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On the surface, “Doctor Strange” pushes the Marvel Cinematic Universe in a bold new direction. By eschewing the usual stories of technologically-gifted playboys and noble super soldiers for a world ruled by magic, “Doctor Strange” feels fresh. It crackles with energy, moving from one plot point to the next, not wasting any moment. This was also the first time I ever noticed the musical score on my first viewing of a Marvel film—it doesn’t create an iconic theme for its hero but imbues the film with the appropriate mood. The visuals are electrifying and CGI is used very well to build a world far different than anything else we’ve seen in superhero adaptations recently. But for all of its wondrous world-building and trippy effects, “Doctor Strange” isn’t the evolutionary step forward for Marvel that it needs to be storytelling-wise. Underneath all of its improvements, the core narrative is something we’ve seen countless times.

Doctor Stephen Strange ( Benedict Cumberbatch ) is a genius, rich neurosurgeon with an ego that could rival Tony Stark’s. He moves through the world with little regard for the people around him. After being distracted looking at medical documents while driving (he may be smart but his ego makes him think he’s invulnerable), Strange gets into a brutal car accident that wrecks his hands. His scarred, trembling hands are a constant reminder of the man he once was and never will be again. This doesn’t make Strange rethink the way he lives. Instead, as one surgery after another fails, he becomes crueler and more withdrawn, even lashing out at ex-lover/co-worker Christine Palmer ( Rachel McAdams ), who is the last person on whom he can depend; his world of medicine and science has failed him. But after receiving a tip from Jonathon Pangborn (a charismatic, underutilized Benjamin Bratt ), Strange finds himself under the tutelage of The Ancient One ( Tilda Swinton ) in Nepal, who opens him up to worlds he never believed existed. The visual landscape of their first encounter is the film at its most daring. We’re privy to worlds full of neon purples, cerulean blues and blood reds. We watch Strange become enveloped by hundreds of hands as if out of a nightmare. He bounces between dimensions that resemble the dark beauty of outer space to those that are a kaleidoscope of colors. Even a man as arrogant as Strange can’t deny what he’s been shown.

Strange may be a character that hews too close to the model of rich, egotistical white men with which superhero films are obsessed. But the film had the opportunity to do something different, by showing the interior of a character forced to rethink everything he knows and the nature of reality itself. Instead, "Doctor Strange" falls into some significant narrative mistakes.

One of the most glaring sins of “Doctor Strange” is how quickly Strange masters magic. There isn’t much tension in his arc. While he struggles briefly at first to keep up with other students The Ancient One has taken under her care, he’s soon stealing sacred books out from under Wong ( Benedict Wong ), the sharp-eyed master who protects the texts at The Ancient One’s behest. Strange plays by his own rules, growing far beyond the skills of those around him. He even goes as far as bending time, secretly reading from forbidden texts and wielding the Eye of Agamotto. When Karl Mordo ( Chiwetel Ejiofor ) remarks that Strange seems destined for this, I couldn’t help but roll my eyes. Of course he was. 

In effect, Strange is proven right. Who cares about rules and breaking the laws of nature when you’re actually right, and in turn you save the world? Strange never grows much as a character since he proves to be right about far too much, justifying his ego and rank arrogance. Cumberbatch is having considerable fun with the role (although he brings nothing unexpected) but he can’t distract from how nothing in Strange’s story feels earned. You also can’t ignore that “Doctor Strange” is essentially the story of a white man who travels to an “exotic” land, whose culture and people he doesn’t respect let alone know the language of. Yet somehow he just happens to realize he’s a natural at magic and gets good enough to beat practitioners who have been doing this for years.

In this way, “Doctor Strange” reveals the precarious place in which superhero films find themselves. Director Scott Derrickson and Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige have repeatedly defended this movie's controversial casting. They’re very aware of the increasing expectation of audiences. But it isn’t enough to cast actors like Benedict Wong and Chiwetel Ejiofor in supporting roles, you have to give them something interesting to do. And as fun and light as “Doctor Strange” is, it is impossible to ignore the problems inherent in casting Tilda Swinton as The Ancient One.

Swinton inhabits the sorceress with her trademark oddity and cutting humor. It takes only a careful tilt of her head or blithe remark to Strange to believe this woman has lived for hundreds of years. In many ways, Swinton’s presence seems to be from another film entirely—one that would truly embrace the weirdness of the premise beyond some trippy visual effects.

Derrickson and co-writer C. Robert Cargill have spoken at length about the decision to cast Swinton in a role that was originally a Tibetan man in the comics. They feared casting an Asian man or even woman would mean the character would fall into well-worn stereotypes. So, they whitewashed the role. If the only way you can bypass these issues is to whitewash the part (yet keep the Asian setting and vague mysticism), the problem isn’t the character, it’s your lack of imagination as a creator. The filmmakers behind “Doctor Strange” may be well-intentioned but that doesn’t soften the racism threading the movie. Despite the desire to be inventive, “Doctor Strange” unfortunately repeats many of the mistakes of its predecessors beyond uncomfortable racial politics.

There are many great actors that color the film's margins, but “Doctor Strange” doesn’t make the best use of them. Rachel McAdams plays one of the most poorly written superhero love interests I think I’ve ever seen. She has a warm, flirtatious energy that is a welcome addition to the movie. But she isn’t a person so much as a convenient prop forgotten about for long stretches until Strange needs her.

"Doctor Strange'"s worst sin in terms of casting comes in its villain. At this point, has any major franchise wasted as many great actors in thinly-written villain roles as the MCU? Mads Mikkelsen is an amazing actor who often creates an alluring mix of darkness, pathos and passion. His unsettling screen presence is perfect for this kind of story. But Kaecilius, a former pupil of The Ancient One, has such muddled motivations and little interiority that Mikkelsen is surprisingly forgettable. Strange’s battle with him ultimately comes down to being in the wrong place at the wrong time. Strange doesn’t care about being a hero. The juxtaposition between Kaecilius and Strange is one of the more ill-thought out central conflicts from a blockbuster in a long time. They aren’t battling because of opposing ideologies or deep emotional history. They’re simply an inconvenience to each other. If anything, Mordo’s obsession with order would make him a more compelling foil for Kaecilius.

Undoubtedly, the best aspect of the film is its rich visuals. From costume design to CGI to its framing, “Doctor Strange” is a visual feast in ways superhero films rarely are. In the Mirror Dimension, in which the magic of the characters won’t affect people in the real world, the characters cut loose showing off the extent of their abilities. Buildings break apart, fold into each other, reform in ways reminiscent of “ Inception .” Almost every scene bursts with color—crimson, marigold, neon purples, inky blacks. “Doctor Strange” at times takes on the language of video games in ways I’ve never seen before, with its characters being dwarfed by grand, collapsing buildings. The laws of physics are inconsequential here. And after a while the Mirror Dimension feels claustrophobic, a problem that ultimately comes down to the world-building. We get mere sketches of how any of this works. Sure, it’s thrilling to watch. But without understanding the impact of the magic in the Mirror Dimension or the ripple effect of playing with laws of physics it’s hard to feel thrilled, scared or awed after a while. In the end, the beauty and visual effects of “Doctor Strange” are frustratingly weightless.

Even with these considerable faults “Doctor Strange” can also be charming. It’s a spry film brimming with great details, striking imagery and joy. It pushes the MCU into a fascinating world full of magic and villains that exists beyond our understanding of time and reality—maybe next time they’ll do something interesting when they get there.

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Film Credits

Doctor Strange (2016)

Rated PG-13 for sci-fi violence and action throughout, and an intense crash sequence.

115 minutes

Benedict Cumberbatch as Stephen Strange / Doctor Strange

Rachel McAdams as Christine Palmer

Benjamin Bratt as Jonathan Pangborn

Tilda Swinton as The Ancient One

Chiwetel Ejiofor as Baron Karl Mordo

Mads Mikkelsen as Kaecilius

Benedict Wong as Wong

Michael Stuhlbarg as Dr. Nicodemus West

• Scott Derrickson

Writer (comic book)

• Steve Ditko
• Jon Spaihts
• C. Robert Cargill

Cinematographer

• Sabrina Plisco
• Wyatt Smith
• Michael Giacchino

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Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness Review

A sam raimi film for better and for worse..

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness hits theaters on May 6, 2022. Below is a spoiler-free review.

If there’s one thing Doctor Strange In The Multiverse of Madness accomplishes, it's putting the final nail in the coffin of the idea that directors aren’t allowed to put their distinct stylistic stamps on the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Filmmakers like James Gunn, Taika Waititi, and Chloe Zhao all offered their respective MCU movies their quintessential style, of course, but there’s something about this newest chapter that feels like it’s screaming that these films are becoming the rule, not the exception. From top to bottom — and for better and for worse — Multiverse of Madness is a Sam Raimi movie through and through.

MCU detractors will call out an overall same-ness across the respective phases. While that can be true, especially prior to the introduction of more distinct-feeling films like Guardians of the Galaxy and Thor: Ragnarok , it also offers a universal watchability for casual audiences. It’s great for studio pocketbooks, but it doesn’t always make for the most compelling movie-going experience. This is all mostly to say that the newest Doctor Strange outing will, like the rest of the MCU, have its detractors, but you’ll be hard pressed to find anyone critiquing the film because they were bored by it.

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness - 44 Teaser Images

Director Sam Raimi’s full range of weirdness and spookiness is on full display from start to finish here. Whether it’s through the creatures, Raimi-specific cameos, or just the vibe, fans familiar with his filmography are going to be able to call out plenty of moments bearing Raimi’s signature.

Most times, that signature works. But, between some scenes that are weird for the sake of being weird and others that find themselves hobbled by screenwriter Michael Waldron’s sometimes hokey dialogue, even the biggest of Raimi fans may find themselves quirking an eyebrow from time to time. Still, the movie works far more than it doesn’t.

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The horror element was a big elephant in the room for Multiverse of Madness. Original director Scott Derrickson departed the project because he wasn’t going to be able to make the movie the way he’d pictured it, leading some fans to believe that the newest Doctor Strange outing wouldn’t be as creepy as initially promised. But, by and large, those fears can mostly be put to rest. You’ve already met Zombie Strange in What If (and in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness’ trailer), but he’s definitely not the only thing that goes bump in the night in the newest addition to the MCU. Plenty of spooky scaries are lurking around corners — especially as things ramp up in the third act. Is it too scary for your kiddo? Your mileage may vary! The horror aspects help earn the PG-13 rating here, but contemplating the idea of half of the known universe suddenly disappearing seems a lot more complicated to stomach than a monster or two!

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness’ success is in no small part thanks to the performances. There’s not a bad actor in the bunch, but Elizabeth Olsen is constantly reminding us how easily she can shift into a capital-a-Actor as Wanda Maximoff. Meanwhile, Xochitl Gomez did an admirable job bringing America Chavez into the MCU and left us hoping to see more of her character in the future, while Rachel McAdams did the best she could with a once again under-utilized Christine Palmer. Of course, Benedict Cumberbatch was great as always. (His American accent is really starting to grow on me, guys. I don’t know what to say.)

And the score, y’all. It’s Danny Elfman, so it’s not really surprising that it ruled. But it freaking ruled. From the notes of respective themes that come in as undertones as characters come into play, to an orchestral tone that follows the whiplash of Raimi’s narrative one, to an actual musical battle (yes, you read that right), it’s an absolute banger of an album that I will be using as writing music for the foreseeable future. Multiverse of Madness is worth the price of admission just to hear the score and see it at work.

Raimi’s first foray into the Marvel Cinematic Universe is an imperfect one, to be sure, but it still carries a tone I’d like to see more of as the franchise continues to evolve. The messiness is almost fitting for a Doctor Strange film, though I definitely hope that the script is tighter on the next outing. I won’t spoil anything, but what I can say is that some of the dialogue is on par with the supremely cheesy Moonfall ’s (a comparison that only works for the 15 people that saw Moonfall, but is apt all the same). When you’ve got talents like Olsen, Cumberbatch, and McAdams that can’t even make these lines work, it’s probably time for a revision or two.

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Are there aspects of Sam Raimi’s Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness that could be better? Definitely. The script is downright hokey sometimes, and there are odd moments that are weird for the sake of it without adding anything to the overall lore or character development. That said, it’s got a score that’s to die for, some rockin’ performances, and fans will never once be bored!

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‘Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness’ Review: Benedict Cumberbatch Returns for a Head-Trip Sequel That’s Both Entertaining and Exhausting

It's an unhinged ride, a CGI horror jam, a Marvel brainteaser and, at moments, a bit of an ordeal.

By Owen Gleiberman

Owen Gleiberman

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The Marvel Cinematic Universe is a busy place. With its crisscrossing sequels, superheroes who dart in and out of each other’s movies, and labyrinth of laws and totems and over-the-cosmos-and-far-away lands, it’s become a metastatic playground, the kind of place that even the most ardent comic-book fans have to dedicate themselves to keeping up with. But if you’re the kind of viewer who surveys the Marvel landscape and thinks, “Nope. Sorry. Not busy enough,” the MCU has good news for you: It’s going to get even busier. Last year’s mega-hit “Spider-Man: No Way Home” was a multiverse fantasia that felt like a Rubik’s Cube, though if you ignored the plot gyrations (which were triggered by Doctor Strange), you could sit back and enjoy it as a glorified “SNL” sketch featuring all three of the actors who had played Spider-Man. (How could they occupy the same universe? That’s a comic-book mystery best explained by studio accountants.)

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Now comes “ Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness ,” an entire film about the interface of parallel universes. In the first “Doctor Strange,” a compact and debonair origin story released back in 2016 (time flies when you’re getting busy), Benedict Cumberbatch ’s mordantly witty and self-obsessed Stephen Strange started off as a playboy surgeon, then lost the use of his hands in a car crash, then underwent a kind of “Karate Kid” training under the mystic eye of Tilda Swinton’s Ancient One. He then went out into the world, armed with his new gift for creating weaponized circles of light, and faced down a team of Zealots whose central threat seemed to be their ability to turn a metropolis intersection into an erupting, folding-in-on-itself M.C. Escher-meets-“Inception” dreamscape.

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What they did to the physical world “Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness” does to storytelling. It’s a movie set in several universes at once, and it keeps shooting off into ever more insane dimensions of alternate reality. Its story doesn’t develop so much as it multiplies. In theory, this should multiply the fun, though that’s not necessarily the way it works out. “Doctor Strange and the Multiverse of Madness” is a ride, a head trip, a CGI horror jam, a what-is-reality Marvel brainteaser and, at moments, a bit of an ordeal. It’s a somewhat engaging mess, but a mess all the same.

Early on, there’s a bit of good old-fashioned comic-book overkill, as Strange, now with a full dagger goatee and a shock of white hair along the sides, attends the wedding of Christine Palmer (Rachel McAdams), the colleague he has never stopped regretting jilting. A rampaging monster with octopus tentacles, looking like “The Eyeball From 20,000 Fathoms,” is tossing vehicles this way and that. Strange, assisted by the stoic Sorcerer Supreme Wong (Benedict Wong), has little trouble slaying this walking creature feature, but the monster is only a messenger. It’s been sent to capture America Chavez (Xochitl Gomez), a teenager who possesses the singular ability to leap between universes.

That’s her only gift, but it’s a transcendent one, and it’s a power coveted by Wanda Maximoff ( Elizabeth Olsen ), aka the Scarlet Witch, who has been featured in several MCU films, like “Captain America: Civil War” and “Avengers: Age of Ultron,” sometimes on the side of good. Now, after the 2021 miniseries “WandaVision,” she’s a villain who will destroy worlds to become the person she was and still most wants to be: a mom.

We’re shown one of the multiverse versions of Wanda, where she’s a single mother of two adorable boys. That’s the identity she covets. But she needs the power of multiverse-hopping to fuse with it. And Doctor Strange, now fully at home in his role as red-caped savior, can’t allow her to have that power; it would wreak havoc on the entire multiverse. So after taking his young charge to Kamar-Taj, which turns out to be a failed fortress once Wanda lays siege to its defending army of warrior monks (in other words: their golden light circles prove less powerful than her red fireballs), Strange and America escape to a different universe — a New York City in which the buildings are overgrown with flowery vines, a red light means go and a green light means stop, and pizza comes in balls.

They wind up trapped in giant cubes overseen by Christine, who in this universe is a brilliant multiverse researcher. It’s a slightly different Christine, who had a relationship with a slightly different Stephen Strange, but they’re still variations on the same people, which may get you asking: How is it that everyone in one universe is just a slightly different version of who they are in another universe? Doesn’t that fracture the essential idea of one detail having the ability to knock huge chains of events off course? (What if X didn’t marry Y?) If “Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness” proves anything, it’s that multiverse movies hold even less water than time-travel movies — which sounds like nitpicking, but when you’re building an entire movie around this stuff, threadbare logic starts to balloon into chaos. As it turns out, having alternate versions of the characters mostly sands down their appeal — a key case in point being Chiwetel Ejiofor’s Mordo, who has gone from Shakespearean rock-star sorcerer to blunted antagonist.

The film was directed by Sam Raimi , making his first movie in nine years (after the mediocre 2013 smash “Oz the Great and Powerful”), and in a number of scenes you feel the companionable spirit and shifting imagistic flair he showed in the first two “Spider-Man” films. It’s amusing to see him feature the Illuminati as a kind of skewed-reality superhero team, or stage a duel fought with literal musical notes (a scene in which Danny Elfman’s “Night on Bald Mountain”-meets-doom-rock score excels). Olsen’s performance generates an operatic fire even as she’s styled like a barefoot mom soaked in Carrie White’s blood.

But Cumberbatch’s Strange winds up playing addled master of ceremonies to a loopy psychedelic chase movie that never settles down enough to locate its emotional core. Raimi has a gonzo side, which emerges when one of the three Stephen Stranges on hand turns out to be a rotting-zombie Strange accompanied by feral beasties. Even if you dig the anything-goes Raimi of the “Evil Dead” films and “Drag Me to Hell,” it feels a little incongruous in a movie that sometimes threatens to turn into a stoic primer on the MCU rules of engagement. Dreamwalking, the Darkhold, the Book of Vishanti — by the time the end credits roll, you may expect a pop quiz along with the traditional teaser sequence. Is this the future of comic-book cinema? Let’s hope not. For just because you followed it all doesn’t mean that “Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness” earns every one of its elaborate and at times exhausting convolutions.

Reviewed at AMC Lincoln Square, May 2, 2022. MPAA Rating: PG-13. Running time: 126 MIN.

• Production: A Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures release of a Marvel Studios production. Producer: Kevin Feige. Executive producers: Victoria Alonso, Eric Hauserman Carroll, Jamie Christopher, Louis D’Esposito, Scott Derrickson.  
• Crew: Director: Sam Raimi. Screenplay: Michael Waldron. Camera: John Mathieson. Editors: Bob Murawski, Tia Nolan. Music: Danny Elfman.
• With: Benedict Cumberbatch, Elizabeth Olsen, Chiwetel Ejiofir, Rachel McAdams, Benedict Wong, Xochiti Gomez, Michael Stuhlbarg, Patrick Stewart.

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There Is Hell, and Then There Is Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness

The pleasure of director Sam Raimi’s trilogy of Spider-Man films beginning in 2002 can be found in the bombast. Its arch dialogue and visual ecstasy serve to streamline our understanding of the characters, allowing them, as well as the world they inhabit, to feel uniquely real even with its heightened tone. The swooning camerawork elevates sequences like the failed surgery of Doc Ock (Alfred Molina) in Spider-Man 2 — darkness swallows the characters whole, while the cutting sound design of nails scraping against tile leaves you with goosebumps. The body can be a site of horror and power in the superhero genre, an idea that is made lightning bright by a combination of good scripting and the approach actors take to it. But in films as mammoth as these, the latter can only go so far.

In hiring a beloved “auteur” like Raimi to take over the Doctor Strange sequel, Marvel has given the Multiverse of Madness some heft. It has also piqued audience expectations for a familiar blend of pop art and macabre intrigue. These are expectations that aren’t quite met in the latest MCU installment, a truth not so much surprising as it is grimly disappointing. Your career either dies with some integrity or you live long enough for your artistry to be absorbed and nullified by the Marvel machine. And it’s easy to see why Marvel would absorb Raimi, with all his weight and prestige, into its machinery. Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness is trying for a blend of horror and humor, something close to the heart and terror that Raimi was able to bring to bear throughout his career. But here, his craft has been hemmed in, gamified, leeched of color and vivacity. The plot, as it stands, is held together with bubblegum and a prayer. Doctor Stephen Strange (played with a foot out the door by Benedict Cumberbatch) performs daring feats of sorcery and jumps through a variety of poorly crafted universes with America Chavez (Xochitl Gomez), an interdimensional being who can punch holes through universes (if only she could learn how to wield such abilities), in hopes of outmaneuvering the incredibly powerful, and now completely batshit evil, Wanda Maximoff–slash–Scarlet Witch (Elizabeth Olson).

There are moments with intriguing Raimi ideas behind them — when a tentacled beast’s eye is plucked out; when Doctor Strange possesses a corpse in another universe; when a mystical battle involves notes of music alight in the air; when a whole universe turns into a graying graveyard with only a single spark of life. Bodies here and there are left mangled and bloody, and alternate versions of characters we’ve come to know appear throughout. Multiverses have an intrinsically somber quality as they are evidence of the road not taken and the people who we could have been if things were different. But Doctor Strange ’s multiverse is neither emotionally resonant nor artistically agile enough to leave an impression. There’s a sequence in which America and Doctor Strange find themselves traveling through universes at a breakneck speed, each more debilitating than the last. One is underwater. Another transforms them into cartoon characters. In another, they’re garish, living paint. The ideas that hold a gleam of potential are shot down by the film’s rank ugliness, its incessant pace of exposition, the utter slog of the first hour, and the insistence on special effects that render the horrifying as textureless.

I come to Marvel films hoping for something to hold onto, for a wisp of the electric thrill audiences around me feel. Instead, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness left me more disenchanted than ever. How can I not raise my eyebrow at the casting of America Chavez, who has predominantly read as Afro-Latina in comics? How can I not notice that the Zombie Doctor Strange has less frisson than Billy Butcherson’s mangled corpse in Hocus Pocus ? Doctor Strange 2 is too keenly aware fans don’t need much to cheer at these wretched undertakings. These are corporate installments for shareholders rather than, you know, actual films. This is perhaps how we arrive at screenwriter Michael Waldron’s utterly sexist conception of Wanda.

Since the events of WandaVision (which you would need to watch to get what the hell is going on here), the Scarlet Witch has leaned full tilt into her now-villainous persona, eyeing America’s powers as a way to reach a universe where her fake children are actually alive. In this universe, dreams are windows into the lives of our multiversal selves, and for Wanda, her dream involves being a suburban housewife. Without Vision, or any inkling of Wanda’s desires beyond her children, this dream comes across as even more claustrophobic. Apparently Wanda — an immensely powerful witch who can bend reality — only aspires to be a mom. It’s her single, devouring need, and when it’s not met, she loses her mind, leading to death and destruction for everyone around her. Waldron’s story juxtaposes the composed Doctor Strange and Wanda to make evident her inability to control her emotions and her powers. (The characterization harkens back to the discomforting nature of Black Widow, who in Age of Ultron was revealed to have been sterilized . ) Marvel is cunning in how it projects the appearance of meaningful representation in its stories, whether it be the totemic royalty of Black Panther or the glimmer of queer folks in Eternals . If they’re doing white women so dirty, how can the rest of us expect any better?

Olson is saddled with a character so thinly written as a crazy bitch, who can neither control her emotions nor her great powers, that of course her performance is half-hearted and tepid. Cumberbatch is on autopilot beside her. Gomez is given only quips and exposition scenes, turning a character that is meant to be spunky aggressively bland. (I won’t even get into the Illuminati, a group of superheroes in another dimension that is so clearly meant to satisfy internet fancasting.) The film strives to be blatantly weirder, bloodier, and more gruesome than the usual MCU fare (which is really not saying much as this series is primed to appeal to the widest audience possible), but it remains so disconnected from the tactile experience of inhabiting a living body that the effort feels pallid. If you squint your eyes, you can see the Raimi sheen, but every broadly odd moment is ultimately devoid of the brio and complication necessary. After all, grotesquery isn’t solely about the images but what message they’re communicating. The message here: All this murder and insanity is the result of one woman and her desperate need to have (imaginary) kids.

Discussing Marvel films, and now TV shows, has come to feel like commenting on business decisions rather than artistic ones. The superhero juggernaut shows no signs of slowing down as it balloons in ways that force audiences to subscribe to Disney+ to understand the full litany of connections across its characters and worlds. It’s information gluttony. Yet audiences have been trained to subsist on scraps of diversity, of joy, of appropriately attuned bombast. There isn’t much else to say about these films. Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness feels like a bridge to further stories rather than a work that stands on its own. How can it when there’s no end on the other side of the bridge in sight?

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• <i>Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness</i> Is Extravagant, Messy, and Over-the-Top Crazy

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness Is Extravagant, Messy, and Over-the-Top Crazy

E ven though Marvel Cinematic Universe movies are now generally made by either big-name directors or young upstarts with an indie hit under their belt, it’s still hard to discern auteurist fingerprints on any given project. The action scenes always have a directed-by-committee feel, because they basically are: you need serious technicians to orchestrate all those characters flying to and fro, opening portals into new worlds with their laser eyes, or with lightning bolts jabbing forth from their fingertips, or with a can opener, a leaf blower, whatever they’ve got handy. Still, there are good reasons for terrific directors to take on these movies, which are the same reasons so many actors want to be in them: they’re the chief currency of the culture right now, and if an artist’s goal to is to reach people with a work of the imagination—even if that vision is essentially run through a Play Doh Pumper before it reaches the screen—who wants to be left out?

The best thing you can say about the moderately entertaining, if predictably excessive, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness is that if you squint and concentrate really hard, you can tell it’s a Sam Raimi movie. (The script is by Michael Waldron, the writer-producer behind the Loki TV series .) There’s a scrappy, gifted junior heroine who doesn’t yet know how to control her powers: her name is America Chavez—she’s played by Xochitl Gomez, of the recent iteration of The Baby-Sitters Club —and she wears a jean jacket printed with faded stars. Every time a character utters a line like “We’ve got to save America!” everyone in the audience, regardless of political persuasion, can agree. Still, as over-obvious metaphors go, she’s a good one, a representative of democratic principles in sneakers and a ponytail.

And even in the midst of its typically (for Marvel movies) convoluted plot, The Multiverse of Madness has a Raimi-like sense of bleak humor: Dr. Stephen Strange, a flawed superhero who often does the wrong thing for the right reasons, is again played, as in the 2016 movie preceding this one , by Benedict Cumberbatch . Again, he plays the character with one eyebrow perpetually arched, as it should be. This time, our surgeon-turned-superhero learns—from an encounter with America, whom he must save from a massive one eyed-octopus who has dropped from nowhere onto the streets of New York—that there’s not just one universe, the one we currently live in, but many. Who knew? Thusly, there are many different iterations of Doctor Strange, all of them decked out in the trademark sentient red cloak, but not all of them nice. In the universe in which T he Multiverse of Madness opens, Stephen Strange must watch his sometime girlfriend, Christine Palmer (Rachel McAdams), walk down the aisle to marry another guy. With his acerbic temperament, and his unwieldy ambitions, he’s lost her. Maybe, in another universe, he can get her back?

That’s not the chief preoccupation of Doctor Strange in The Multiverse of Madness, but it sets the stage for the movie’s best scenes, the ones in which Cumberbatch and McAdams, both charming and perceptive performers, get to interact with one another as human beings rather than as place markers in front of a green screen. Their finest moment occurs late in the film, a moment of bittersweet romantic reckoning for both of them. But before that, there is much trouble caused by a grim little objet called The Dark Hold, a.k.a. The Book of the Damned —you know this thing is no darn good. Apparently, Scarlet Witch (Elizabeth Olsen), the semi-villainous incarnation of mom and homemaker Wanda Maximoff , has gotten a hold of it and is attempting to use it to control every possible universe, so as to preserve the one in which her two young sons are still alive. Like those moms who spontaneously gain superhuman strength to lift 10-ton trucks off their toddlers, her motto is “I’m not a monster, I’m a mother.”

Both domineering and seductive, Scarlet Witch—who spends part of her time trance-floating in the Lotus position—is using a forbidden technique known as Dreamwalking to further her aims, and she must be stopped. The usual. Meanwhile, Doctor Strange faces off against numerous adversaries, like his old nemesis Mordo (Chiwetel Ejiofor), and another who shall not be named. In the movie’s most exquisite, inventive action scene, these two pluck glowing musical notes from the air and hurl them at one another; minims, crotchets, and semiquavers zing back and forth like Ninja stars. Now and then, reigning Sorcerer Supreme Wong (Benedict Wong) shows up with a dry wisecrack, but the movie could use more of him.

Because not even a Sam Raimi Marvel movie can be an actual Sam Raimi movie, in which all the available tools are used to best advantage. The tools aren’t the problem; it’s the requirements for using them, which are limiting to any director. Raimi’s long and robust resume includes three more-or-less delightful Spider-Man movies , a spicy western starring Sharon Stone (The Quick and the Dead), and the justly legendary zombie movie Evil Dead (1981), which has spawned several sequels and a remake. Among Raimi’s numerous gifts as a filmmaker is his sardonic touch, though he never gives in to empty cynicism. That vibe, at least, permeates this Doctor Strange, even if most of the action—extravagant, messy, so over-the-top crazy that it ceases to be amazing—is business as usual in the Marvel world.

The studio behind Doctor Strange in the Multiverse, Disney, has strongly cautioned those writing about the film against “revealing spoilers, cameos, character developments and detailed story points,” with the aim of giving audiences around the world the opportunity to enjoy their “movies to the fullest,” as opposed to just enjoying them moderately, which wouldn’t do at all. At the risk of angering the dark overlords who rule every conceivable universe, and even some inconceivable ones—I’m talking more about Marvel fans here than I am Disney—I shall reveal to you, with the imperious solemnity of Scarlet Witch meditating upon her invisible cushion, that one of these secret cameos belongs to Bruce Campbell . Those who know know. Everybody else is living in another universe, presumably the wrong one.

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Review: An enjoyable ‘Doctor Strange’ sequel delivers the flyin’, the witch and the red robe

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Double, double, gargoyles and rubble: There are witchy doings and evil twins aplenty in “Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness,” the spookily unhinged new entry in the Marvel Cinematic — uh, Universe? Multiverse? Whatever we’re supposed to call this increasingly hydra-headed Disney content behemoth, it has rarely ventured in a direction this playful, this ghoulish, this exuberantly grotesque.

That’s another way of saying that the latest Strange brew — full of mangled extremities, gouged eyeballs and other freaky flourishes — is the satisfying handiwork of the director Sam Raimi, whose long-overdue return to feature filmmaking is no less welcome for being tied to Hollywood’s most continually fatted cash cow.

Raimi, of course, comes to this assignment with no shortage of Marvel movie history under his belt. An early throwaway Spider-Man joke gently reminds you that he directed the original Spidey film trilogy (2002-07) for Sony, though he’s steered clear of the many subsequent chapters, including last year’s hugely successful “Spider-Man: No Way Home.” That dizzying adventure, with its trio of Spider-Men wreaking meta-havoc on the MCU cosmos, was in some ways a warm-up act for all the multiverse-rattling chaos in store here. Written by Michael Waldron (“Loki”), “Multiverse of Madness” begins with a giant octopus attack and spreads its narrative tentacles from there, yanking us into an alternately goofy and grisly story that pauses every so often to unleash a tidal wave of grief.

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Some of that grief is expressed, with a stiff and handsomely goateed upper lip, by Dr. Stephen Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch, superb as ever), the sardonic neurosurgeon turned mighty red-cloaked sorcerer who still carries a torch for his former lover and colleague, Dr. Christine Palmer (a game if underserved Rachel McAdams). But the real weight of this story’s emotional anguish is shouldered not by Strange, but by his old friend Wanda Maximoff (a spectacular Elizabeth Olsen), who — as dedicated MCU scholars with advanced degrees in “WandaVision” studies will know — has drawn on her formidable powers to blot out the trauma of her many unbearable losses.

That trauma still haunts Wanda’s dreams (she has nightly visions of her lost twin sons), and it now runs the risk of obliterating her soul. Determined to transform her shattered fantasies of a happy family life into a reality, Wanda, aka Scarlet Witch, has set her sights on conquering the multiverse — specifically, one of the many parallel universes in which a more carefree version of herself might settle down in undisturbed domestic bliss. It’s a heartrending vision, the kind that Faustian bargains are made of, and it floods the script’s sometimes inelegant, herky-jerky plotting with unexpected rivers of human feeling.

Wanda reminds you of Raimi’s long-standing affinity for witches, even if some of his haggard creations have been more memorable (Lorna Raver’s old crone from “Drag Me to Hell” ) than others (the three witches from the inaptly titled “Oz the Great and Powerful” ). Happily, he has a terrific performer here in Olsen; with fiery magenta eyes and a devil-horned tiara, she’s chillingly persuasive as a woman so devastated by her grief that she’s willing to inflict her own brutal casualties in order to overcome it. Building on the stealth emotionalism of her “WandaVision” arc, Olsen does possibly her most impressive work since her stellar debut in the 2011 independent drama “Martha Marcy May Marlene,” in which she also played a woman dangerously susceptible to the pull of mad, malevolent forces.

So emotionally dominant is Olsen here that Cumberbatch’s Strange sometimes feels less like a hero than a villain’s foil, which is honestly all to the good. Strange’s mission is simply to prevent Wanda from succeeding in hers, and to that end he’ll team up with a mysterious, multiverse-traveling newcomer, America Chavez (Xochitl Gomez, appealing if bland), who soon sends them flying through one interdimensional portal after another. (The various alternate universes, including a flower-forward vision of New York, are the standout elements of John Mathieson’s cinematography and Charles Wood’s trip-tastic production design.) Along the way, he also leans on some familiar faces, including his wizardly colleague Wong (the invaluable Benedict Wong); his old frenemy Baron Mordo (Chiwetel Ejiofor); and an alternate version of Christine who serves as a pesky reminder that love really is the most inescapable force in the multiverse.

Through the multiverse they go, crashing through various distorting and dreamlike mirrors — a cosmic labyrinth in which Strange and Wanda, in particular, will come face to face with a doppelgänger or two. Those surreal face-to-face confrontations allow the filmmakers to pose a few playful questions about fate, predestination and human decency: What binds us to our alternate-universe counterparts, and what sets us apart from them? Which recurring cycles can we break, and which mistakes are we doomed to repeat? These are rather different questions from the ones posed by the year’s other multiverse extravaganza, “Everything Everywhere All at Once,” and they land with particular force for Strange, who benefits, as ever, from Cumberbatch’s chronic unwillingness to seem too likable. Arrogance, cynicism and self-doubt become this Doctor Strange, initially obscuring — and then gradually revealing — his fundamental decency.

There’s still more: occult rites and ancient runes, high-altitude sanctums and acid-washed visuals, plus a bevy of out-there cameos that Raimi uses to poke fun at the elasticity of the multiverse. (It’s hardly a spoiler to note that it wouldn’t be a Raimi film if his favorite muse, Bruce Campbell, didn’t turn up in a scene or two.) There are also some deliciously pustular visions, including a few zombie- and wraith-like denizens who wouldn’t look out of place in Raimi’s “Evil Dead” movies. If Scott Derrickson, the director of 2016’s “Doctor Strange,” teased out the altered states and Far East mysticism in Steve Ditko and Stan Lee’s original comic books, then Raimi has found in this sequel a surprisingly accommodating vehicle for his ecstatic love of horror filmmaking (to say nothing of a darkly exultant score by Danny Elfman).

Raimi’s sheer passion for his material can sometimes overwhelm the coherence of his storytelling, and his unfashionable sincerity doesn’t always mesh with the breezy quip-a-minute tone that is the Marvel enterprise’s preferred comic idiom. I mean those both as compliments. Some overly busy cross-cutting and a few flubbed punchlines are a small price to pay for a filmmaker with enough of a vision to make you briefly forget that you’re watching another assembly-line product. That may not sound terribly inspiring, but in the context of an overall series where movie magic seizes hold only in fits and starts, it can feel downright heroic.

‘Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness’

Rating: PG-13, for intense sequences of violence and action, frightening images and some language Running time: 2 hours, 6 minutes Playing: Starts May 6 in general release

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Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness review: The loopiest, bloodiest Marvel movie yet

Turn and face the Strange, one far-out multiverse at a time.

Give Sam Raimi a multiverse, and he will take a mile. The director's Doctor Strange (in theaters May 6) feels like many disparate and often deeply confusing things — comedy, camp horror, maternal drama, sustained fireball — but it is also not like any other Marvel movie that came before it. And 28 films into the franchise, that's a wildly refreshing thing, even as the story careens off in more directions than the Kaiju-sized octo-beast who storms into an early scene, bashing its tentacles through small people and tall buildings like an envoy from some nightmare aquarium.

There are monsters everywhere in The Multiverse of Madness , the first one in a chaotic dream sequence that opens the story without preamble or explanation: All that Benedict Cumberbatch 's dapper, fussy Master of Mystic Arts knows when he wakes up is that he had to battle some glimmering incubus to save a girl, and that he died trying. The girl, it turns out, is named America Chavez ( The Baby-Sitters Club 's Xochitl Gomez), and she calmly sets him straight: It wasn't a dream, it was an alternate universe, which means there are infinite Other Stephens out there, fighting the same fight.

More ex-girlfriends too, though in this world the only one who matters, Christine Palmer ( Rachel McAdams ), is still marrying a man who isn't him. More pressingly, there's an unknown quantity of Wandas ( Elizabeth Olsen ) on the loose, and Wanda wants her children back, even if she conjured them from pure wishful thinking. Because Wanda is also the Scarlet Witch, reluctant supervillain, her whims can destroy worlds — and she's already begun by coming after America, whose universe-hopping abilities are the only thing she believes will reunite her with her two little boys, alive in every dimension but the one she's stuck in.

Whether this all sounds elementary to you or vaguely insane depends heavily, of course, on your familiarity with the MCU; there are no guard rails or lit-up walkways for the uninitiated here. Raimi, who made his name with the Evil Dead series and movies like Darkman and A Simple Plan before helming the first three Spider-Man entries in the early 2000s, freely treats it as license to let his freak flag fly, though it takes him about an hour to ramp up to full pandemonium, maybe because he has so much mythology and green screen to work in. (The number of cameos from the extended cinematic universe that drew gasps and cheers at a preview screening are numerous and worth not spoiling, though the internet is more than happy to correct that for you.)

The script, by Michael Waldron ( Loki , Rick and Morty ) skims over most of what you might traditionally call storyline, frog-hopping hectically across moods and bits of exposition to get to the next explosive set piece. But he does it nimbly too, throwing off one-liners and winks to the genre like flashbangs. Cumberbatch, his body superhero-yoked and his hair streaked with two paintbrush swipes of white at the temples, picks up those bits like little bonbons and rolls them around on his tongue, delighted. Olsen is another kind of movie, often by herself: a wrecked, furious woman from an Ibsen drama, desperate to get back to the things she's lost.

The fact that actors of this caliber — Chewitel Ejioifor , Benedict Wong , Patrick Stewart , and Michael Stuhlbarg also appear, some of them for only a handful of lines — is testament to the sheer gravitational pull of Marvel; you've never seen McAdams tell a bunch of swirling zombie goblins to go back to hell, and you probably never will again. Raimi mostly lets them in on the joke, though he also sends several of them off to spectacularly showy deaths (with many universes come many spares). He generally seems to thrill at throwing out the rule book, zipping giddily between dimensions — one is made of cubes, another bright splashes of paint — and reveling in a kind of squishy, explicit gore that the MCU's bloodless violence often studiously avoids.

In a movie that already contains multitudes, finding a throughline can feel like reaching for a rope swing in the dark; characters are grounded in urgent emotional intimacy one moment, and throwing bolts of CG lightning at demon-octopi the next. Chavez, as the girl the fate of all this relies on, is plucky and smart, but too broadly drawn to really register as her own distinct person rather than a carefully market-tested symbol. (More than once, someone says "We have to save America!" straight-faced.) In many ways, Strange is a mess, and probably 20 minutes too long at two hours (which in Marvel math, is still practically a haiku). It's rarely boring though, down to the last obligatory post-credit scene — whether or not there's method in the Madness . Grade: B

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Den of Geek

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness Review

Director Sam Raimi returns to Marvel for the mind-melting Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, one of the weirdest and most ambitious MCU entries of all time.

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There have been some whispers over the past year that post- Avengers: Endgame , Marvel Studios and the Marvel Cinematic Universe have been kind of… wobbly. Most of that hushed chatter is due to the less than stellar performances, both critically and financially, of films like Black Widow and Eternals , as well as the inconsistent quality of the studio’s Disney+ offerings. Was it possible that the mighty MCU might have lost its direction and momentum once the Infinity Saga ended?

Last December’s acclaimed Spider-Man: No Way Home put a lot of that speculation to rest, and now we’re here to tell you that Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness wraps it in a sack and buries it in a rooftop garden.

Directed by Sam Raimi , who is making his first Marvel movie and first superhero outing since completing his pre-MCU webslinging trilogy in 2007 with Spider-Man 3 , Multiverse of Madness lives up to its title in all sorts of ways. This is indeed a wild, hang-on-to-your-hat ride through a deliciously weird and often bonkers house of mirrors known as the multiverse , full of mind-bending moments, trippy twists, and a fistful of surprises so genuine that even Danny Elfman’s majestic score might not blot out the sound of millions of diehard Marvel fans’ jaws shattering as they hit the theater floor.

It’s also very much a Sam Raimi movie, and perhaps the most singularly identifiable vision of an MCU director since James Gunn sprang Guardians of the Galaxy on us nearly eight years ago. And more to the point, it’s a Sam Raimi horror movie, or at least what one would look like in the Marvel sandbox. Demons, monsters, reanimated corpses, jump scares, doppelgangers, and supernatural manifestations fill every corner of the often Dutch-angled screen, as Raimi races from scene to scene with barely a breath in between.

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Yet it’s also very much in line with Raimi’s ability to empathize with even the most lost souls in all his movies, a part of the director’s toolbox that’s supported by Michael Waldron’s zigzagging yet heartfelt script. Two storylines sit at the center of the madness: the unworkable and out-of-reach love affair between Stephen Strange ( Benedict Cumberbatch ) and Christine Palmer (Rachel McAdams) and, more importantly, the obsessive quest of Wanda Maximoff ( Elizabeth Olsen ) to find her children somewhere out there in the multiverse… children that her fraying mind refuses to believe don’t actually exist.

It’s Wanda’s search for her two sons, directly following up the events of 2021’s WandaVision TV series, that makes it fortuitous when she crosses paths with America Chavez (Xochitl Gomez), a young woman who seems to be the only person in existence with the ability to travel between universes. But America’s power is also exceedingly dangerous to the existence of any universe through which she passes, forcing Strange, Sorcerer Supreme Wong (Benedict Wong), and Wanda to face some hard, strange choices as they realize the fate of all the realities is at stake.

We won’t reveal much more than that, but Multiverse of Madness rolls out its narrative in fits and starts, and Raimi’s headlong, head-spinning approach to storytelling occasionally leads the director to get in his own way. Reflecting its own title, Multiverse of Madness has a frantic, on-the-edge-of-losing-control feel that sends it careening toward its next set-piece while the rest of us catch up. Sometimes the movie forcefully stops for an exposition dump that’s jarring, but Raimi’s tilting, whirling camera quickly dashes off again to the next tableau.

It’s one of those tableaux, in which Doctor Strange is introduced to the famed Marvel Comics tribunal known as the Illuminati , that will make a number of heads in the audience explode. There is fan service here aplenty, some of it already hinted at and some unexpected (drawing astonished gasps from members of the audience at our screening).

It’s also a moment that feels like it’s right out of the comics, and if anything, Raimi leans hard into comic book imagery, even more so than in any of his three Spider-Man movies. In fact, Multiverse of Madness might be the most outright comic book-y film in the entire MCU to date, not an easy task in a film series based on more than six decades of the damn things. But whereas earlier MCU installments might have held back or spoon-fed their more bizarre elements, Multiverse of Madness throws it all against the wall in often messy yet gloriously bizarre fashion.

Cumberbatch has grown increasingly comfortable in Strange’s cloak with each of his now six live-action appearances in the MCU, and he’s ably assisted by Wong, who throws off a lot of his previous “funny sidekick” vibe in favor of a more substantial presence. McAdams, reduced to little more than a stand-in in the original 2016 Doctor Strange origin story, is also given more to do. Gomez, who’s got appealing screen presence and fits the part, is too often reduced to the role of exposition machine in the course of the film’s events, and her performance suffers for it.

The top acting honors, however, go to Olsen as Wanda , who brings real, palpable, heartbreaking grief to the part along with an electrifying single-mindedness that makes you believe she’s one of the most powerful creatures in the MCU. The arc started for Wanda way back in 2015’s Avengers: Age of Ultron reaches its summit here, and Olsen gives it her all with raw force.

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Visually the film isn’t always striking but there are Raimi trademarks aplenty, including whip pans, sudden tilts, zooms, and inside-out viewpoints. It comes to life the most during its trippier sequences, including one showstopping plunge through a cascading series of universes that is psychedelic and strangely unnerving.  Elfman’s score also adds a great deal to the sense of disorientation, mixing grandiose strings with discordant single notes on the piano, and even the occasional screeching guitar.

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness probably won’t earn any new fans for the MCU, and it may even turn some moviegoers off as it’s definitely a harder, more violent, and macabre outing than we’ve seen from Marvel to date. It also doesn’t always land right; it’s shaggy and occasionally jumps its own tracks. But it will please the legions of established fans by embracing the comic book weirdness of it all with vigor and abandon, as Sam Raimi creates possibly the MCU’s most off-the-wall entry yet. Ironic that it would take such a crazily unsteady but rich movie to help steady the Marvel ship.

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness is out in theaters Friday, May 6.

Don Kaye | @donkaye

Don Kaye is an entertainment journalist by trade and geek by natural design. Born in New York City, currently ensconced in Los Angeles, his earliest childhood memory is…

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Review: doctor strange and the scarlet witch take on the 'multiverse of madness'.

Bob Mondello

After unleashing all kinds of trouble in Spider-Man: No Way Home, Marvel's Doctor Strange will try to clean up the mess in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness.

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Doctor Strange

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Watch Doctor Strange with a subscription on Disney+, rent on Fandango at Home, Prime Video, Apple TV, or buy on Fandango at Home, Prime Video, Apple TV.

What to Know

Doctor Strange artfully balances its outré source material against the blockbuster constraints of the MCU, delivering a thoroughly entertaining superhero origin story in the bargain.

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Dr. Stephen Vincent Strange

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Doctor strange in the multiverse of madness, common sense media reviewers.

Twisty, sometimes terrifying MCU film has scares, violence.

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this movie.

Encourages compassion, empathy, perseverance, team

Characters act bravely, selflessly, with compassio

Supporting characters are from various racial/ethn

A few jump scares involve a villain's ability to d

Shot of Doctor Strange shirtless. Two characters h

Strong language includes "s--t," "goddamn," "ass,"

Not much on-screen, but as part of the Marvel Cine

Doctor Strange drinks a few martinis at a wedding

Parents need to know that Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness -- which follows the events of Spider-Man: No Way Home and Loki -- centers around Doctor Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) helping mysterious, multiverse-jumping teen America Chavez (Xochitl Gomez) figure out which…

Positive Messages

Encourages compassion, empathy, perseverance, teamwork, even when it seems that all is lost, that defeat is inevitable. Movie, like others in MCU, is about balancing superhero responsibility with personal happiness, understanding that everyone needs help, and the idea that friends don't betray one another. Overriding message about ethical issue involved in sacrificing one person for the so-called "greater good."

Positive Role Models

Characters act bravely, selflessly, with compassion and empathy for individuals and the greater good. America is courageous, curious, kind. Stephen is still brilliant but also a tad more humble, able to admit his past mistakes and ask for forgiveness. He helps America despite the personal costs. On the downside, a character's selfish desires override their ability to empathize or fully understand the chaos and destruction they're creating.

Diverse Representations

Supporting characters are from various racial/ethnic backgrounds: America Chavez is cued as Latina, even though she's not from Earth; Wong is East Asian; Mordo is Black; Wanda and Christine are White. Incidental LGBTQ+ representation in a memory of America's: She has two moms. Sexist stereotypes about women not being able to think clearly when it comes to their children: Wanda is portrayed with motherhood as her sole motivation, which leads to her acting irrationally, with no concern for others' cost or suffering.

Did we miss something on diversity? Suggest an update.

Violence & Scariness

A few jump scares involve a villain's ability to defeat basically everyone, as well as creatures that do the villain's bidding. A fight destroys a space, as well as many of the people within it, some of whom are burned to death (down to ash). A body is resurrected and controlled from beyond the grave. High body count, with significant characters being injured or killed. Demonic beings try to kill a resurrected body. A giant monster has its eyeball pulled out.

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Violence & Scariness in your kid's entertainment guide.

Sex, Romance & Nudity

Shot of Doctor Strange shirtless. Two characters have had an intimate relationship and discuss how they've loved each other in many timelines. Longing looks, hand holding. In a memory, America sees her moms being affectionate.

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Sex, Romance & Nudity in your kid's entertainment guide.

Strong language includes "s--t," "goddamn," "ass," "damn," "stupid," "hell," "crap," etc.

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Language in your kid's entertainment guide.

Products & Purchases

Not much on-screen, but as part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, there are lots of off-screen tie-ins.

Drinking, Drugs & Smoking

Doctor Strange drinks a few martinis at a wedding reception where other adults also drink champagne, wine, cocktails.

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Drinking, Drugs & Smoking in your kid's entertainment guide.

Parents Need to Know

Parents need to know that Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness -- which follows the events of Spider-Man: No Way Home and Loki -- centers around Doctor Strange ( Benedict Cumberbatch ) helping mysterious, multiverse-jumping teen America Chavez ( Xochitl Gomez ) figure out which supernatural sorcerer is hunting her. Strange asks fellow Avenger/ WandaVision troublemaker Wanda Maximoff ( Elizabeth Olsen ) for her help across various timelines. Like the other movies in the Marvel Cinematic Universe , it has lots of comic book-style fighting and peril -- as well as themes of courage and teamwork -- but, thanks to director Sam Raimi , it's a much darker, more horror-based adventure than the typical MCU film. Expect jump scares, a resurrected dead body, violent deaths, graphic depictions of a decomposing body, and fatal fight scenes that decimate entire villages and have a high body count. People burn to death and are shown turning into ash, and characters explode, are crushed, seem to fall to their deaths, are impaled, have their necks snapped, and much more. There's no sex and barely any romance, although in a couple of scenes two characters embrace, hold hands, and stare longingly at each other. Language is occasionally salty, including some uses of "s--t," "ass," "damn," "goddamn," etc. To stay in the loop on more movies like this, you can sign up for weekly Family Movie Night emails .

Where to Watch

Videos and photos.

Community Reviews

• Parents say (99)
• Kids say (206)

Based on 99 parent reviews

witchcraft galore

Please be aware of darker themes, what's the story.

DOCTOR STRANGE IN THE MULTIVERSE OF MADNESS takes place after the events of Spider-Man: No Way Home , Loki , and WandaVision -- all of which are referenced in some way in the film. The movie starts with Doctor Stephen Strange ( Benedict Cumberbatch ) attending the wedding of his friend/former partner Dr. Christine Palmer ( Rachel McAdams ). During the wedding reception, Stephen transforms into Doctor Strange to intervene in a supernatural fight between two characters from the multiverse: a giant, evil, one-eyed octopus-like monster and a teenage girl named America Chavez ( Xochitl Gomez ). Having met another version of Doctor Strange, America knows that the creatures are being dispatched to steal her multiverse-traveling power, which she can't control and only manifests under severe, life-or-death distress. Strange enlists the help of Sorcerer Supreme Wong ( Benedict Wong ) and Wanda Maximoff ( Elizabeth Olsen ) to track down the Big Bad responsible for trying to hunt and kill America, but things don't go as planned. Stephen and America are thrust into yet another universe, where they seek help from that universe's Doctor Strange ... and whatever other superheroes might lend a hand.

Is It Any Good?

Director Sam Raimi's signature love of adventure and the macabre makes this Marvel sequel darker, more twisted, and more exciting than many other MCU movies. Fresh off of his scene-stealing supporting role in Spider-Man: No Way Home , Doctor Strange here faces one of the MCU's most formidable and powerful beings -- and teams with one of its most intriguing characters. America Chavez is fascinating, but while she has a lot of screen time in The Multiverse of Madness , her backstory is less important than the urgent fact that she's being hunted across the multiverse. Gomez is a charming and expressive young actor, and her time with Strange brings out his softer, less brusque/arrogant side. She's one of three women characters in the film whose performances elevate the movie beyond the original. McAdams is sort of the opposite of most of the MCU women, who start out as friends, rivals, or colleagues and end up as lovers. Christine is the one who got away. She returns here in two incarnations, and she's just the no-nonsense, truth-telling partner Doctor Strange needs in the titular madness of the multiverse.

Then there's Olsen, whose Wanda seems to be in a perpetual state of grief over what she's lost since the battle against Thanos. She embodies the Walt Whitman quote "I am large, I contain multitudes." She's empathetic even when she makes unimaginable choices (like keeping an entire town under her control in order to live out her domestic fantasies in WandaVision ). Of all the post-Blip Avengers, she's the one most unable to move forward, and there's an authenticity to her anguish that makes her storyline so heartbreaking. Raimi, working from a script by Loki writer-producer Michael Waldron, leans into darkness and horror that's both physical and psychological. Luckily for audiences, there's laughter to be shared, too, as well as top-notch cameos that may leave viewers gasping in surprise. This isn't the best, the funniest, or the most star-studded Marvel film, but it is memorable, melancholy, and good for a fright.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

Families can talk about Doctor Strange 's violence and how it veers into horror. How does it compare to what you've seen in other Marvel movies? For those familiar with director Sam Raimi's work: Which scenes here were reminiscent of his famous horror films?

How does "not getting the girl" impact Doctor Strange? How does the alternate Christine show him compassion and love? What does he learn from the two Christines?

What were Wanda's motivations? Why might this be seen as problematic? How do you feel female characters are generally portrayed in the MCU?

Why is the relationship between America Chavez and Doctor Strange important? How does representation play a role in her character profile?

Discuss the various Marvel superheroes who appear in this sequel. Which ones act as role models , and which ones don't? Is what's right and wrong always obvious?

Movie Details

• In theaters : May 6, 2022
• On DVD or streaming : June 22, 2022
• Cast : Benedict Cumberbatch , Elizabeth Olsen , Chiwetel Ejiofor , Benedict Wong , Rachel McAdams
• Director : Sam Raimi
• Inclusion Information : Female actors, Black actors, Asian actors
• Studio : Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures
• Genre : Action/Adventure
• Topics : Superheroes
• Character Strengths : Empathy , Perseverance , Teamwork
• Run time : 126 minutes
• MPAA rating : PG-13
• MPAA explanation : intense sequences of violence and action, frightening images and some language
• Last updated : May 15, 2024

Did we miss something on diversity?

Research shows a connection between kids' healthy self-esteem and positive portrayals in media. That's why we've added a new "Diverse Representations" section to our reviews that will be rolling out on an ongoing basis. You can help us help kids by suggesting a diversity update.

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Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness First Reviews: The Darkest, Weirdest, Most Horror-Inspired MCU Film Yet

Critics say elizabeth olsen steals the show and sam raimi reaches back into his horror bag to deliver a visually spectacular, surprisingly violent entry in the mcu..

TAGGED AS: Action , blockbusters , Comic Book , comic book movies , Fantasy , Film , films , Marvel , marvel cinematic universe , marvel comics , Marvel Studios , movie , movies , Superheroes

Sam Raimi returns to superhero movies with Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness , and even more than with his Spider-Man trilogy, the legendary horror filmmaker has infused this Marvel movie with his scary movie sensibilities. According to the first reviews of the latest Marvel Cinematic Universe installment, the Doctor Strange sequel is darker, weirder, and more surprising than most of the movies in the franchise. And also a Raimi movie through and through.

Here’s what critics are saying about Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness :

Where does this movie rank in the MCU?

The strangest Marvel movie yet. – Richard Trenholm, CNET

It’s refreshingly cornball in a way that Marvel rarely is. – Hoai-Tran Bui, Slashfilm

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness is unlike any Marvel movie you have ever seen… definitely the most intense and scariest. – Christie Cronan, Raising Whasians

Lacking the humanity — the heart and soul of Marvel that works so well when balanced with humor and spectacle… [but it’s] much better than the shallow fan service of Spider-Man: No Way Home . – Rodrigo Perez, The Playlist

The best MCU multiverse movie remains Spider-Man: No Way Home . – Rob Hunter, Film School Rejects

Most of the action — extravagant, messy, so over-the-top crazy that it ceases to be amazing — is business as usual in the Marvel world. – Stephanie Zacharek, TIME

(Photo by Marvel Entertainment)

How are the fan service cameos?

They are simultaneously less jam-packed than expected, enjoyable, fan-service-y, ridiculous, and quite well subverted. – Rodrigo Perez, The Playlist

It feels like Raimi acting in direct opposition to the fan service that he’s called upon to enact — you might even say that he kills the fan service in such a hilariously vicious way that it could only be intentional. – Hoai-Tran Bui, Slashfilm

Anyone expecting Multiverse of Madness to be a carousel of every possible Marvel cameo that has existed (or could exist) is going to be left disappointed. – Jenna Anderson, ComicBook.com

Fans may want to seriously temper their expectations in regards to the much-buzzed-about Illuminati as well as any other surprise cameos… They ultimately leave a lot more to be desired. – Rohan Patel, ComicBookMovie.com

While Marvel has usually provided fan service with a purpose, Multiverse of Madness does so in a way that is little more than giving audiences a moment to hoot and holler in the theaters, and little more. – Ross Bonaime, Collider

Will we be surprised?

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness has more twists than a bag of pretzels… The surprises are refreshing but with that said, some of them are hard to swallow. – Julian Roman, MovieWeb

Full of mind-bending moments, trippy twists, and a fistful of surprises so genuine that even Danny Elfman’s majestic score might not blot out the sound of millions of diehard Marvel fans’ jaws shattering as they hit the theater floor. – Don Kaye, Den of Geek

For better and (for some fans) potentially worse, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness doesn’t always feel safe. – Ian Sandwell, Digital Spy

Will it appeal to fans of horror?

As the film progresses, it ramps up the horror… building to the most macabre final battle you’re likely to see in a family-friendly blockbuster. – Richard Trenholm, CNET

It leans hard into the horror with an early eyeball-gouging setting the tone, followed by numerous impalings, charred corpses, and effective jump scares. – Ian Sandwell, Digital Spy

It’s something of a miracle that the film came in at a PG-13 rating, so thoroughly does Raimi test the limits of the MPAA’s tolerance of violence and gore. – Jake Cole, Slant Magazine

It teeters at times at the intensity of scary films such The Ring and The Exorcist . – Christie Cronan, Raising Whasians

The giddy second half of Raimi’s carnivalesque sequel almost hits with the same undead thrill of watching Evil Dead II for the first time. – David Ehrlich, IndieWire

There are some gnarly kills. – Courtney Howard, Fresh Fiction

So should the kids stay at home for this one?

I strongly caution and urge parents to prescreen this movie just for the horror content alone… Beyond traumatizing for young kids, especially those who love Marvel movies and shows. – Christie Cronan, Raising Whasians

It probably pushes the family-friendly vibe as far as the MCU ever will. – Ian Sandwell, Digital Spy

Is this truly a Sam Raimi movie?

This picture has the auteur’s signature written all over it. – Courtney Howard, Fresh Fiction

It’s a return to form for the director and hopefully only a sign of things to come for Raimi in the MCU. – Rohan Patel, ComicBookMovie.com

He is the ideal person to offer Marvel the gentle gut-check it’s needed for so long… This is the first MCU movie in which many of the shots have legible fingerprints on them. – David Ehrlich, IndieWire

No MCU movie to date… has so thoroughly displayed the personality and artistry of its director than Multiverse of Madness . – Jake Cole, Slant Magazine

As muted as Raimi has ever been. But even at his most muted, Raimi gives us one hell of a ride. – Hoai-Tran Bui, Slashfilm

Raimi is a great choice, and the sense of menace he injects into the movie is ace, but he’s never been particularly affecting with character instances. – Rodrigo Perez, The Playlist

(Photo by ©Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures/©Marvel Studios)

How is the script?

What works best about this movie is its themes… [It] unravels these feelings and stitches them back together in a pleasing narrative that is ultimately satisfying. – Sherin Nicole, idobi.com

It’s a surprisingly straightforward screenplay… If the same creative team returns for Doctor Strange 3 , we’d surely hope Raimi is more involved with the writing next time. – Rohan Patel, ComicBookMovie.com

I definitely hope that the script is tighter on the next outing. I won’t spoil anything, but what I can say is that some of the dialogue is on par with the supremely cheesy Moonfall’ s. – Amelia Emberwing, IGN Movies

The story lets it down and [it] could prove divisive for fans. – Ian Sandwell, Digital Spy

Do you need to watch the MCU’s TV series first?

Fortunately you don’t need an intimate recall of either show to follow the action in Multiverse of Madness. The film wears its continuity lightly. – Richard Trenholm, CNET

It is firmly planted in everything you’ve learned about the MCU up-to-date. Most recently the What If…? and WandaVision series on Disney+. You’re going to need those in your repertoire in order to keep up. – Sherin Nicole, idobi.com

If you haven’t seen WandaVision or some of the recent Marvel stories, you will be utterly lost. – Rodrigo Perez, The Playlist

How does it look?

The star of Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness is Raimi’s gift for visual insanity. – Michelle Kisner, The Movie Sleuth

Visually, the film takes things to another level. – Mae Abdulbaki, Screen Rant

If you’re after two hours of spectacle, it won’t disappoint and the multiverse setting is exploited to its fullest, visually speaking. – Carlos Aguilar, The Playlist

Where Multiverse of Madness truly excels is in Raimi’s sense of spectacle, which is put on display to an astonishing degree from the first frame. – Eric Eisenberg, Cinema Blend

How is Danny Elfman’s Score?

It’s not really surprising that it ruled. But it freaking ruled… Multiverse of Madness is worth the price of admission just to hear the score and see it at work. – Amelia Emberwing, IGN Movies

It’s the most gleefully outrageous score Danny Elfman has put to film in recent memory. – Jenna Anderson, ComicBook.com

Danny Elfman‘s score sees the composer on the same page with the director delivering an audible carnival ride when it’s not stuck trying to squeeze pomp and emotion from the screen. – Rob Hunter, Film School Rejects

Is Benedict Cumberbatch still great as Doctor Strange?

This is Benedict Cumberbatch’s movie through and through…arguably his strongest performance as Doctor Stephen Strange to date. – Rohan Patel, ComicBookMovie.com

Cumberbatch is having some delicious fun this time in several incarnations of Stephen Strange including fighting opposite himself, and this actor makes all of them unquestionably his own. – Pete Hammond, Deadline

Cumberbatch is fine, but he’s a victim of a film that’s so plot-heavy that he’s mostly just running from one CGI sequence to the next. – Brian Tallerico, RogerEbert.com

But does Elizabeth Olsen steal the movie?

Elizabeth Olsen is the standout as the super-sorceress Wanda, continuing her journey from WandaVision . – Richard Trenholm, CNET

Olsen steals the show as Scarlet Witch (the film should have really been called Scarlet Witch in the Multiverse of Madness ). – Brittany Murphy, Muses of Media

Olsen runs away with the film in her tortured, grief-stricken depiction of Wanda’s downward spiral. – Hoai-Tran Bui, Slashfilm

Elizabeth Olsen is constantly reminding us how easily she can shift into a capital-a-Actor as Wanda Maximoff. – Amelia Emberwing, IGN Movies

Olsen’s performance generates an operatic fire even as she’s styled like a barefoot mom soaked in Carrie White’s blood. – Owen Gleiberman, Variety

Is Xochitl Gomez’s America Chavez a great addition to the MCU?

One of the biggest highlights of the film is easily Gomez’s star-making turn… [She] brilliantly fits in alongside the veteran franchise actors. – Jenna Anderson, ComicBook.com

It would have been nice to see Gomez have more to do as America Chavez. In that regard, it was a bit of a disappointment, but…if the Young Avengers team ever comes to fruition in live-action, Gomez will make a wonderful addition. – Brittany Murphy, Muses of Media

Are there any major problems with the movie?

The personal journeys are lacking… On an emotional level, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness leaves a lot to be desired. – Mae Abdulbaki, Screen Rant

It never settles down enough to locate its emotional core. – Owen Gleiberman, Variety

If you’re looking for good characterization, emotion, and feels, you might have come to the wrong place. – Rodrigo Perez, The Playlist

I know MCU movies aren’t generally places for deep character work — I’m just saying it’s even more shallow here than normal, especially considering how the typically reliable Olsen nailed this character in her previous outing. – Brian Tallerico, RogerEbert.com

Will we want more MCU movies like this?

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness is unpredictable, inventive, and undoubtedly mesmerizing — and the MCU is better off for it. – Jenna Anderson, ComicBook.com

Is this the future of comic-book cinema? Let’s hope not. – Owen Gleiberman, Variety

The most disturbing part of this film is trying to figure out what the heck Marvel is trying to accomplish here and where they’re going to go next. – Christie Cronan, Raising Whasians

It’s fun to imagine them giving Raimi a small fraction of the usual budget, authorizing an R rating for the third Doctor Strange and saying “go make a Sam Raimi horror film.” – John DeFore, Hollywood Reporter

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness opens in theaters on May 6, 2022.

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‘Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness’ is Superhero Horror at its Best!

Director Sam Raimi delivers a scary superhero movie that has fun exploring Marvel’s multiverse.

(L-R): Rachel McAdams as Dr. Christine Palmer, Benedict Cumberbatch as Dr. Stephen Strange, and Xochitl Gomez as America Chavez in Marvel Studios' 'Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness.' Photo courtesy of Marvel Studios. ©Marvel Studios 2022. All Rights Reserved.

Opening in theaters on May 6th is the latest MCU movie and sequel to 2016’s ‘ Doctor Strange ’ entitled, ‘ Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness .’ Directed by Sam Raimi (‘ Evil Dead II ,’ ‘ Spider-Man ’) the new film once again stars Benedict Cumberbatch as the title character and follows the events of ‘ Spider-Man: No Way Home ’ and the Disney+ series ‘WandaVision’ as Strange must stop Scarlet Witch ( Elizabeth Olsen ) from destroying the multiverse.

In addition to Cumberbatch and Olsen, the cast also includes Benedict Wong as Wong, Chiwetel Ejiofor as Karl Mordo, Rachel McAdams as Christine Palmer, and Xochiti Gomez as new MCU character America Chavez. The result is a strong sequel that surpasses its predecessor and transcends the genre by introducing horror elements into the MCU. Sam Raimi delivers one of his best films, which is anchored by excellent performances from Benedict Cumberbatch and Elizabeth Olsen.

The movie begins with Dr. Stephen Strange (Cumberbatch) having a dream of helping a mysterious young girl escape from a demon. He awakes only to see the same girl running from a monster in the streets of New York. Strange saves the girl and soon learns that she is from another universe and that her name is America Chavez (Gomez). She has the power to move through the multiverse, and the demon chasing her is trying to steal her powers.

Strange goes to Wanda Maximoff (Olsen) for help, only to find that she is the “demon” chasing Chavez and wants her power to find her children who “disappeared” after the events of ‘WandaVision.’ In order to stop the Scarlet Witch, Strange and Chavez travel through the multiverse and meet alternate versions of Strange, Christine Palmer (McAdams), Karl Mordo (Ejiofor), and the Illuminati, which is an Avengers-level team within the multiverse comprised of new and different versions of Marvel characters.

Elizabeth Olsen as Wanda Maximoff in Marvel Studios' 'Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness.' Photo courtesy of Marvel Studios. ©Marvel Studios 2022. All Rights Reserved.

Without giving anything away, the Illuminati scenes are some of the best in the film and feature real surprises for fans. The actors that play different versions of characters they’ve played before are fun to watch in these new roles, while the actors playing characters we haven’t seen in the MCU previously, are all perfectly cast and have moments to shine. In fact, the Illuminati is a team I would love to see back in the MCU again, even if it is just on an episode of Disney+’s ‘What If …?’

As always with Marvel movies, there are two end credit scenes, and I won’t give either away. But I will say that the mid-credit scene features an A-list actress joining the MCU as a new Marvel character, and the end credit scene is just for laughs.

What elevates this film from the original is definitely the vision of master filmmaker Sam Raimi. The creator of ‘The Evil Dead’ series, as well as the man behind the first ‘Spider-Man’ trilogy, Raimi clearly has a love for the source material, he actually name-dropped Doctor Strange in ‘ Spider-Man 2 .’ Obviously, he also has a gift for making scary movies, and was able to push the horror in this film in a way he could not with the ‘Spider-Man’ films. Raimi is also a master at mixing horror and comedy, as seen in ‘ Army of Darkness ,’ and gets to do that a bit in this movie with a run-on gag featuring his ‘Evil Dead’ star Bruce Campbell .

Raimi fans are really going to enjoy this movie and will see his signature shots and camera movements all over the film. But the director also nicely blends his directing style with the material, the already established tone of the MCU, and the advanced visual effects that were not available when he began his career. Composer Danny Elfman ’s score also adds to the horror-vibes of Rami’s film and its dark tone.

The script by Michael Waldron is good and covers a lot of ground quickly. One complaint I do have, is that the basic plot is just too simple. “Strange has to stop Wanda while traveling through the Multiverse to save America Chavez,” a character he just met, by the way. But it does work and delivers fun characters and set pieces along the way.

Another downside to the movie is that it’s not really a follow up to ‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’ as previously believed. In fact, I think it’s only referenced once. The movie is really a follow up to the Disney+ series ‘WandaVision’ and I fear that if you didn’t see that show, some of Wanda’s motivations in the movie may be lost on you. However, the film does work hard to make you understand what happened to her and why she’d behaving this way, as misguided as it may be.

Elizabeth Olsen first played Wanda Maximoff in ‘ Avengers: Age of Ultron ’ and at the time it seemed like Marvel didn’t really know what to do with the character. But thanks to her relationship with Vision, she really grew through the latter Avengers films and has come into her own after the series and now with ‘Multiverse of Madness.’

Scarlet Witch is a full-on villain now and Olsen plays her well, with true conviction yet an emotionally vulnerable but also somewhat relatable side. It’s unclear where Marvel will take the character from here, and whether a redemption ark is in her future, but Olsen deserves credit for creating a truly memorable MCU character.

Benedict Cumberbatch as Dr. Stephen Strange in Marvel Studios' 'Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness.' Photo courtesy of Marvel Studios. ©Marvel Studios 2022. All Rights Reserved.

‘Multiverse of Madness’ marks Benedict Cumberbatch’s sixth time playing Doctor Strange on screen and with Iron Man gone, is now one of the premiere heroes in the Marvel Universe. While the first ‘Doctor Strange’ only gave a taste of the character, he’s grown through his experiences in the Avengers and Spider-Man movies and is at his best when sparring with fellow heroes, which this film includes quite a bit. Cumberbatch is charming, funny, and believable in the role, giving one of his best performances yet as the character. The actor also had the task of playing different versions of his character and gives each one a unique spin.

In the end, ‘Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness’ is a really fun and unique Marvel movie, which expands the genre by mixing horror with heroes. The film succeeds in large part thanks to Sam Raimi’s unique style, the horror elements, the multiverse concept, Benedict and Olsen’s strong performances and the surprise cameos.

‘Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness’ gets 4.5 out of 5 stars.

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness

Jami Philbrick has worked in the entertainment industry for over 20 years and is currently the Editor-in-Chief of Moviefone.com. Formally, Philbrick was the Managing Editor of Relativity Media's iamROGUE.com, and a Senior Staff Reporter and Video Producer for Mtime, China's largest entertainment website. He has also written for Fandango, MovieWeb, and Comic Book Resources. Philbrick received the 2019 International Media Award at the 56th annual ICG Publicists Awards, and is a member of the Critics Choice Association. He has interviewed such talent as Tom Cruise, George Clooney, Dwayne Johnson, Scarlett Johansson, Angelina Jolie, Oprah Winfrey, Quentin Tarantino, and Stan Lee.

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Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness

Doctor Strange teams up with a mysterious teenage girl who can travel across multiverses, to battle other-universe versions of himself which threaten to wipe out the multiverse. They seek he... Read all Doctor Strange teams up with a mysterious teenage girl who can travel across multiverses, to battle other-universe versions of himself which threaten to wipe out the multiverse. They seek help from the Scarlet Witch, Wong and others. Doctor Strange teams up with a mysterious teenage girl who can travel across multiverses, to battle other-universe versions of himself which threaten to wipe out the multiverse. They seek help from the Scarlet Witch, Wong and others.

• Michael Waldron
• Steve Ditko
• Benedict Cumberbatch
• Elizabeth Olsen
• Chiwetel Ejiofor
• 4K User reviews
• 414 Critic reviews
• 60 Metascore
• 10 wins & 29 nominations

Top cast 99

• Doctor Stephen Strange

• Wanda Maximoff …

• Baron Mordo

• America Chavez

• Dr. Christine Palmer

• Tommy Maximoff

• Billy Maximoff

• Dr. Nic West
• (as Michael Stühlbarg)

• Captain Carter

• Captain Marvel

• Reed Richards

• Professor Charles Xavier

• Pizza Poppa
• All cast & crew
• Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

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Did you know

• Trivia Benedict Cumberbatch revealed in an interview that Benedict Wong broke about four ribs when he slammed into something during a stunt.
• Goofs (at around 41 mins) The pizza ball vendor accuses the main (universe 616) Dr Strange of stealing universe 838 Strange's cape. Later, in a flashback (at around 1h 9 mins), 838 Strange's cape is blue, and 616 Strange's cape is red.

Charles Xavier : Just because someone stumbles and loses their way doesn't mean they're lost forever.

• Crazy credits There is a scene in the closing credits: Dr Strange encounters the sorceress Clea, who invites him to the Dark Dimension to investigate an incursion.
• Connections Edited into Marvel Studios: Legends: Variants (2023)
• Soundtracks Theme from Doctor Strange Composed by Michael Giacchino

User reviews 4K

• lovemichaeljordan
• May 3, 2022
• How long is Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness? Powered by Alexa
• When did filming begin? I know it started in November, but which day in particular did it begin on?
• Why do all the duplicates of the Multiverse look identical here when in the Spider-Man Multiverse they do not?
• May 6, 2022 (United States)
• United States
• Disney Movies
• Official Site (Japan)
• Phù Thủy Tối Thượng Trong Đa Vũ Trụ Hỗn Loạn
• Norway (on location)
• Marvel Studios
• See more company credits at IMDbPro
• $414,900,000 (estimated)
• $411,331,607
• $187,420,998
• May 8, 2022
• $955,775,804

Technical specs

• Runtime 2 hours 6 minutes
• IMAX 6-Track
• Dolby Digital
• Dolby Atmos
• Dolby Surround 7.1

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‘doctor strange in the multiverse of madness’ review: the good, the bad and the scary.

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Doctor Strange In The Multiverse Of Madness

Doctor Strange In The Multiverse Of Madness is a mostly terrific return to the magical misadventures of Stephen Strange and friends, though I’ve spent the last day or so pondering whether the film’s primary conflict really works.

While the movie is incredibly entertaining and full of fun twists and turns, one character’s arc left me feeling a bit unsatisfied. There’s also something of a disconnect between Spider-Man: No Way Home and Multiverse that left me feeling a bit letdown.

Still, these are ultimately small quibbles with a movie I mostly enjoyed a great deal. Let’s take a look at the good, the bad and the scary of Doctor Strange 2.

Spoilers follow.

The premise of the film is fairly straightforward as far as superhero movies go.

A young teenager, America Chavez (Xochitl Gómez) is on the run from demons who want to kill her and take her very special superpower: The ability to traverse the multiverse.

Chavez makes her way to Earth-616, the version of our planet that exists within the fiction of the MCU, pursued by a giant octopus demon. Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) and Wong (Benedict Wong) save her before she’s devoured.

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After some convincing, America explains what’s going on, and how she was just recently trying to get to a magical spell book—the Darkhold’s counterpart, the Book of Vishanti—accompanied by a different version of Doctor Strange who ultimately ended up turning on her, attempting to take her power rather than let it fall into the talons of the demon that was pursuing them. That version of Strange is dead now.

Strange and Wong send her to the magical fortress of Kamar-Taj in order to protect her from the demons. They also discover that the demon pursuing Chavez was summoned via witchcraft, so Strange pays a visit to an old friend: Wanda Maximoff. He thinks she might be able to help, but he’s very, very mistaken.

Wanda appears to be living a normal life in the country, tending to her orchard and her animals. She claims to have left magic behind her and expresses regret for her actions in Westview (if you haven’t seen WandaVision much of this film will not make sense; also, it’s the best MCU live-action show so far so please go watch it!)

Strange tells her it’s okay. Mistakes were made but she set things right.

At this point, viewers should be scratching their heads. We saw Wanda with the Darkhold, an evil magical tome, at the end of WandaVision, clearly pursuing magic with a newfound intensity. She’s clearly lying to Strange about leaving magic behind her, and this becomes even more apparent when she tells him, moments later, to “bring America here” where Wanda can protect her.

When Strange stops in his tracks with a puzzled look on his face, Wanda says, “You didn’t tell me her name, did you?”

The Scarlett Witch

Suddenly the orchard gives way to a forest of dead trees, a blood red sky. The illusion vanishes, replaced by death and decay.

This is the big twist. Wanda, it turns out, is the one who has sent demons out to track down America. Wanda, clearly possessed by the Darkhold, is the villain. She tells Strange that he can bring her the girl, or the Scarlett Witch can come and take her by force. He won’t give her up, so Wanda goes to Kamar-Taj and lays waste to it despite the dozens of sorcerers defending it.

It’s a great twist. I certainly wasn’t expecting Scarlett Witch to be the villain, though clearly there were plenty of hints along the way. We should have suspected it when Wanda took Agatha’s evil spell book and began studying it. The trailers for Multiverse masked the fact that Wanda was the bad guy, but not entirely. There were clues.

WandaVision All Over Again

Still, there’s something about the premise here that kind of bugs me. I think it’s perfectly plausible that Wanda would go full villain with the Darkhold, but haven’t we kind of done all of this before? WandaVision spun a mysterious and enthralling tale all about Wanda taking over a small town and its inhabitants in order to create the family she always wanted.

Wanda cast such a masterful spell that even she forgot the truth for awhile, believing that Vision (Paul Bettany) was still alive. Conjuring two children from thin air. Creating a false reality from the sitcoms she watched as a kid. She bent the fabric of reality, took over the minds of thousands of people, and wrapped her entire illusion in a powerful force field that was almost impossible to penetrate.

By the end, Wanda has realized that what she did was wrong, and that at least some of what she did was influenced and manipulated by Agatha Harkness (Kathryn Hahn) another powerful witch who used Wanda’s own illusion against her.

The problem I have with Wanda in Multiverse is simply that it feels like we’re retreading the exact same ground. Wanda went way, way over the top and crossed a ton of moral and ethical lines to bring Vision back from the dead. She ultimately had to reckon with these transgressions, let go of the ghost, and leave Westview—and her fake family—for good.

Fast forward to Multiverse and that entire arc is simply repeated. Wanda is, once again, crossing all sorts of lines in order to get to her real sons—the Billy and Tommy from other universes where they were actually born rather than conjured. Granted, she is being influenced by both her lasting grief and the dark magic of the Darkhold, but that doesn’t really change the narrative recycling that’s going on.

I liked the character arc Wanda had in WandaVision. She starts out as ignorant of what’s actually going on as everyone else. When she learns the truth, she doubles down rather than face just how messed up her actions have been. She refuses to see how the pain she’s causing others matters, but even Vision can tell that what she’s doing is wrong. By the time she finally has her showdown with Agatha, she’s realized that what she’s doing is cruel and immoral and she walks away from it all.

And now, in Multiverse, she goes through this entire arc all over again, except instead of the really fascinating mind control and illusion she employs in Westview, she now sends demons and bolts of red magic down to kill everyone in her path.

Christine, Strange and America

Granted, this leads to some great scary moments, and a few surprisingly violent scenes.

The Illuminati

On Earth-838, Strange and Chavez encounter the Illuminati, a group of powerful superheroes that don’t exist in quite the same fashion on Earth-616. The Illuminati are comprised of:

• Sorcerer Supreme, Baron Mordo (Chiwetel Ejiofor)
• Professor X (Patrick Stewart)
• Captain Carter (Hayley Atwell)
• Reed Richards / Mister Fantastic (John Krasinski)
• Maria Rambeau / Captain Marvel (Lashana Lynch)
• Black Bolt (Anson Mount)

The Illuminati reveal to Strange that in their war against Thanos, their version of Strange got his hands on the Darkhold and went completely insane. When he realized the damage he caused, it was too late and the other members of the organization he founded were forced to put him down. It looks like they’re going to do the same to Strange when the Scarlett Witch shows up, possessing the body of this world’s Wanda.

She kills almost all of them (only Baron Mordo survives) one by one in pretty gruesome ways, showing just how enormously powerful Scarlett Witch truly is. (Black Bolt’s death was straight out of a horror movie).

When Wanda then pursues Strange, Christine (Rachel McAdams) and America through some underground tunnels, director Sam Raimi (of Evil Dead fame) dials up the fear a few more notches.

And from here things just get weirder and darker and more exciting. Strange meets yet another version of himself—this one possessed by the Darkhold—who he has to fight in a battle of magical musical notes, one of the more clever cinematic magician duels I’ve encountered.

Later, he uses the forbidden ‘dream walking’ spell to inhabit the dead body of one of his alternative selves, leading to a zombie Doctor Strange confrontation with the Scarlett Witch that is completely bonkers.

Doctor Strange I presume

Love Conquers All

In the end, Chavez figures out that the only way to stop Wanda isn’t by fighting her (the only thing anyone has tried so far) but by giving her what she wants. Finally in control of her powers, Chavez opens a portal back to Earth-838 and the home of Wanda and her two sons. The boys are terrified of the woman before them. They run screaming to their real mother.

Strange had asked Wanda earlier what she intended to do with the real mom of the boys in the other universe and she didn’t have a good answer. When actually confronted with the reality of the situation, even the Darkhold’s evil influence buckles. She’s become a monster, something her own children find terrifying. She pleads and begs but it’s obvious that neither magic nor persuasion can change reality.

Wanda-838 walks up to her, a look of pity and compassion on her face, and says “Don’t worry. They will be loved.”

And so in the end, love saves the day. Wanda returns to her mountain temple and destroys every copy of the Darkhold across the multiverse. She’s “killed” in the crumbling ruins of her mountaintop retreat as it falls. (There’s no way she’s actually dead—even if Wanda-616 is no more, the multiverse gives infinite options for character revival).

This was a good way to wrap things up, though I think the movie overall lacked some of Spider-Man: No Way Home’s basic humanity. In that film, Peter Parker’s (Tom Holland) entire motivation is not to simply fight and defeat the bad guys, but to save them. Here, however, nobody talks about saving Wanda even though she’s clearly possessed by an evil book. And sure, she was also the villain of WandaVision but her motives are, if not pure, then at least born out of love. Tainted but not all evil.

Doctor Strange

All told, I enjoyed this movie a great deal. I enjoyed the darker spin on the MCU, the shocking deaths and more violent, bloody ways that those deaths occurred. This phase of the MCU is shaping up to be one of its best, with more magic and space/time/dimensional travel and just a bit more of each director’s unique mark on each film. The wide array of different TV shows, from What If...? to Moon Knight, on top of the MCU films means there’s a ton of variety and deeper, more layered stories to tell than ever before, which helps balance out the superhero fatigue many viewers are feeling by now.

Say what you will about Eternals, I actually enjoyed that movie and thought that it did something very different from any other MCU film though, like so many movies these days, it ran much too long. Doctor Strange felt very different from any other MCU movie also while also avoiding the long run-time, clocking in at a near-perfect 2 hours and 6 minutes long. It’s definitely worth the price of admission and you should see it on the big screen if you can.

Score: 4/5 Stars

Random Thoughts

• I’m a little disappointed that the events of Spider-Man: No Way Home didn’t play more directly into this movie. It’s just...strange...that Peter Parker and Doctor Strange screw up a spell that accidentally creates cracks and rifts in the multiverse but somehow this massive magical mishap has essentially zero impact on a movie titled Doctor Strange In The Multiverse Of Madness. I don’t get it. Surely they could have stitched the two films together a bit more?
• I love that John Krasinski was cast as Reed Richards and I genuinely hope that we get him in whatever Fantastic Four project Disney and Marvel are cooking up. I also loved this version of Professor X and his comic book inspired “wheel chair” and the cool way he enters Wanda’s mind.
• The very end of the movie (before the post-credits scenes, which I discuss in this post ) is so great. Strange is all happy and cocksure, leaving the Sanctum Sanctorum for a nice walk around town when he buckles over screaming and a third eye pops out of his forehead, just like the evil Strange in the ruined Earth he visited. I love how abrupt and surprising it was.
• Perhaps some of the disconnect or retreading of old ground in The Multiverse of Madness is because director Sam Raimi didn’t actually watch the entire run of WandaVision, relying on key moments to help inform his direction—though screenwriter Michael Waldron did. Raimi is a talented director but you’d think it would be a basic requirement to watch one of the most crucial pieces leading up to this story before making the movie.
• The next Disney+ MCU show is Ms. Marvel (June 8th) which I’m honestly not really looking forward to (I’m still finishing up Moon Knight which I like quite a lot so far, but I’m not sure we need quite so many MCU TV shows back to back). The next MCU feature film is Taika Waititi’s Thor: Love and Thunder (July 8th) which I think looks great . But I love most everything Waititi does, so I’m a little biased.

What did you think of Doctor Strange In The Multiverse Of Madness? Let me know on Twitter or Facebook . You should also sign up for my newsletter and follow me here on this blog and on my YouTube channel .

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Review: ‘Doctor Strange’ and His Most Excellent Adventure

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By Manohla Dargis

• Nov. 3, 2016

Most Marvel movies open like Robert Downey Jr.’s stand-up routine in “Iron Man” before it goes south. They deliver quips and silky come-hither nonsense, only to end up like a big green monster stuck on rewind: “Hulk smash!” again and again, ad infinitum. In between start and finish, there are moments of levity and discovery in the machined product, but too often you can’t see the movie for Marvel’s action plan. Its latest, the giddily enjoyable “Doctor Strange,” is part of Marvel’s strategy for world domination, yet it’s also so visually transfixing, so beautiful and nimble that you may even briefly forget the brand.

You don’t need to know Dr. Strange to know his story. A tale of hubris — with foolish pride and an inevitable fall — it opens in contemporary New York, where Dr. Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch), is flying high as a supersurgeon. After a crippling accident, he abandons his old life (partly embodied by Rachel McAdams, dewy and funny) for a grand exploit, traveling simultaneously into his soul and to the misterioso Far East. He meets leaders and fellow travelers, studies books and unlocks secrets, in time becoming a superhero with magical powers, a dubious goatee and a flirty cape that dries his tears.

Movie Review: ‘Doctor Strange’

The times critic manohla dargis reviews “doctor strange.”.

In “Doctor Strange,” Benedict Cumberbatch portrays a surgeon who learns how to bend reality after a crippling accident. In her review, Manohla Dargis writes: The giddily enjoyable “Doctor. Strange,” is part of Marvel’s strategy for world domination, yet it’s also so visually transfixing, so beautiful and nimble that you may even briefly forget the brand. Dr. Strange’s voyage of self-discovery is as old as the ancients where men become near-gods while training amid hazy, low-key lighting. The director Scott Derrickson and his crew push the medium’s plasticity, creating spaces that bend, splinter and multiply. The movie’s more lysergic sections are followed with carefully aligned narrative bricks and mortar and sometimes sealed with a quip, as if to reassure you that there’s nothing too far out about any of this.

Dr. Strange first popped out of the glorious head of Steve Ditko, the comic-book visionary who brought him to life with Stan Lee (a pairing best known for Spider-Man). Dr. Strange’s travels east evoke the inner and outer magical mystery tours of the 1960s, summoning visions of head-tripping and “Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds.” In a, well, yes, strange bit of timing, Dr. Strange appeared in 1963, around the time Harvard fired Timothy Leary and a colleague for conducting experiments with hallucinogens. Five years later, in Tom Wolfe’s “The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test,” the Merry Prankster Ken Kesey was downing acid and absorbed in “the plunging purple Steve Ditko shadows of Dr. Strange.”

“Doctor Strange” tethers its plunging purples, acid greens and altered states to a hero’s journey with its call to adventure, its mentor, its allies and its enemies. After his crisis, Dr. Strange lands in Nepal, where he meets a guide (Chiwetel Ejiofor, as brooding and sincere as Hamlet). There, he studies the way of the hero with the Ancient One (Tilda Swinton), a Celtic sorcerer, who in the comics emerged from the Himalayas and the West’s long fascination with, and appropriation of, Eastern mysticism. (The screenwriter C. Robert Cargill has said that some of the changes involving the sorcerer, originally from Tibet, stemmed from concerns that depictions of Tibetans might anger China, a movie market powerhouse.)

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