Director:
Scott Derrickson
Starring:
Benedict Cumberbatch
Chiwetel Ejiofor
Rachel McAdams
Benedict Wong
Mads Mikkelsen
Tilda Swinton
Plot:
While on a journey of physical and spiritual healing, a brilliant neurosurgeon is drawn into the world of the mystic arts.
Review:
Doctor Strange, Benedict Cumberbatch, is a world renowned neurosurgeon. He is the best at what he does, he makes a ton of money, and has a massive ego to go with it. One night, on his way to a benefit, he’s driving his expensive car at unsafe speeds on windy wet roads and takes his eyes off the road. For possibly the first time in the man’s life, the worst case scenario happens to him and he’s not able to fix it. He careens off the side of the mountain and his hands are damaged beyond full repair. His entire life is now over.
Dr. Christine Palmer, Rachel McAdams, is a good doctor in her own right, and considers herself his friend, and tries to help him. He lashes out at her, after months of her helping, and he says some truly heinous things. She walks away and then he’s free to wallow in his miserableness. Except, he does continue to try and find a way to fix his hands. Using his last dime he travels to Nepal and searches for the Ancient One.
Doctor Strange continues the white male egomaniac tropes with the superheroes, but unlike Tony Strange actually grows by the end of the movie. We don’t know yet if that growth will stay or if he’ll backslide into thinking he’s the most amazing thing ever created, but I have high hopes. He actually gives Dr. Palmer a legitimate and good apology.
Dr. Palmer is one of only two women with significant speaking parts in the movie, that I remember. She at one point dated Strange, but apart from trying to help him get better and being a doctor is given no kind of backstory.
The other woman in the movie is The Ancient One, Tilda Swinton, she is ancient and powerful, and steals her long life from the dark one, Dormammu. She trains Strange and puts him in his place in several instances, which is very fun to watch. She pushes him. She recognizes that there is more than just a light and dark side, which ultimately is what creates what I guess will be the next Strange villain, Mordo, Chiwetel Ejiofor.
I liked Doctor Strange more than I remember, but clearly there are some troubling issues with it, though, that probably has a lot to do with the source material too. My hope is that there will be more female characters in the next one, because at this point it’s a glaringly obvious problem with the franchise.
4/5
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