Doctor Strange: In The Multiverse of Lameness?
"Just because someone stumbles and loses their way, doesn't mean they're lost forever."
The quote above is the central theme of Doctor Strange In The Multiverse of Madness. And some might argue that the sentiment equally applies to the MCU following the release of this film. I watched Multiverse of Madness, also called MoM by some fans, with great excitement, only to be let down in many interesting ways. But, nevertheless, the film drastically shifted the trajectory of the MCU and is vital regardless of its divided reception.
MoM stars Benedict Cumberbatch as Doctor Stephen Strange, and Elizabeth Olsen reprises her role as Wanda Maximoff/Scarlet Witch. Secondary characters include America Chavez (Xochitl Gomez), Christine Palmer (Rachel McAdams), Karl Mordo (Chiwetel Ejiofer), Wong (Benedict Wong), Captain Carter (Hayley Altwell), and Professor Charlers Xavier (Sir Patrick Stewart).
The story follows the events of both Wandavision and Spiderman: No Way Home. Doctor Strange is attending Christine’s wedding when a monster (called Gargantos) attacks the surrounding city to hunt down the multiversal traveler, America Chavez. Following Stange’s and Wong’s interference, the monster is revealed to have been sent by the fully realized Scarlet Witch who then attacks Kamar Taj to capture America. When Strange and America escape during the attack, she uses magic to chase the pair to Earth-838, an alternate universe ruled by a group of powerful superheroes called the Illuminati.
Following the attack, she uses magic to chase Strange and America to Earth-838, an alternate universe ruled by a group of powerful superheroes called the Illuminati. Technically, the film’s main protagonists are Doctor Strange and America Chavez, who spend the entire duration attempting to thwart Wanda’s attempt at multiversal domination. But they are both pushed to the background every time Wanda enters the frame.
I’m not going to sugarcoat it: this movie is about the Scarlet Witch, not Doctor Strange. Worse, it bastardizes her strong character development at the end of her Phase 4 Disney+ series, Wandavision. The film also suffers from Vision’s absence, even though he was resurrected at the end of the series. Wanda transitions from a tortured heroine on the path to redemption to a ruthless, corrupt villainess, with no explanation provided apart from “magic did it”.
That said, Elizabeth Olsen did her job with every line in this movie. Although we have seen the Scarlet Witch as a hero (or anti-hero) for most of the MCU thus far, Olsen sold her perfectly as a compelling villain with strong motivations who needs to be stopped— the same way that Avengers usually stop their opponents. Even better, she was stylish and iconic while selling an otherwise unbelievable character shift and narrative. Another standout was Benedict Wong’s portrayal of Strange’s confident and current Sorcerer Supreme, Wong. He had a strong presence in every stage of the story. (I must note that he has had similar roles throughout Phase 4, causing some fans to dub it as the Wong Cinematic Universe.)
Another huge disappointment was the portrayal of the Illuminati. In the comics, the Illuminati is set up to be extremely wise and possess tremendous power. By contrast, the film’s Illuminati, which includes Professor Charlers Xavier, Karl Mordo, and Captain Carter along with Maria Rambeau’s Captain Marvel (Lashana Lynch), Black Bolt (Anson Mount), and Victor Reed/Mr. Fantastic (John Krasinski), was quite weak. In my opinion, the members were severely nerfed to make Scarlet Witch look even cooler when she confronted them in one-to-one battles.
Two cases that made me especially upset were Captain Marvel and Professor Xavier. Apart from her energy absorption powers, Captain Marvel has Kree DNA, making her body indestructible by typical means of superhero combat, which is utilized in MoM. However, the film’s demonstration seems to forget this detail. Additionally, in other media, we have seen Xavier hold his own against godlike beings, such as Apocalypse and Dark Phoenix. Yet, while he was the only Illuminati member to cause the Scarlet Witch some level of pain (when he entered her mind), their battle came across as one-sided at times. On top of that, Xavier’s confrontation with Wanda was a missed opportunity to finally reveal her true nature as a mutant and (potentially) introduce her status as the popular X-Men villain Magneto’s daughter, as she is in most Marvel media.
The manner in which Marvel hyped up Multiverse of Madness, and the fact that it had to follow No Way Home, set it up to fail. The contents of the movie itself did not live up to the standard (or rather, the promised cameos) presented in the trailer. On the flip side, fulfilling every fans’ dreams in this movie would have left very little room for scale in future movies. For instance, had Marvel established Magneto as Wanda’s father and somehow made this an X-Men movie, what would be left for an actual X-Men movie and potential Scarlet Witch project?
While we were all eager to see the doors that this film would open, the writers of MoM ultimately made it out to be more than it was. I advise viewers to surrender any preconceived notions while watching this movie, and chances are, you will find it quite enjoyable. For me, expectations killed MoM. Now, my hopes lie in the rest of Phase 4 and the Multiverse Saga.
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