Doctor Strange [2016]

Language - English
Director - Scott Derrickson
Run Time - 1 hour, 55 minutes
Genre - Fantasy/Superhero
Starring - Benedict Cumberbatch, Tilda Swinton, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Rachel McAdams and Mads Mikkelsen

Doctor Strange is a typical Marvel movie, packed with a good script, brilliant actors, and a right mix of drama, action and comedy. Marvel Studios has done relatively well in introducing their 'non-mainstream' heroes to their shared universe. The story is gripping, and has been acted out brilliantly by Cumberbatch and the rest of the star cast.
One could say it's a smart addition to the already massive franchise.

Also, the movie is a visual treat. It has amazing reality and time bending sequences which have been generated so brilliantly, it would seem to throw you into a 'trip'. Although the storyline is a tad-bit predictable, it is still quite an enjoyable movie, mostly because of Cumberbatch and the VFX.

The story starts with Cumberbatch playing a successful, albeit an ego-maniacal surgeon, who loses the use of his hands due to a car accident. He tries to regain the ability through conventional and unconventional ways, but fails to do so. His last attempt takes him to Kathmandu, where a paraplegic had learnt to walk again. There he finds 'the Ancient One' (Swinton) who introduces Strange to the mystic arts which he must master to finally use his hands. Under the Ancient One and other trainers, Strange excels, until Kaecilius (Mikkelsen) attacks the magical sanctums of the world to summon 'Dormammu' from the dark dimension. The tale lies on how Strange attempts to defeat both Kaecilius and his master Dormammu.

Apart from Cumberbatch; Tilda Swinton and Chiwetel Ejiofor, portray their roles with great ease, both being extremely talented actors. Mads Mikkelsen can portray any villain which has already been proved in the hit TV show Hannibal as well as in James Bond starrer 'Casino Royale'. I felt Rachel McAdams was wasted in the movie, and she should have gotten a bigger role.

Not the best Marvel movie, but not the worst Marvel movie either, I would say Doctor Strange lies somewhere in the middle. But Kudos to Marvel for delivering such a niche superhero like Doctor Strange for the layman, cleverly. In all, a fun movie to watch, one should not want to miss out on it.

My Rating - 7.6/10