiverse but you can't because the movie ends.

You'll love Strange's showdown with Dormammu. Without giving too much away, let's just say it's a nod to the movie GROUNDHOG DAY because it is repetitive and very, very funny.

You'll hate Dr. Stephen Strange the neurosurgeon at the beginning. He might have been more of a dick than Tony Stark could have ever been.

You'll love the martial arts movies influence felt throughout. 

You may hate that the Time Stone is in fact inside of the Eye of Agamotto but that means Doctor Strange will have a very important role in AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR.


***END OF SPOILERS***


In the end, DOCTOR STRANGE is another solid addition to MCU despite its small flaws. No movie is perfect but this one makes up for it with ambitious visuals, great fight choreography, top notch acting performances and of course that typical Marvel humor.


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