Strange posterStarring Benedict Cumberbatch, Chiwetel Ejofor, Mads Mikkelsen, Tilda Swinton, Rachel McAdams, Benedict Wong]

Directed by Scott Derrickson

Marvel, in cinemas now (UK), November 4 (US)

Doctor Stephen Strange changes specialities following a terrible car accident…

No two ways round it,  this is the most visually stunning of all the Marvel movies to date, with some astonishing sequences that are totally captivating, and some inventive use of imagery that really does pull you inside in the way that some of the best of the original Marvel comics’ art did. (And I’m sure there are plenty who would add Benedict Cumberbatch to that list of visual marvels!) There can’t be much of the movie that didn’t require special effects treatment in some respect.

Cumberbatch makes an excellent Strange, both as the arrogant surgeon whose ego rivals Zaphod Beeblebrox’s before he’s sent crashing down to earth in a car accident, and as the trainee sorcerer, who knows he’s out of his depth but will still swim, even if not for the best of motives ( at least initially). Tilda Swinton and Chiwetel Ejofor likewise are strong throughout – particularly in the case of Ejofor, whose Baron Mordo anyone familiar with the comicbooks will expect to be on the side of the bad guys rather than as he is here. Rachel McAdams brings as much depth as she can to a rather weak part, and Benedict Wong has fun with his character. I wish I could say that Mads Mikkelsen brought the same dramatic intensity to the role that he did to Hannibal – or even Le Chiffre in Casino Royale a decade ago – but he doesn’t. His Kaecilius feels one-note throughout, and frankly he’s wasted in the role. As for his acolytes – they’re even more one-dimensional. It’s an origin story, so of necessity the focus has to be on Strange and his odyssey from asshole to Sorcerer Supreme, but, as they say, you judge a man by the quality of his enemies, and these were no Loki!

Derrickson brings a very different visual style to the table, and there’s a certain amount of reversal of the usual Marvel Cinematic Universe trends within the storytelling – we don’t end with everything being destroyed, which really does make a pleasant change – but the humour that sets the MCU apart from its DC counterpart is present and correct, particularly during the “Hogwarts training” sections. Michael Giacchino’s score is also worlds away from the bombast of the Avengers music (harpsichords and strings featuring heavily).

It’s a movie to see on as big a screen as possible – there’s about an hour of IMAX treated footage – but I do wonder how it will play in its much larger future life on the TV screen. Oh and yes, there are two extra scenes, one mid-credits, and one at the end that is relevant to the movie you’ve just watched, rather than setting up the next MCU outing!

Verdict: Good but not great, this has some excellent moments but is let down by some of the characterisation – or lack thereof! 7/10

Paul Simpson