Doctor Strange

Cast: Benedict Cumberbatch, Rachel McAdams, Tilda Swinton and Benedict Wong

Director: Scott Derrickson

Release Date: 2016

Running Time: 1hr 55 minutes

Genre: Action/Fantasy

Rating: PG-13

Format: Blu-Ray

Synopsis:

Doctor Stephen Strange is a very talented neurosurgeon who after a tragic car accident must put his ego aside and learn the secrets of a hidden world and alternate dimensions.

Benedict Cumberbatch is probably someone you are more used to seeing in the role of "Sherlock Holmes" however he was surprisingly fantastic in this film. Steven Strange is pretty content with life, he's extremely good at being a neurosurgeon, on route to a very important party, all dressed up, driving in his swanky car he has a serious car accident and has permanent nerve damage in his hands, even after recovery. Marvel Comics seem to be producing better and better films, the more they go on with the recent success of "Captain America: Civil War" and "Deadpool" it's no surprise that this film also became a box office success. Dr Strange is a wonderful film about determination, courage and wisdom. It's an eye opener to something some believe to be real, astral projection.

Scott Derrickson has made a very interesting move as a director after directing two popular horror movies, the very creepy "Sinister" and "The Exorcism of Emily Rose" , it's a very brave move, and one he should be proud of, because this is a very entertaining film. Dr Strange has just the right amount of backstory on Steven without allowing the audience to get bored, it's clear very early on that Steven is not only very good at his job but obsessed with it too, a perfectionist at his craft. Benedict Cumberbatch and Rachel McAdams have a very interesting relationship through out this film, their chemistry is screen is very good and believable. Speaking of believable Cumberbatch delivers a very convincing American accent through out the film. This could be the film that really shows what Cumberbatch is capable of. Tilda Switon never fails to impress, she's an extremely good character actor, she brings fantastic characterization to every character that she plays, her character in this movie is no different. Tilda plays the Ancient one, someone who can allow themselves to go into the astral dimension, her character reminds of that of Aang in "The Last Air Bender" in terms of looks and in personality. She delivers a really fantastic performance in this film.

This film reminds me of the hit movie "Inception" the buildings that tumble over one another in another dimension over the city of China. Director of photography Ben Davis, clearly wanted this film to be all about the special effects and the stunning photography, because there is no end of it, don't get me wrong it looks brilliant, however it is all about the special effects, it takes you away from the storyline every so slightly. The production department haven't done a bad job however there are moments where I think they could have done better, unfortunately there are so many special effects, that you can't always tell what is a real set and what has been computer generated in. Probably the first Marvel film, I've seen in a while where the majority of the film is near enough just special effects and nothing else, none the less it does look good and works brilliantly with the storyline. Chances are if you really enjoyed "The Last Air Bender" you'll really enjoy this. They are very similar.

Michael Giacchino has also very recently composed fantastic films like "Rogue one: A Star Wars Story" and "Star Trek Beyond", the score to this film isn't too bad, it works well, although the movie doesn't call for much of a score, unlike "Deadpool" where the story and the dialogue worked beautifully alongside the music, Dr Strange doesn't need that, however that said, Giaccchino could easily have composed a much more exciting score to go along with the film. The majority of the score however really does support the mood of the film, Although it's exciting there is a serious mystery to the film too. This is a really entertaining and fun film, it's safe to say that Cumberbatch and director Scott Derrickson have very bright future's ahead of them, I'm looking forward to seeing Dr Strange in more upcoming Marvel films. Any fan of Benedict Cumberbatch is going to love this.

Blu-Ray Bonus Features:

A Strange Transformation:

A nine minute featurette on the making of the movie. Very short and basic. A little insight into the production and costume design with Director Scott Derickson.

Strange Company:

15 minute featurette on the fantastic actors starring in Doctor Strange, particularly Benedict Cumberbatch.

The Fabric of Reality:

A fifteen minute featurette on the costume and production design. Bringing them to life.

Across Time and Space:

Thirteen minute featurette on the stunt/fight work on the movie. Very interesting to see how fight sequences were shot, watching the actors train martial arts.

Deleted and Extended Scenes:

Pretty interesting deleted scenes, that personally were chosen rightly so as deleted scenes. Rather long and boring.

Gag Reel: 

Four minutes of the cast and crew having fun on the set of Doctor Strange!

Audio Commentary:

Commentary by Director Scott Dickinson.

5/5 stars