#Movie Review: Doctor Strange and The Multiverse of Madness Is A Horror Film!

(CONTAINS SPOILERS)

Benedict Cumberbatch returns as Dr. Stephen Strange in Marvel’s “Doctor Strange and the Multiverse of Madness,’ the long-awaited sequel to 2016’s “Dr. Strange.”

Strange is visited by a young woman, America Chavez (Xochitl Gomez) and a version of himself, both from another universe, being chased by a demon. Strange’s double dies, but the young woman tells him there is chaos in the multiverse and she is being hunted.

He is not entirely surprised by this, because he has seen her in his dreams, and he (and Marvel audiences) knew of the Multiverse concept from the previous Spider-Man film, in which Strange tampered with time and space to make everyone forget Spider-Man’s identity, thus unleashing the chaos.

America can travel in the Multiverse (with limited control, however) which makes for a great plot device, but it’s not used as much as it could be, with them only travelling to one major alternate universe – one in which Strange has died. Much more could have been done and more fun could have been had with the concept. This is shown by the alternate Earth’s crosswalk lights and alternatives to the Avengers (there called “The Illuminati”) – including a surprise member or two from other franchises.

Instead of more of these fun surprises, though, things turn dark as they both battle Wanda Maximoff, who has become The Scarlet Witch (Elizabeth Olsen, reprising the role from Wandavision) whom Strange hoped would team up with them. 

She declined, because she has her own reasons to travel into the multiverse and tamper with it. While her reasons are pure, her use of dark magic is ultimately destructive.

Before they go into the other universe, the two have to battle an interdimensional octopus, a demon who is out to get America. An unintentionally funny part of this fight scene is the unnamed Extra shown running past Strange with a briefcase. Due to an editing error, he runs past Strange six or seven times, each time looking back at the monster as papers fall out of his briefcase. 

Benedict Wong plays Wong, the Sorcerer Supreme in our universe, whose character plays a pivotal role in the fight later in the film, and Chiwetel Ejiofor plays Karl Mordo, the Sorcerer Supreme in the alternate universe, who may or may not be an ally.

As the plot unfolds, Strange finds a way to confront Maximoff in another alternate universe but does so in a rather gruesome way that has... consequences. 

The film has some serious horror elements at times and this may be far too scary for young children.

While there are some missed opportunities here to explore the multiverse in a fun and more complete way (last year's Spider-Man: No Way Home explored the concept better, as did 2018's animated Into The Spiderverse) I'm sure the concept will be explored in future Marvel films, and this is definitely a watchable installment of the MCU. But be warned of its intense horror elements, which will turn off some viewers and is likely too intense for the youngest Marvel fans.

Note that there are two post credit scenes, one at the extreme end of all the credits that is quite funny but not a preview of coming attractions.

#Movie #Review "Everything, Everywhere, All At Once"

The filmmaking duo Daniel "Dan" Kwan and Daniel Scheinert, collectively known as "Daniels,” have brought a unique film to the screen, “Everything, Everywhere, All at Once.”

To use the words “unique” and film in the same sentence these days seems almost impossible, since Hollywood loves to imitate rather than innovate. 

But this is no derivative sequel, it’s utterly unique and different. 

The elements it brings together, however, aren’t. In the same month that Marvel brought “Dr. Strange and the Multiverse of Madness” to the screens, and previously a cartoon version of Spider-Man, the concept of a multiverse has had some high-profile exposure to the public. 

The concept here shares some elements with those other films. Through an unknown force,  people are able to travel to other universes, created by choices they made in the past. Each path, every choice, creates a new universe. In this film, the lead character, Evelyn Wang (played by Michelle Yeoh) must rise to the challenge and defeat a super being (inhabiting her daughter, Joy (Stephanie Hsu) who has a secret that those in another universe fear. 

That other universe contacts Evelyn, who with her husband Waymond (Ke Huy Quan - who played "Short Round" in "Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom") owns a laundromat, and is in trouble with the IRS. They contact her through a psychic link with her husband, who informs her that she can contact other universes to acquire skills (like martial arts) that will help her in her fight. 

The cast is rounded out by 93-year-old James Hong as Gong Gong, Evelyn’s father, who famously played Hannibal Chew, the eyeball-creating geneticist in Blade Runner and voiced Chi-Fu in "Mulan," and a stunning performance by Jamie Lee Curtis as Deirdre Beaubeirdra, the long-suffering IRS agent who transform into a vicious kung fu fighter - after hilarious interactions with Evelyn as she audits her messy laundry business records.

Despite its sci-fi elements, the film has some strong fantasy sequences, especially when the secret that Joy is working on is revealed. It’s very reminiscent of “Hitchhiker’s Guide To the Galaxy” in many respects, and if you enjoy absurdist humor (Joy’s bagel, the "talking rocks" universe, the multiple uses of Deirdre’s awards, and “Raccaccoonie”) you’ll love those parts of the film.

But it also strives to be more profound than all this. Hoping to transcend it’s sillier elements, it seeks, in the end, to make a serious statement about life and relationships.

I’m not sure its succeeds in that but it’s a very fun ride to take, and the effects in this admittedly low budget film (compared to Marvel’s films, anyway) are well done, and some are “practical effects,” done without green screens or computers, with only a handful of people.

The film clearly wants to be an international sensation. Parts of the early scenes are in Chinese, with English subtitles. Clearly, the Nearly all-Asian cast will play well in China – a significant market for films today – but some elements, like Joy’s girlfriend Becky, the raunchy sexual humor, and the history of Evelyn’s father rejecting her, in part because she’s female, will go against the grain of traditional Chinese values. 

Still, this is well worth seeing in the theaters.