First thing’s first, I found the movie title to be quite misleading. It insinuates that to enjoy this film, the only thing fans need to watch is its 2016 prequel but sadly that’s not the case. To completely understand the motive of the characters and their stories, you also need to add Wandavision, Spiderman: No Way Home, and What if…..? to your watchlist. Spiderman: No Way Home and What If…..? will help you understand a few plot points better but watching WandaVision is an absolute must.
In 2022, the M in Marvel clearly stands for the Multiverse. The fans got hooked on this idea in the latest Spider-Man installment which was released at the end of last year and now Doctor Strange 2 has also taken the inter-dimensional route. Without a doubt, this 28th Marvel movie is a visual spectacle and there are scenes where the audience will be stunned by the magic of VFX. Having said that, it is also fair to say this film won’t be remembered for much long mostly due to a weak storyline.
An Ensemble Worthy of a Better Script
The event in the first few minutes of the movie takes place after Doctor Strange opened the multiverse portal in “No Way Home”. As a result of this fiasco, he encounters a mysterious character America Chavez whose power is that she can travel in multiple dimensions. Due to her insane abilities, demons are hunting her down, and then it’s up to Doctor Strange and his companions to save her. Soon he realizes that he has to ask someone for help and that’s where Wanda comes in. But Wanda is fighting with her own demons and turns out to be more harm than help.
Doctor Strange 2 strived to be horror and a classic superhero adventure at the same time and ended up not justifying either of the genres. I genuinely appreciate the effort of creating a whole eerie vibe just through VFX but it just didn’t feel engaging enough. Another thing that fans felt confusing was multiple plotlines that came one after the other. While this was America’s big introduction and Gomez did a great job at holding her own, especially in front of veterans like Benedict Cumberbatch, Chiwetel Ejiofor, and Benedict Wong. It is given that America will be a great character going forward in the MCU universe but Doctor Strange 2 just wasn’t her movie to shine. Rachel McAdams’s Christine could have been played by anyone and this is an insult to how great of an actress Rachel is. She really deserved better than to be served as a plot device for Doctor Strange’s journey.
Treat For WandaVision Fans
When the movie was promoted two things were highlighted first Benedict Cumberbatch’s return as Doctor Strange and the introduction of Xochitl Gomez’s character America Chavez. After watching the movie I am a bit mad about how much the makers downplayed Elizabeth Olsen’s Wanda Maximoff. She truly was the star of this movie in terms of performance. I was most invested in her character, for me she was the center of everything. At the time when there is so much debate about good female characters, Wanda sure did have shortcomings but it was Olsen’s impactful acting that can make you sympathize with Wanda even when you know she doesn’t deserve it.
Sam Raimi’s Plausible Effort
At this point, everyone knows Scott Derrickson was supposed to direct the Doctor Strange sequel but had to let go due to creative differences. A little digging into the matter and it was revealed that he intended to make this movie a lot more darker. Marvel wasn’t ready to take that risk so they replaced him with their trusted visionary Sam Raimi. Sam has created his name in the business after giving a plethora of blockbusters like the OG Spiderman franchise and the classic Evil Dead movies. He truly meshed his forty years of experience to create Marvel’s first horror/adventure movie but it just wasn’t captivating enough. For me, the best parts of the movie were its horror bits because the rest of the events were sometimes too overwhelming.
What Works For Doctor Strange 2 and What Doesn’t?
The timing of Doctor Strange isn’t that great as it was released after soon after some ultra-successful projects from Marvel. It didn’t create the hysteria like Endgame neither it had the anticipation of Spiderman. The concept of the Multiverse has already prepared the audience for the possibility of multiple cameos which just doesn’t shock as much. The Eternals played the cameo card right when they introduced the new entry Eros played by Harry Styles as it was a classic Marvel post-credit reveal.
The problem with Doctor Strange 2 is that it just isn’t enough. It’s not scary enough, not emotional enough, and certainly not good enough. While the hardcore Marvel fans would find it an interesting watch, especially those who loved WandaVision, the others would think it’s just a filler to keep the fans occupied.